It has been a community led battle that has gone on for decades as local residents and users of the 149th Street and Grand Concourse Station on the 2, 4, and 5 line fought for elevator access at multi-level station and the fourth busiest in The Bronx with almost 4 million riders a year.
And now, after over 40 years without an elevator, the station will finally be upgraded to meet ADA compliance.
Due to the complexity of the layout of the station with the 4 line on the upper platforms and the 2 and 5 lines on the lower level, there will be multiple elevators to connect all of these levels from the street down to the lowest level.
Anyone who uses the station on the 2 and 5 line knows that it’s four flights of stairs to and from the street making it impossible for anyone with mobility issues to utilize this station.
Mass Transit reports:
“This contract reflects our commitment to ADA and to making our system more accessible as quickly as possible,” said MTA Construction and Development President Janno Lieber. “We’re taking advantage of synergies between the two projects, and the current lower ridership, to deliver these projects faster and cheaper – a win-win for the MTA and our customers.”
“Making this station complex and station accessible brings us closer to our immediate goal of ensuring that no one is ever more than two stops away from an accessible subway station,” said Alex Elegudin, NYC Transit senior advisor for Systemwide Accessibility. “The 149 St-Grand Concourse project will be particularly helpful for the many students of nearby Hostos Community College. The MTA is working hard to expand accessibility and these projects are a huge step in that direction.”
Construction is expected to begin within 3 months and expected to take approximately 3 years to complete. Besides the elevators, stairs will also be reconstructed to meet current ADA standards.
Also on the list for an elevator for this year will be the Tremont Avenue station on the B and D line running along the Grand Concourse and with construction also beginning within 3 months,, however, it will only take approximately 2 years to complete as the layout is pretty standard and not as complex as 149th Street and Grand Concourse.
