Uptown Pols Demand Shuttle Bus During Subway Elevator Shutdown

WASHINGTON HEIGHTS-INWOOD, NY — Hundreds of Uptown commuters have signed a petition launched by neighborhood elected officials calling on the MTA to provide shuttle bus service while elevators at subway stations are being replaced.

Subway stations in Washington Heights and Inwood are some of the deepest underground in the city's transit system, which means the lack of elevator access will prevent many train riders from using the subway, elected officials wrote in a petition launched Tuesday on Change.org. More than 750 people have signed onto the petition as of this writing.

Every elected officials that represents the uptown neighborhoods is united in calling for free shuttle bus service at the stations where elevator replacement is planned. The MTA first announced its plan to replace elevators at the 168th Street, 181st Street and 191st Street 1 train stations and the 181st Street and 190th Street A train stations, but did not include some sort of alternate transit option for users of the stations.

"We understand the necessity of these efforts and welcome them. However, the rehabilitation of these elevators will take a significant toll on our community. The lack of mitigation by MTA officials is an insulting oversight that must be corrected immediately," elected officials' petition reads.

Officials argue that the elevator shutdowns will disproportionately affect people with disabilities, the elderly and families with young children.

The petition is backed by State Senator Robert Jackson, State Assemblymembers Carmen De La Rosa and Al Taylor, City Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez, Congressman Adriano Espaillat and Borough President Gale Brewer.

Community Board 12 will hold a public hearing on the issue Thursday night. Representatives from the MTA and local elected officials are expected to attend. The hearing will take place at the Mount Sinai Jewish Center on Bennett Avenue and West 187th Street at 6:30 p.m., according to a community board notice.

An MTA spokesman did not immediately return Patch's request for comment.

MTA New York City Transit President Andy Byford announced in December that the transit agency would replace elevators at the five Upper Manhattan stations, saying the projects were "long overdue." In addition to replacing elevators, the MTA will upgrade communications, security and fire alarm systems at the stations.

The 168th Street and 181st street 1 train stations will be entirely shut down during construction, but the other three stations will remain open at non-elevator entrances, according to the MTA.

Construction is expected to take between 11 and 12 months at each station due to the age of the elevator equipment and years of water damage and decay and the depth of the stations, transit officials said.