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Rockaway pols blast MTA over sorry state of end-of-line subway station
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
Published Feb 10, 2026
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Ramsey Khalifeh / Gothamist
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Ramsey Khalifeh
Published Feb 10, 2026
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A pair of city councilmembers who represent the Rockaways sent a letter to MTA Chair Janno Lieber last week calling for the agency to release a timeline for repairs to a dilapidated subway station in their neighborhood.
The letter from Joann Ariola and Councilmembers Selvena Brooks-Powers said locals have repeatedly raised concerns over the condition of the Rockaway Park-Beach 116th Street station, the final stop on the Rockaway shuttle. It came two weeks after Gothamist reported the MTA fenced off nearly half the station’s platform, making the section inaccessible to riders with disabilities.
“The current status of this station makes daily travel more difficult, more stressful, and in some cases impossible,” the letter said.
Gothamist reported MTA workers said the closed-off section of the platform was at risk of collapse. As a result, full-length A trains that reach the station can only open the first half of their car doors, which then requires passengers in the back half to walk in between train cars to deboard.
MTA officials have said only 5% of the trains that run to the station are full-length, and that the platform remains safe. But the lawmakers said the ordeal has still challenged elderly riders and those with disabilities to safely exit the train at the terminal station.
“When riders are forced to navigate broken infrastructure, walk through cars to exit trains, or plan their days around uncertainty, the message is unmistakable: Some communities are expected to accept less,” the letter states. “That message is unacceptable.”
MTA spokesperson Laura Cala-Rauch said the repairs to the station are slated to be finished by the end of March, weather permitting, but did not provide a specific timeline for the work. She said the full platform would be reopened "well in advance of the of the summer season," when subway ridership booms in the Rockaways as New Yorkers flock to its beaches.
Brooks-Powers and Ariola, who represent neighboring districts that cover the entirety of the Rockaway peninsula, demanded that the MTA present a clear timeline to complete full repairs and accessibility improvements to the station. They demanded public updates on the status of the work and for the transit agency to appoint a designated point person to communicate with constituents.
Brooks-Powers said in an interview that the MTA has yet to respond to her letter, but that the transit agency has been a good partner in her district. She said that the Rockaway Peninsula is “very saturated” with senior center facilities and has a significantly older population compared to the rest of the city.
“ For quite some time, accessibility has been a great concern, particularly from the Rockaway Peninsula, where we rely on an elevated train with the A train,” Brooks-Powers said. “ What I often hear from my constituents is that they feel forgotten, being on a peninsula in terms of resources from our government.”
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Ramsey Khalifeh
Ramsey Khalifeh is a transportation reporter on the NYC Accountability desk covering the largest transit system in the country. He was previously a general assignment reporter at Gothamist and worked on the Boston Globe's metro and copy desk. Got a tip? Email [email protected]
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