After Several Years, Work Continues At 4th Ave-9th St Station

First announced in 2007, work on the 4th Avenue-9th Street station is still underway, and though its completion seems to be in our sights, more work was recently announced that is just going to add to the inconveniences at the stop, and Council Member Brad Lander is not happy about it.

“The MTA’s large-scale rehabilitation of the Culver Viaduct is a vital investment for our communities,” he said today in a statement. “Unfortunately, delays, poor communication by the MTA, and cost overruns have also made it a real headache.”

The project shut down the Smith-9th St station for two years and has involved restoring the 4th-9th station — work that includes a new roof. Back in May, the MTA told us those station repairs would be completed by July, with the scaffolding to be removed by mid-summer. But the scaffolding remains, and Lander says the costs have more than doubled, and that there are still more closures to come.

Starting on September 1, Lander says the northbound R train entrance on the northeast corner will be closed for three months, to replace the rundown staircase there, and once that work is completed, they’ll do the same to the the southbound R train entrance across the street.

“While I am glad that the MTA is making necessary investments in our public infrastructure, I am disappointed that the delays plaguing the Culver Viaduct Rehabilitation will now cause more commuters to regularly traverse a construction zone,” he said. “I am also frustrated by the MTA’s failure to provide timely public information about this much-delayed project. I urge the MTA to inform the surrounding community about the construction plan going forward and meet that timeline.”

A spokesperson for the MTA is looking into the complaint for us, but notes: “We have informed the community that construction at the 4th Avenue-9th Street station is scheduled to be completed in Fall 2014.”

We will update as we learn more.