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July 27, 2020
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MTA Announces Completion of Four ADA-Accessible Stations Coinciding with 30thAnniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act |
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Additions of ADA-Accessible Upgrades at Astoria Blvd NW Station in Queens, 86 St
 Station in Brooklyn, and Bedford Av and 1 Av  Stations Deliver Improved Access to Four Subway Lines and LaGuardia Airport Bus Transfer MTA Adds Nine Elevators Across Four Stations to Expand Accessibility for New Yorkers
Marking 30th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, MTA Affirms Commitment to Systemwide Accessibility – Calls on U.S. Senate to Provide $3.9 Billion in Emergency Federal Funding for 2020
View Photos from Today's Event The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) today announced the completion of four ADA-accessible stations coinciding with the 30th anniversary of the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The MTA marked the historic anniversary at an event at the newly upgraded Astoria Blvd subway station in Queens, where the installation of four elevators has recently been completed in addition to rebuilt elevated walkways, new benches, and finished platform stair enclosures. The MTA also announced the 86 St R station in Brooklyn is set to become ADA accessible this week and the Bedford Av
station in Brooklyn and 1 Av station in Manhattan are set to become ADA accessible in early August.“Make no mistake: adding four new, accessible stations with elevators will make a big difference in the lives of our customers with disabilities,” said Janno Lieber, President of MTA Construction & Development. “But the critically important work of making 70 more stations fully ADA compliant as part of the 2020-2024 Capital Plan cannot be achieved if the plan’s funding is cut as a result of the COVID-19 crisis. Accessibility must and will always remain a core priority of any Capital Plan, but our ambitious 70 station plan only works if we have a fully funded MTA.”
“When we talk about modernizing mass transit, it’s not just about better signals and newer train cars,” said Sarah Feinberg, Interim President of MTA New York City Transit. “It’s about making sure all of our customers can use the system with ease. Make no mistake: we have a long way to go toward accomplishing this goal and today’s anniversary is by no means a victory lap. There is much work that still needs to be done, but this latest package of stations brings us one step closer toward achieving a more equitable and accessible system.”
“I came to New York City Transit for days like this,” said Alex Elegudin, Senior Advisor for Systemwide Accessibility. “Making stations accessible can be challenging for a range of reasons, but it's always worth it and I'm hopeful that federal legislators will take notice of this essential work and help us fund more of it. New Yorkers with disabilities deserve a transit system that serves them and I'm eager to celebrate more events like today in the years to come.”
This latest package of elevator installation work at stations around the system comes amid a backdrop of significant financial uncertainty surrounding the MTA’s 2020-2024 Capital Plan. That plan included a historic, $5.2 billion commitment to expanding the number of accessible subway stations by more than 50% and ensuring that no customer would be more than two stations away from an accessible station. It remains on hold due to pandemic-induced budget shortfalls of an unprecedented magnitude. While celebrating progress on the Authority’s longstanding commitments to enhancing accessibility throughout the system, MTA officials urged the U.S. Senate to provide emergency funding.
About the Projects
Astoria Blvd
  Station Work on the Astoria Blvd station, serving the
lines and M60-SBS bus to LaGuardia Airport, began in September of 2018, with the station reopening last December after a nine-month closure. The completion of elevator work includes a pair of street-to-mezzanine elevators as well as two mezzanine-to-platform elevators. Additional accessibility features rebuilt elevated walkways, new benches, finished platform stair enclosures, new digital service information signage, and a pair of new street-to-mezzanine staircases are also set to be incorporated by the time the project is completed. Bedford Av and 1 Av
Stations As part of the broader Canarsie Tunnel Rehabilitation and
Train Core Capacity Improvement project, workers made massive accessibility and circulation improvements for the 1 Av Station in Manhattan and Bedford Avenue Station in Brooklyn. Within the coming weeks, the 1 Av Station will be equipped with new street to platform elevators at the Avenue A entrances on both the north and south sides of 14th St. At Bedford Av Station, there are four newly constructed entrances and four existing stairs under rehabilitation. A new street to mezzanine elevator is being completed at the northeast corner of Bedford Avenue and N. 7th Street. The existing mezzanine at Bedford Avenue has been expanded to accommodate a new mezzanine to platform elevator. 86 St Station
The 86 St
station under Fourth Avenue in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, is being upgraded with two ADA compliant elevators, which will travel from the street to mezzanine, and from the mezzanine to the platform level, which required a complete upgrade of the station’s communications systems including LAN and CCTV. The station also received new mosaic bands and artwork, a new ADA-compliant employee locker room and restroom, upgrades to the booth to include an ADA compliant deal tray.
To aid bus customers transferring to the elevator, the east side of Fourth Avenue was rebuilt to include a sidewalk bulb-out, providing seamless travel to the elevator, increasing passenger waiting space and eliminating the need for buses to pull out of and into traffic.
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