Construction

We’re continuing to make improvements at other subway stations to improve capacity. This includes work such as reconstructing entrances, reopening old entrances, building more stairways and adding more turnstiles. Stations with improvements include:

• Flushing Av
• Hewes St
• Marcy Av
• Metropolitan Av-Lorimer St
• Broadway Junction (JZ side)
• Court Sq
• Nassau Av
• 14 St-6 Av
• 14 St-Union Sq (already ADA-compliant, and new escalator will further enhance access)
• Morgan Av (accessibility improvements)
• DeKalb Av (accessibility improvements)
• Halsey St (accessibility improvements)
• Bushwick-Aberdeen (accessibility improvements)
• Bedford Av (will be ADA-compliant following work)
• 1 Av (will be ADA-compliant following work)

We're building three new electrical substations, which will provide the ability to power more trains to take full advantage of the modern signaling system (CBTC) installed on the L train in 2009.

The three new substations are located in Brooklyn (2) and Manhattan (1) along the L line.

On January 3, 2019, Governor Cuomo invited deans and faculty from the engineering schools from Columbia and Cornell Universities to present a recommendation for part of the L Project. The recommendation focused on the tunnel rehabilitation piece of the project. They shared a revised approach that would allow for two-way service to continue on the L during the tunnel repairs instead of fully closing down the tunnel and service.

As of April 26, 2020, the tunnel rehabilitation phase of the L Project is completed. 

Here’s the list of what’s already been completed, and what is ongoing:

Completed:

• Reopened stair at Flushing Av Station: More direct access to the station for customers. It also doubled the number of people who can get in and out of this station with the added turnstiles. (July 2017)
• Reopened stair at Hewes St Station: A shorter walk for some customers, and new turnstiles and stairs which doubled the number of people who can get in and out. (November 2018)
• Expanded mezzanine and opened several stairs at Metropolitan Av-Lorimer St (GL). (February 2019)
• Demolished and rebuilt two staircases to be 50 percent wider at 14 St-Union Sq, including reconfiguring them for better station flow. (March 23, 2019)
• Court Square walkway project and Nassau St turnstiles work are complete.
• Two stairways were relocated and two new ones were constructed at Broadway Junction, connecting the J/Z platform to the mezzanine.
• Opened three new staircases at Bedford Av Station: Of the four planned, we’ve already opened three of these new staircases. Once completed, there will be eight total staircases at Bedford Av Station.
• Expanded two staircases, expanded the platform on one end and added a turnstile for more capacity at Marcy Av Station (JMZ).
• Rehabilitated the existing track switches at 3 Av Station: This was work that needed to be done, and we completed it already.
• Rehabilitated existing track switches south of Bedford Av: Like the track switches we repaired near 3 Av Station, this was work that needed to be done. 
• Repair Superstorm Sandy damage: Our objective was to make the tunnel safe for operations in the long-term this was accomplished as of April 26, 2020.
• Make the tunnel more resilient: Another objective of the plan was to minimize and prevent damage from the entry of water into the system from major storms. These elements were also completed as part of the tunnel rehabilitation phase that completed as of April 26, 2020.

Continue:

• More L train service: We are building the three additional substations, which are the power sources for our trains. By adding three, we will be able to run more trains per hour in peak times, making better use of the communications-based train control (CBTC) signaling system’s capabilities.
• Three new accessible L platforms: The Bedford Av and 1 Av station elevators are already underway. The 14 St/6 Av (L platform) Station accessibility upgrade will also still happen as an extension of the L Project.
• 14 stations improvements: We’re still doing work at Bedford Av, 1 Av, Morgan Av, DeKalb Av, Halsey St and Bushwick-Aberdeen, in addition to the completed projects.
• More capacity at Bedford Av Station: The mezzanine extension and four total staircases being added will allow us to double capacity at this station (in addition to the elevators).
• More capacity at 1 Av Station: A new entrance at the Avenue A end—meaning four new stairways on either side of 14th Street—will help more people get in and out of the station faster (in addition to the new elevators).

As mentioned, we are still moving forward with the elevator projects at 1 Av and Bedford Av Stations, as well as the substation work. This is what you’re seeing in-progress if you peek into our construction sites there.

However, we’re using this opportunity to look at all our construction work schedules and timelines, so we may make additional changes.

The safety of our customers, employees and the general public is the MTA's top priority. We take seriously public concerns about air quality in the L tunnel and in the stations along the L during this period of construction and have adopted very conservative standards for exposure of the public to dust and silica, a part of the dust generated by the demolition of concrete.

View dust monitoring reports