MTA Says New L Train Plan Would Create Record Crowding: Reports

WILLIAMSBURG, BROOKLYN — Gov. Andrew Cuomo's new plan to fix the L train might avoid a 15-month shutdown of the subway line, but it doesn't mean commuters will get off scot-free, according to multiple reports.

A new leaked MTA memo shows that the new plan could mean riders need to wait 40 minutes for a train, according to Gothamist and Streetsblog.

The document contends that the new approach, first announced by Cuomo earlier this month, would mean “on board crowding greater than anything ever experienced on the NYC subway system on a sustained basis."

Or in other words, actual wait times to board trains of 40 minutes or more instead of the 20-minute headways promised on weekend and weeknight construction periods.

“In practice, by drawing customers to L stations, only for them to find that for all practical purposes the L will not be available to them, net travel time impacts could be worse with one-track closure than with two-track closure," the document said.

The memo also revealed that the proposal's overnight work will be done without any increase in normal G train service, no additional L train service and possible "metering" at certain stations to avoid overcrowding on the platforms. Weekend work will be done without additional ferry service, no inter-borough bus routes and the possibility of making First and Third Avenue stations "exit only," Streetsblog reported.

G trains and M14 buses will speed up, though, the memo stated. Also, 7 trains, M trains and a shuttle from the L station at Bedford Avenue to the J and M station at Marcy Avenue might ease overcrowding.

The new approach — developed by Cuomo's team of engineers that toured the Canarsie tunnel last month — proposes using new technology so that only one of the Canarsie tunnel's two lanes would need to be closed at a time.

It avoids the 15-month full shutdown of the subway line that was expected to start in April.

The MTA recently decided that it would push through with the approach, despite the fact that the MTA board did not hold a vote on the proposal. At an emergency meeting called to discuss the plans, the board members told engineers that they still had concerns about the safety, longevity and feasibility of the new model.

A source also told Gothamist that morale at the MTA is "disastrously low," especially among those planning for the L train work. If anything, the source said, the memo “understates the impact to riders.”

“The Governor is stepping over sound transportation planning to make a political statement," the source added.

In a statement, MTA told Streetsblog that citing drafted or outdated memos was "irresponsible." The memo was dated Tuesday, Jan. 22.

Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.