The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has completed three new elevators that will provide access from the street to the 6 Ave. L platform and the uptown F M platform, which marks the first of five major milestones in the 14 St. Complex megaproject. Of the three new elevators, one brings customers from street-level to the mezzanine, one connects the mezzanine to the uptown F M platform and the other connects the mezzanine to the L platform, which is an island platform that serves both directions.
The 14 St. F M and 6 Ave. L station are the first two of three stations within the complex to receive ADA upgrades. Three additional elevators are under construction for the downtown F M platform which, when completed, will make the 14 St. FM station fully accessible, and subsequent milestones include newly accessible 14 St. and 7 Ave. 1 2 3 station.
In addition to the accessibility work, the project encompasses circulation improvements and a multitude of state of good repair work, including leak mitigation and repairs to the Canarsie Line tunnel from 8th Ave. to 1st Ave. Crews installed four new staircases and widened 21 existing staircases, reconfigured the mezzanine to install two new fare arrays and added new lighting and tiling for an improved customer experience.
“This is a megaproject that is going to change accessibility for 30,000 daily riders,” said MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber. “Part of the reason we’re able to do it is because we have great partners in Washington. The feds have contributed $247 million towards this project, more than 80 percent of the total cost. Thank you, [Sen.] Chuck Schumer (D-NY), thank you, [Rep.] Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY-8), and the rest of the New York delegation.”
“Every new elevator brings us one step closer to our goal of systemwide accessibility,” said MTA Chief Accessibility Officer Quemuel Arroyo. “This is the first step towards making this crucial transfer complex accessible and unlocking many new trip options for our customers.”
The $300 million megaproject to make ADA upgrades to the 14 St. Complex includes $247 million in federal funds. Approximately 23.5 percent of the project budget has been awarded to Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBE) firms, which exceeds the project's original 22.5 percent DBE goal.
Once completed, the 14 St. Complex will have nine new elevators making it fully accessible. The complex will also have 25 new staircases and 39 renovated staircases, as well as five platform upgrades, which include new tactile warning strips and ADA boarding areas.
MTA says approximately 29,000 customers use the 14 St. Complex on a given weekday. The complex serves six lines in four boroughs, as well as two PATH train lines.
“This project provides much-needed accessibility, as well as critical station tunnel repairs,” said MTA Construction & Development President Jamie Torres-Springer. “Bundling ADA upgrades with state of good repair work allows the MTA to deliver megaprojects better, faster and cheaper.”
