The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) today announced that the installation of new elevators at the Chambers St  subway station complex has been completed and that the station is now fully accessible for customers with disabilities. The work began almost exactly two years ago to the day and was completed on time and on budget. In addition to installing a pair of platform elevators that will give customers access to the 105-year-old complex from the mezzanine to both JZ platforms, workers also installed three new ramps in the station's mezzanine area and several aesthetic improvements.

“Expanding access to mass transit throughout the city is a priority for the MTA," said Janno Lieber, President of MTA Construction & Development. "Projects like the one at Chambers Street - and the four other station accessibility projects we have completed in the past five weeks - are at the center of our broader work to transform and modernize the entire subway system, but we can't achieve them at scale without major support from the federal government."

"When this pandemic ends--and in time, it will--some 30,000 daily customers will benefit from these upgrades each and every day," said Sarah Feinberg, New York City Transit Interim President. "We will continue working to expand accessibility because customers with disabilities deserve nothing less. I look forward to working with accessibility advocates to make sure our federal elected officials understand that what's at stake is more projects like the one at Chambers."

The project will enable customers with disabilities to access the Chambers St mezzanine from the street level elevator in the Brooklyn Bridge/City Hall station and also adds an additional pair of accessible ramps leading to the  platform elevators. Platforms were modified to reduce gaps between platform edges and trains. The Chambers complex also now features a new pedestrian bridge across the  tracks within the station in order to provide more seamless access to both platforms. The original turnstile area was reconfigured to ensure that turnstiles are at wheelchair-friendly height and replete with powered gates.

To accommodate the ramps, new stairs, the pedestrian bridge, the new elevators and their electrical components, parts of the mezzanine and existing station facilities have been reconfigured or removed entirely. The more than century-old complex now also features brighter, more energy-efficient LED lighting and fresh paint.

Completion of architectural finishes and station facilities will be ongoing in the area adjacent to the newly installed elevators through the end of 2020. Additional station repairs and enhancements, including major water mitigation work and infrastructure improvements to platforms, floors, and columns, are being planned for the Chambers St  station in the future.