The netting will stretch between Queensboro Plaza and 39th Ave. (Google Maps)
July 23, 2019, Jackie Strawbridge
The MTA will install netting under elevated train tracks in four locations throughout Queens and Manhattan, including under the N/W between Queensboro Plaza and 39th Avenue, following several incidents of debris falling from train tracks onto roads below.
The new nets are part of a pilot program to test “whether and how the material may capture potential hazards such as loose debris while still allowing regular inspections of the structure,” the MTA said in a statement.
NYC Transit President Andy Byford announced the netting installation plans at a Long Island City town hall last month, but didn’t specify their locations at that time.
Installation at the N/W location is scheduled to begin later this summer. According to an MTA spokesperson, there is no set timeframe on how long the pilot program would last.
Falling debris from elevated subway lines has been a persistent problem throughout the past several months. In one incident that garnered lots of attention in February, a large piece of wood fell and pierced a parked car’s windshield, just missing the driver.
The new netting is designed to capture even very small items, while still transparent enough for the MTA to conduct visual inspections, the agency said. It is being tested at the N/W location in particular because of the curvature of the tracks, which makes them more vulnerable to wear-and-tear, according to the MTA.
“We are encouraged by the possible viability and off-the-shelf availability of this netting to provide peace of mind to those who traverse streets below our tracks, and will continue our rigorous inspections of these structures, which are often struck by vehicles and exposed to highly varying conditions year-round that can speed deterioration,” Byford said in a statement.
The other Queens locations that will get netting are the 61st Street-Woodside station on the 7 and the J/Z’s elevated tracks between 121st Street and 111th Street. Netting will also be installed at the 125th Street station on the 1 in Manhattan.
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5 Comments
About Time!
MTA is the most corrupt NY state agency out there!!! Starting with Governor Cuomo who runs it but acts like he doesn’t to executives who constantly get kickbacks to overpaid union workers who get paid to do nothing. Rotten agency!
From September 4, 2019 through August, 2135, N/W train service will not be running from Queensboro Plaza to Ditmars Blvd in both directions on weekends, weekdays between 9:30 am and 3:30 pm, odd days between 10 pm and 5 am, even days from 8:37 am to 4:23 pm, and days that end in ‘y’ from 6 am to 11:59 pm to accommodate installation of the nets. Shuttle buses will be running at irregular intervals and will be so overcrowded you’ll wish you lived in New Jersey. Which would actually help because their routes will go through Weehauken. Alternative service on 7, R, F, E, and M trains will be just as sketchy, so just don’t plan on going anywhere if you can’t afford a car. WE ARE THE MTA!
Because: Pensions
Thanks Trump.
Just like The Great Wall, another complete lie and failure.