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First Look Inside The Most Important Subway Transfer Of Our Time: Bdwy-Lafayette To Uptown 6
By
Nell Casey
Published Sep 25, 2012
Modified Sep 25, 2012
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The caution tape is removed and the first commuters make the transfer (Nell Casey/Gothamist)
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By
Nell Casey
Published Sep 25, 2012
Modified Sep 25, 2012
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After dangling the carrot for what seemed like an eternity, the MTA officially opened the transfer between Broadway-Lafayette and the uptown 6 train at Bleecker street this morning. And though it's been visible in the station for months, "Hive (Bleecker Street)," the hexagonal honeycomb light display on the ceiling, also made its official debut this morning. Artist Leo Villareal designed the piece, using LEDs to create pretty kinetic patterns swirling above commuters' heads. Drop a tab of acid and check it out:
The long-awaited project began over four years ago and involved extensive excavation of Lafayette Street to extend the uptown 6 platform, and excavation of East Houston to refurbish the East Mezzanine, which has been closed since the '80s. The installation of five elevators and an escalator make the hub fully accessible to disabled customers and marks "key" stations 79 and 80 in the MTA's plan for 100 fully ADA-compliant stations.
Here's a visceral, first-hand look at the hotly-anticipated new transfer, from the uptown 6 platform to the promised land of Broadway-Lafayette:
Transit President Thomas Prendergast and MTA Chairman Joseph Lhota gathered in the rehabilitated East Mezzanine with Congressman Jerrold Nadler, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, State Senator Daniel Squadron, Assembly Member Deborah Glick and Councilmember Margaret Chin, all of whom praised the MTA's efforts to improve accessibility to disabled passengers and make commuting easier for the 30,000 expected to pass through the transfer on weekdays.
"The truth is, we learned a very valuable lesson in the '70s when we deferred maintenance and didn't invest in our capital projects; we had a subway system that was in great deterioration," said Manhattan Borough President Stringer. "I'm very glad that we've learned the lessons from the past and moving forward we have an MTA Chairman that truly understands that investing in our transit system is really investing in New York City."
In the last four years, the MTA has created four new transit hubs like this one at Bleecker Street and hopes to continue creating more transfers in the future. "We're putting a new program together for 2015 − 2019 but you should know that this program is still unfunded," Lhota revealed, but didn't specify what projects would be covered if and when the MTA raises the capital. Could a connection to the Prince Street N/R station be next?
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