52nd Street Station
May 3, 2017 By Jason Cohen
Paint chips containing dangerous levels of lead have been falling from some of the elevated 7 train lines and two state legislators are looking to pass legislation requiring that the elevated lines city wide be examined for health risks.
The elevated 7 train, which just celebrated its 100-year anniversary serving Queens, hasn’t been repainted in more than three decades and now lead paint is chipping off.
A recent report by the District Council 9 International Union of Painters and Allied Trades revealed that paint chips falling from the 52nd Street 7 train station were found to contain lead amounts of 244,000 parts per million, which is equivalent to about 50 times in excess of the legal requirements for lead.
On Monday, State Senator Jose Peralta (D-East Elmhurst) and Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz (D-Bronx) introduced legislation that would require the Metropolitan Transit Authority and the New York City Transit Authority to examine the levels of lead paint at elevated subway tracks and stations throughout the city.
The measure also mandates that the study be conducted in cooperation with the Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of Health, which will determine the degree to which the MTA complies with the federal Clean Air Act.
Under their proposal, the MTA would submit a report with recommendations to eliminate any possible exposure to lead by falling paint chips.
The MTA would present the findings to the governor, mayor, the temporary president of the state senate and the speaker of the assembly. The study would “review past renovations to stations to determine the amount of lead paint abatement.”
“I am pleased to announce this legislation with my colleague Senator Peralta so that we can have a better picture of the steps that have and will be taken to remove dangerous lead paint from our communities,” Dinowitz said in a statement.
Councilman Danny Dromm (D-Jackson Heights, Elmhurst) shares his colleagues’ sentiments. Dromm noted that he first identified the issues with lead paint and the 7 train several years ago.
“If there is one thing we’ve learned, it’s that we can’t trust the MTA,” Dromm said, referring to the state agency.
However, Dromm had his doubts as to the effectiveness of the proposed legislation.
“If the state legislature can’t force the MTA to correct the situation and keep New Yorkers safe, no study can. It’s time we start the process of returning NYC Transit to city control.”
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15 Comments
Eff the pigeons
Eff the lead
That pigeon poop is worse
Disorder
Who really cares? If your so stupid to eat chipped paint you deserve to get poisoned. Especially on dirty Roosevelt ave.
This would never happen in Britain!
MTA needs to get the lead out.
Follow the money all the way to the stained glass tycoons!
exactly –
Idiotic.
Thirty years since the last paint job? But they put stained glass windows on the concrete section of the same line. Corruption has a certain stink, doesn’t it?
Told ya all a couple of weeks ago lead paint covers the whole elevated system…and you all shouted me down. Tsk. Tsk. Ya can’t learn anything new if you don’t listen to other people. The MTA needs to fix this now. It’s a major public health issue that’s only going to get worse as time goes on.
Next I’ll tell you about the massive lead pipe issue in all this Pre-War buildings. It makes Flint look like child’s play.
You never said that.
…of course and so obvious, older and pre-war building ALL have old lead pipes…no matter how much they renovate the interiors..decors>>old LEAD pipes are everywhere and there’s NO oversight or accountability however…as long as the R.E. market is booming…chi-ching, chi-ching..all that matters, right?
They paint it all the time, isn’t the lead at like the bottom layer now. There’s prob lead all over the dang old place here in New York City. Anyhow, good for them to take the lead on the lead. Hope they aren’t led down the wrong path though? I am just glad I do not own a single condo in Sunnyside.
As long as you don’t eat them, the paint chips won’t hurt you.
as pointed out in the town hall meeting with the mayor and jvb the mayor says the state owns the MTA so let all the queens officials call on the governor –