52nd Street station in Woodside (Photo: Queens Post)
July 6, 2021 By Christian Murray
The MTA’s plan to overhaul six dilapidated stations along the 7 line is moving forward, the agency told the Queens Post on Friday.
The MTA says that it has completed the design work to rehabilitate the 52nd Street, 61st Street, 69th, 82nd, 103rd and 111th Street stations– with a contract to be awarded for the work in 2022.
The work has been planned for some time but was put on hold due to COVID-19. The agency had planned to award a contract in 2020.
The work is long overdue, residents say, as the 7 train stations in Woodside, Jackson Heights and Corona have been in poor condition for many years with stairs falling apart, platforms in disrepair and paint peeling from the station walls.
103rd Street Station (Photo: Queens Post)
The overhaul of the stations will be comprehensive, according to the MTA.
“The components to be addressed include, but are not limited to: platform edges, stairways, structural columns and beams, lighting, windscreens, etc. The work will also include artwork and painting of the station,” the MTA spokesperson said.
“The purpose of the station renewal work…is to eliminate all defects and to improve the overall safety and appearance of each station,” the spokesperson said.
The work at the 61st Street station, however, will also include “more substantial structural repairs of supporting steel structure.”
The current budget to revamp the six stations is approximately $300 million, with the work funded in the MTA’s 2015-2019 capital plan, the MTA said.
The MTA plans to advance two contracts. One contract will be to revamp the 61st station—with the other to overhaul the five others.
The six stations are among the worst in the 467-station system. The Citizens Budget Commission back in 2015 noted that the 52nd Street station was the worst station in the system—with 79 percent of its structural components—defined as stairs, platform edges, ventilators and more– not in a state of good repair.
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20 Comments
Does anyone know where/how to find out how the 7 schedule will be altered to accommodate the renovations? MTA site makes no mention, and I’d like to know when I’m going to be without a train at 82nd Street.
I’m quite pleased that the MTA is moving forward with the planned renovations for the (7) Train stops in Queens. Those subway stops are in very bad shape, and they are in desperate need of some serious repairs anyway. Here what I’m hoping that the MTA would be doing during the project:
Phase 1: (7) Trains will skip 52nd Street-Lincoln Av, 69th Street-Fisk Av, 82nd Street-Jackson Heights, and 103rd Street-Corona Plaza in both directions.
Phase 2: (7) Trains will skip 111th Street in both directions.
Phase 3: The 61st Street-Woodside station would be closed for 1 platform at a time. 3A would close off the Manhattan-bound platform with (7) local trains skipping this station; express trains would stop at this station on the opposite platform. 3B sees the Flushing-bound platform closed. (7) local trains would skip this station; express trains would stop at this station on the opposite platform.
No elevators?
No but there will be a trans turnstile
When is Willetts Point going to be made ADA accessible! I have to drive to Mets game and pay fir parking because the station is not ADA accessible.
What a bunch of cry babies. Let’s put an elevator in all 400 subway stations so homeless people can use them as bathrooms. Do you know the cost?!
What is wrong with you? Not everyone can go up and down the stairs. Disabled and elderly people deserve to use the subway just as much as you do.
Watch the Mets on tv so we don’t have to pay for an elevator.
Mets never win what’s the point
Thank you all involved for finally fixing 52nd Street station. If MTA could work with the parks department, an elevator might be possible for this station. Happy to see the renovation/overhaul project is going forward.
Before the pandemic…
Should I go to home Depot for you?
Buy a level this time.
One of the two stairways to the platform on the Flushing bound side at 40th Street was closed for 18 months for “repairs”. It closed three months before COVID started and only opened recently. I will give them credit though, the repairs are absolutely invisible.
so is the MTA still working the same way…$1 for you the vendor and $1000 for me in my pocket. for reference, a 100 unit apartment building in Elmhurst goes for $20 million. there is no way that repairing 6 stations costs $300 million. someone’s skimming funds by the millions.
It’s call lobbying not skimming
The $32 billion MTA 2015 – 2019 Capital Program provided funding to upgrade the Mets Willets Point ($48 million), 111th Street ($16 million), 103rd Street ($18 million) and 82nd Street ($22 million). The original schedule called for contracts to be advertised and awarded with a notice to proceed to the winning contractor in 2018. Additional stations including 69th Street ($17 million), 61st Street Woodside ($17 million) and 52nd Street ($18 million) The original schedule called for contracts to be advertised and awarded with a notice to proceed to the winning contractor in 2019. Why wasn’t this work initiated on time? Who is going to pay for the additional costs if the contractors bids come in above the NYC Transit Engineers cost estimates and available funding station by station? How will this work impact #7 local and express service during construction? Riders, taxpayers, transit advocates, transit reporters and local elected officials deserve an explanation from the MTA rather than just a Press Release.
(Larry Penner is a transportation advocate, historian and writer who previously worked for the Federal Transit Administration Region 2 NY Office).
AGAIN!!!! The MTA is not providing ADA access. Appearance does not help the disabled or seniors.
You are supposed to take a bus to a station w/ an elevator, like 61st street. Yes, it may be inconvenient bit it’s unrealistic to expect the MTA to put elevators in every station.
No, it’s not unrealistic to put an elevator in every station no more than sayíng it is unrealistic to put stairs in every station. Many people need elevators: people with mobility problems, wheelchair users, people with suitcases and large packages, people pushing strollers, people with little children, tired people, some seniors, people with a sprained ankle trying to get around. That’s a lot of people.
300 million down the drain. in toronto, every subway station has an elevator. nyc isnt even in the stone age. it’s in the ice age. someone is stealing this money.
On 52nd St, one stair has been closed on “emergency repair” at least 4 months before Covid, if they can’t get that done, imagine an elevator. But the turnstiles were updated, go figure.