PHOTO: Both Gov. Andrew Cuomo (r.) and MTA Chairman and CEO Thomas Prendergast hailed the Federal Transit Administration grants that were recently awarded to MTA New York City Transit. Photo Courtesy of Marc Hermann/MTA
Metropolitan Transportation Authority New York City Transit has received two Federal Transit Administration grants totaling $57,141,634 for two major storm resiliency projects in subway stations: a new emergency communications system, and a hardening project to protect station rooms that are critical to service delivery, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced last week.
The grants are part of the process to fix and fortify the transit system against future catastrophic weather events like Superstorm Sandy, Cuomo said. They were awarded through a competitive application process by the FTA through the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act of 2013, in the wake of Sandy.
The first grant of $52,425,000 funds a new system that will provide instant communication between station agents and Rail Control Center supervisors, and enable direct communication between customers and supervisors system-wide in the event of an emergency.
MTA will match that federal grant with $17,475,000 in funds from the 2010-2014 Capital Program, for a total cost of $69.9 million, the agency indicated.
During Sandy, vulnerabilities in low-lying or flood-prone parts of the system led to flooding that spread to other areas, putting at risk components to service delivery, Cuomo said. A second grant of $4,716,634, with a $1,572,211 match from the MTA, will fund the hardening of station rooms to prevent widespread flooding from breaching areas that house sensitive electronic equipment. This includes storm resiliency measures to protect station facility rooms at the Federal Emergency Management Agency 100-year flood level, plus one foot; but NYC Transit will seek to exceed this level whenever possible. The design will seal conduits; move vents; add watertight or marine doors, and install drains and valves.
This grant covers work for up to 21 rooms at four stations and is intended to pay for the first phase of a station-hardening project that aims to improve the flood resiliency of a total of 54 rooms located at Canal St. 1; Canal St. A,C,E; the Canal St. 6,J,N,Q,R,Z station complex; and Franklin St. 1.
“Superstorm Sandy brought unprecedented disruption to the New York subway system – but now we are building the system back better and stronger than before,” Cuomo said. “This funding helps us move forward with critical upgrades that will keep the system running and keep travelers safe during an emergency. This is about strengthening our infrastructure with the next storm in mind, and I am thankful for the support of our federal partners in this effort.”
Three years after Sandy and the subway system has yet to fully recover, with many storm-related repairs still to be made, according to the agency.
“The MTA’s goal is to make the subway system stronger and more resilient than ever if and when we face another historic storm like Sandy,” said MTA Chairman and CEO Thomas Prendergast. “To do that, we look to our federal partners to help us protect a trillion-dollar asset that powers the New York region, and we thank the FTA for acknowledging how vitally important the New York subway system is to the city and its people.”
By Michael V. Cusenza michael@theforumnewsgroup.com
