8 THE QUEENS COURIER • AUGUST 15, 2019 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Flushing-Main St. 7 line station crumbling, DiNapoli says
BY MARK HALLUM
mhallum@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli issued
a report on a declining state-of-good-repair
across all subway stations that is not
surprising anyone — not even the MTA.
Th e report derived MTA data from
2017 that showed that of the 15,500 components
across all 471 stations in New
York City Transit, 29 percent of them were
worn or damaged, an increase of two percentage
points from 2012 numbers.
Th ings are particularly bad in Queens,
according to DiNapoli’s fi ndings, as 44 percent
of all subway stations in the “World’s
Borough” were found to have “worn or
damaged structural components.”
Th e Flushing-Main Street Station of
the 7 line stood out in the report as the
most heavily used stop in the borough,
but also sporting a dismal 45 percent
of the structural components worn or
damaged. Platform edges, ventilators and
other structural components had seen the
greatest spike in poor repair between 2012
and 2017.
But the MTA claims that while the data
is correct, the comptroller’s offi ce may
have misrepresented the data. One transit
expert who weighed in claimed anyone
with familiarity with city’s transit system
is already aware of these problems and the
government’s priorities may be misplaced
in addressing them.
“Years of underfunding for the MTA
capital program has translated into a longer
list of needed repairs in New York
City’s subway stations, fewer stations in
good condition, and ever-increasing rider
aggravation,” DiNapoli said. “Th e rising
number of potentially hazardous worn
or damaged platform edges is particularly
troubling. On the plus side, the MTA
has been able to reduce the number of
the most serious station defects, but a lot
more needs to be done to address declining
station conditions.”
Th e MTA defended the state of its infrastructure
claiming that the data oversimplifi
es diff erent types of issues, with some
components not posing any sort of safety
issue.
“As the comptroller notes in his report,
NYC Transit has made signifi cant strides
at station repairs systemwide thanks to a
station maintenance program that focuses
on addressing individual components
with serious defects,” MTA spokesman
Tim Minton said. “Th e comptroller’s conclusion
about the number of stations in
fully repaired condition is fl awed in that
many more stations contain only minor
issues, aff ecting neither safety nor the
customer experience. Th ose stations are
understandably not prioritized for immediate
repair.”
Larry Penner, a transit historian who
spent 31 years with the U.S. Department
of Transportation Federal Transit
Administration’s New York offi ce, told
QNS that the fi gures came as no surprise.
“Th is is nothing anyone in the transit
industry did not already know,” Penner said.
With the state focusing on widespread
improvements across all systems and lines
while facing a $1 billion defi cit by 2022,
Penner said other improvements such as
Phase 2 of the Second Avenue Subway
should be placed on hold.
“At the end of the day, it is a question of
available funding to keep the 471 subway
stations in a state of good repair. You also
have the added challenge of making many
more stations ADA compliant by adding
elevators,” Penner continued.
Stringer calls on the LIRR to improve Queens stations
BY MARK HALLUM
mhallum@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
City Comptroller Scott Stringer is asking
the MTA to fess up about putting
off long overdue LIRR station improvements,
even while the agency careens
toward a serious defi cit with other major
improvement projects underway.
Not only did Stringer issue a letter
demanding an explanation why stations
are behind on modernizations, he also
looked for answers as to why the railroad
scrapped multimillion-dollar plans for
new stations in Sunnyside and Elmhurst.
For residents outside the reaches of the
subway, Stringer said LIRR service should
not only be a viable option but an aff ordable
one with reduced fares for travel
within the city.
“Instead, far too many are underutilized,
inaccessible, deteriorating and
locked behind an exorbitant pay wall,”
Stringer said. “Th is issue isn’t just about
basic maintenance – it’s an issue of fairness.
Behind every motionless elevator
or deteriorating station there are New
Yorkers who can’t travel.”
Th e $3 million St. Albans station renewal
will not include elevators, according to
Stringer, to which the MTA said they
have an ADA Task Force that deliberates
on how inaccessible stations can be
remedied.
“Th e Long Island Rail Road is committed
to improving accessibility and station
conditions not just in Brooklyn and
Queens but throughout the entire system,”
MTA spokesman Shams Tarek said.
“Details about the next capital program
for the maintenance, repair and upgrade
of LIRR infrastructure will be available in
the coming months and the current historic
reorganization of the MTA and its
agencies will focus resources on customer
facing improvements more than ever
before.”
Th e MTA also rebutted that the
Hunterspoint Station has received stairwell
upgrades with safety features.
Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney
attempted to urge a a response from
the MTA in February regarding the
Sunnyside station, claiming there were
matching federal funds available for the
build, but if the agency failed to put the
station in motion, that money disappears.
Th e LIRR’s response to Maloney and
other civic leaders from western Queens
was that before any investment in the
Sunnyside station can be made, East Side
Access must be completed. Th is $11 billion
project with funding from both the
most recent MTA fi ve-year capital plan
and federal funds will link LIRR service
from Queens to Grand Central Terminal
through new East River tunnels. But the
project is still in the offi ng with a 2022
completion date.
Th e Elmhurst station was also removed
from the fi ve-year capital plan, as the
LIRR cited a need to completion of Main
Line Double Track Phase 2, part of a $2.6
billion project to increase service on a
9.8-mile corridor between Floral Park
and Hicksville.
Photo: Mark Hallum/QNS
Photo: Mark Hallum/QNS
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