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New York plans “historic” $5.2bn spend to make stations accessible

New York City’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has revealed that $5.2bn will be spent on increasing accessibility to 23 stations across the five boroughs.

The city is seeking design-and-build teams to work on projects at 17 subway stations, three Staten Island railway stations, two LIRR stations and one Metro-North station.

The work, which is part of the MTA’s $51.5bn 2020-2024 capital plan, will include:

  • Bringing stations into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act
  • Installing two-to-three elevators per station, with relevant structural and excavation work
  • Electrical power upgrades
  • Station communications systems upgrades
  • The relocation of existing public and transit utilities
  • The replacement, relocation and addition of staircases from street to mezzanines
  • The reconstruction of platform edges and boarding areas.

Patrick Foye, MTA’s chairman, said: “Accessibility is a top priority for the MTA, and we are committed to completing these accessibility projects as quickly as possible.

“The Capital Plan’s historic $5.2bn investment in accessibility brings us one step closer to creating the equitable transit system New Yorkers deserve.”

Janno Lieber, MTA’s chief development officer, added: “We are going to deliver these accessibility improvements better, faster and more efficiently, not only by requiring design-and-build, but also by bundling these projects across MTA agencies to take advantage of proximity. Innovation is the driving force of this approach.”

Image: The New York subway (Hakob Davtyan/Dreamstime)

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