Photo Courtesy of Patrick Cashin/MTA New York City Transit
The Astoria Boulevard NW elevated station is set to close at 10 p.m. next Sunday, March 17, for nine months as MTA New York City Transit begins a multi-phase renovation project.
By Forum Staff
The Astoria Boulevard NW elevated station is set to close at 10 p.m. next Sunday, March 17, for nine months as MTA New York City Transit begins a multi-phase project to add four new elevators and other accessibility features, as well as demolish and rebuild the station mezzanine with more vertical clearance to prevent strikes by trucks and other over-height vehicles traveling below the station structure, NYCT President Andy Byford said on Monday.
The agency has been repairing and rehabilitating stations, switches, and track structure throughout the length of the entire elevated Astoria NW line, Byford noted, replacing deteriorated structural steel, installing new sections of track panels and repairing platforms, stairs and mezzanines to bring century-old stations to a state of good repair. So far, NYC Transit has completed repairs and renovations at the 30 Av, 36 Av, 39 Av-Dutch Kills and Broadway stations. Crews also replaced thousands of feet of tracks and 10 switches along the line to address deteriorating track components and reduce train noise, Byford said.
The work at the Astoria Boulevard station encompasses the installation of four elevators and their related facility rooms, an assortment of accessibility features, the demolition of the existing station mezzanine and the construction of a newly designed structurally reinforced station mezzanine that will have more vertical clearance to reduce the number of strikes by trucks driving beneath the elevated structure. These vehicle strikes can damage the track structure, requiring personnel to make manual inspections so that trains can operate safely and that no critical operational infrastructure, such as tracks, switches or signals, is damaged. These manual inspections, and any damage caused by each vehicle strike, delay service and can incur costly repairs or maintenance as a result.
The Astoria Boulevard work began in September 2018. The construction has moved forward to a phase requiring the full closure of the station for the next nine months. When the project is completed in late 2020, the station will have two street-to-mezzanine elevators, two mezzanine-to-platform elevators, a new station mezzanine, repaired or replaced structural columns and foundations, repaired concrete platform surfaces, new street and platform stairs, new platform stair enclosures, and new platform canopies and mezzanine overpass walkway canopies. Lights, signs and gates will also be replaced. The new station structure will be reinforced to support the weight of the new elevators and facilities.
The elevator installation project will address platform gaps and install boarding areas, stairs, railings, and other elements of the station that meet ADA standards. Elevators will provide greater access to the Astoria NW line for wheelchair customers and customers with suitcases transferring to and from the M60 Select Bus Service to LaGuardia Airport, Byford noted.
The project will overlap with scheduled weekend track work on the Astoria Line that begins Saturday, March 16. According to NYCT, beginning March 17, Astoria Boulevard customers can use the Ditmars Boulevard and 30 Av stations as alternate subway service. During limited periods of scheduled work affecting the track structure, N and W trains will terminate at Queensboro Plaza, and alternate Astoria Line service will be provided by shuttle buses making NW station stops.
