FASTRACK Coming To The 1, 2 & 3 Lines
FASTRACK has been a highly talked about topic over the last couple of months. The program has MTA NYC Transit shutting down entire segments of lines during stretches of time to get as much work done as possible. The alternative would be stretched out weekends of service diversions to catch up.
The program initially debuted on the 
, 
, & 
with highly successful results. The next lines setup for it are the 
, 
& 
which will be shutdown between 34th St-Penn Station & Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn. Here is a press release from the agency with more info:
MTA New York City Transit is bringing FASTRACK to the Seventh Avenue Line this month following success on the Lexington Avenue Line in January. Beginning Monday, February 13, the 1, 2 and 3 Lines will be shut down from10 p.m. until 5 a.m., suspending Seventh Avenue service between 34th Street-Penn Station and Atlantic Avenue, Brooklyn in both directions for four consecutive weeknights.
• 1 train service will operate between 242nd Street and 34th Street-Penn Station. There will be no 1 service between 34th Street-Penn Station and South Ferry.
• 2 service will operate between 34th Street-Penn Station and East 180th Street then be rerouted via the 5 between East 180th and Dyre Avenue. 5 service will operate all night in Manhattan and to/from Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn. 5 service is rerouted via the 2 between East 180th Street and 241st Street.
• 3 service will be completely suspended; Free shuttle buses operate to and from 3 stations at 148th, 145th and 135th Streets. 4 trains will operate local in Brooklyn and extend to New Lots Avenue.
• 42nd Street S shuttle will operate through the night.
Customers should plan to transfer to other lines at these key transfer points: Times Square-42nd Street ACENQRS7, Atlantic Avenue-Pacific Street DNQR45, and 59th Street-Columbus Circle ACD.
During the Lexington Avenue FASTRACK closure, which took place in January, work crews were able to accomplish 300 tasks including repairing platforms, scraping peeling paint and applying fresh coats, installing new lighting, cleaning tracks, repairing defects and conducting critical inspections of signals and switches. In four nights, we were able to accomplish what would normally have taken two months to complete.
By providing a more productive work window, Transit employees will be safer by avoiding the interruptions of repeatedly having to “clear up” for trains going by. In order to accomplish our maintenance tasks we chose four corridors to shut down overnight four times a year between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. Those corridors all begin at Manhattan’s Central Business District (CBD):
• Lexington Avenue 456 from Grand Central-42nd Street to Atlantic Avenue
• Seventh Avenue 123 from 34th Street to Atlantic Avenue
• Sixth Avenue BDF from 59th Street-Columbus Circle to West 4th Street
• Eighth Avenue ACE from 59th Street-Columbus Circle to Jay Street-MetroTech
Only subway line segments with substantial subway alternatives are selected for the overnight shutdowns. So, in addition to nearby lines, there may be other lines running that don’t usually operate during the late night hours in order to help accommodate customers. In order to avoid further inconvenience, we will avoid other service diversions in the area affected by the closure. Our next FASTRACK overnight closure will be on the Sixth Avenue BDF lines from February 27 to March 2.
System-wide, NYC Transit’s weeknight ridership is approximately 250,000. The closures will affect from 10% to 15% of those riders depending on the line segment. When a line segment is closed at night, customers can expect to add 20 minutes to their usual travel time. Alternative transportation options will be detailed in announcements and posters on trains, in stations and on selected buses; brochures will be available in both English and Spanish. Information will also be available on the web at www.mta.info and through social media, email and text alerts.
Click here for the pdf with complete information (including a map).
xoxo Transit Blogger
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