City, State Officials Cut Ribbon On D-Line Station Renovations
A ribbon cutting ceremony was held at the West End D Line’s Bay Parkway station today, after crews completed years of work rehabilitating seven of the line’s stations throughout Bensonhurst.
This stimulus project, which cost $88 million, was funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. It
involved the conversion of the Bay Parkway Station into the 78th handicapped-accessible (ADA)station in the subway system. This was accomplished through the installation of three elevators, which required widening of the station’s platform. The station also underwent repairs involving the lighting, platform edges, staircases, and technology.
“This is a great day for the thousands of Brooklynites who start and end their travels in one of these newly renovated West End Line D train station,” said State Senator Marty Golden, who, along with Assemblyman William Colton and Councilman Domenic M. Recchia, was present for the ceremony.
Bay Parkway station is also the pioneer of a new announcement system, being the the first station in the city featuring free-standing pedestal speakers in areas not covered by a station canopy, providing travelers with “real-time” subways service information. Prior to the new pedestals, which will be installed at other stations in the future, MTA officials had no way of broadcasting announcements to the portions of outdoor platforms not covered by a canopy.
The other six stations that have been rehabilitated are the 71st Street, 79th Street, 18th Avenue, 20th Avenue, 25th Avenue, and Bay 50th Street stations. They all received a facelift, new rubbing boards, warning strips and platform windscreens.
Oh, and let’s not forget the art.
Arts for Transit has brought a touch of color, installing original artworks all seven of the stations. An artist was assigned to each station, and left responsible for beautifying it with their skills. Beijing artist Xin Song was responsible for decorating the Bay Parkway Station with her collage of Chinese paper cuts to represent the history of the station and the neighborhood’s growing Asian-American community.
Work on the stations was mostly completed by July, and the elevators at Bay Parkway opened to the public on Monday.
The ceremony was led by NYC Transit President Thomas Prendergast, who noted that this project had broad community support, and received very few complaints in comparison to other projects.
Colton pointed out the specific repairs of the Bay Parkway Station, and praised the MTA for their accomodation of individuals with disabilities.
“There are many seniors and people with disabilities who use this station,” he said. “I am pleased that the MTA has been able to provide them with better access to public transit.”
Recchia also expressed his appreciation for the MTA’s accomplishment, and pointed out that the work fulfilled the stations’ serious need for rehabilitation.
“New York City residents rely heavily on public transportation and it’s wonderful to know that the MTA was able to accommodate the travel of so many individuals,” said Recchia. ” Many components of this restoration are incredibly crucial to the flow of transit, especially the addition of ADA elevators. I could not be more proud to be a part of this ceremony and would like to extend my sincerest gratitude to the MTA for expediting this rehabilitation.”
What do you think of the rehabilitated stations? We just hope they get to the Sea Breeze N Line stations before they deteriorate any further.
Video of the statements made by Prendergast, Golden, Colten, Recchia and others:
Video, photos and additional reporting by Ned Berke.