As part of the proposed $51.5 billion 2020-2024 Capital Plan, an additional 20 subway stations will be made fully ADA accessible.
The MTA said in a press release that the new stations will build on the 48 additional accessible stations previously announced and are part of a total of 70 subway stations that will receive an unprecedented $5.2 billion investment.
“New Yorkers deserve a subway system that works for everyone. This historic investment of $5.2 billion for accessibility in the next Capital Program will be life-changing for our customers,” MTA Chairman and CEO Patrick J. Foye said in a press release.
The original 48 stations chosen in September met their “two-station away” coverage goal—meaning that passengers would not have to travel farther than two stops to reach an accessible station—and included transfer points and complexes as well.
The 20 new stations will serve a variety of subway lines and help increase citywide geographic coverage. They were chosen based on transfer, demographics, connections, ridership, constructability and synergy with other MTA projects. The locations were also chosen based on community input.
“All New Yorkers deserve equal access to their city and we must do everything in our power to accelerate the implementation of ADA accessibility in the transit system,” said New York City Council Speaker Corey Johnson in a press release.
Johnson added, “I want to thank the MTA for taking another important step in that direction and the Council looks forward to continuing to work with the MTA and the Department of City Planning to ensure that we develop new policy strategies to help deliver the ADA station improvements like elevators that we so desperately need.”
The MTA tweeted about the improvements, including a list of the locations saying, “The Bronx! Brooklyn! Queens! Staten Island! Manhattan! Elevators are coming. See the full list of stations that we plan to make accessible during the next five years.”
The Bronx! Brooklyn! Queens! Staten Island! Manhattan! Elevators are coming. See the full list of stations that we plan to make accessible during the next five years. pic.twitter.com/IbEz1oWZ1S
— NYCT Subway (@NYCTSubway) December 19, 2019
Image Credit: MTA
