The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) will upgrade 14 stations as part of New York City (NYC) Transit’s Station Re-NEW-Vation Program.
The program utilizes planned weekend service outages to perform upgrades, repairs and enhanced cleaning in stations within a 55-hour window, providing customers with overhauled stations when service interruptions end on Mondays. The Station Re-NEW-Vation Program is one of the major initiatives in NYC's Transit’s Faster, Cleaner and Safer plan to improve the subway customer experience.
NYC Transit has already enhanced 37 stations to date, including E 143 St. - St Mary’s St. 6, Castle Hill Avenue 6 and Buhre Avenue 6 in the Bronx and plans to complete 50 “re-NEW-vations” by the end of 2023.
"Providing faster, cleaner, and safer service to improve customer satisfaction is our North Star at New York City Transit, and the expansion of the Station Re-NEW-Vation Program delivers on that mission," said NYC Transit President Richard Davey. "Customers told us that they want cleaner, more inviting station environments, and we listened. These 14 additional stations will fulfill our pledge to re-NEW-vate 50 stations by the end of 2023, as we leverage planned outages at stations to bring visible, tangible improvements to the customer experience."
On June 24 and 25, crews completed the 37th “Re-NEW-vation", with restorative work undertaken at the 121 St. J Z subway station in Richmond Hill, Queens. Transit employees installed new LED fixtures to brighten darkened areas, repaired concrete tripping hazards, cleaned service and emergency lighting, remediated water damage and scrubbed and repainted station surfaces. The station uplift also included refurbishment of transit employee facilities within the station, as customers will now be able to enjoy a cleaner, brighter and revitalized 121 St. station.
"Brooklynites deserve efficient, safe, and comfortable commutes to their destinations on our subways,” said Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso. “I’m grateful the MTA will be taking care of three of our borough's stations that Brooklynites use every day to create a cleaner and more pleasant ride for our residents. Thank you to MTA for all your hard work in bringing Re-NEW-vation to our borough."
“New Yorkers are entitled to a safe, clean and welcoming trip whenever they use the subway — not just while on the train, but while navigating the stations too. Thank you to the MTA for giving the 121st St. train station a facelift this past weekend and for committing to do the same at the Junction Boulevard train station,” said Queens Borough President Donovan Richards Jr. "I look forward to additional stations across the borough receiving these much-needed maintenance upgrades in the months to come, as we create inviting spaces for our neighbors while they go about their travels.”
The program was initiated with a soft launch over the summer of 2022 on the line in the Bronx, including deep cleaning and renovating components of nine stations along that line while stations were closed for state of good repair work underway in tunnels. Cleanliness is one of the top five attributes NYC Transit says customers cite in surveys that would improve satisfaction and encourage increased ridership.
The full list of 14 stations receiving a renovation can be found on MTA’s website.
