Construction on second phase of Second Avenue Subway set to begin in East Harlem
NEW YORK -- The city is entering the second phase of the Second Avenue Subway project.
On Monday, Gov. Kathy Hochul and the MTA announced steps that will improve commutes for tens of thousands of riders.
The first phase extended the Q line from 63rd Street to 96th Street. The 10-year-long project was the largest subway expansion in 50 years.
Now the plan is to extend it even farther, bringing the Q up to 125th Street and over to Park Avenue.
The long-awaited next phase is finally on track, which transit officials say will extend the Q line from 96th Street all the way up to 125th Street, speeding up service.
"Roughly, like 20 minutes," one commuter said of the time saved.
"Older people won't have to stay waiting for the bus," another said.
Hochul said a $182 million construction contract was awarded, the first of four. The job is to relocate underground utilities, like sewer, water and cable first, one of the many lessons learned from the first phase, which connected 63rd Street to 96th and had all kinds of delays and complications before it was completed in 2017.
"All the utilities to do, get them out of the way. That's the precursor to digging the big holes," said Mark Roche, deputy chief development officer for the MTA.
Images show big holes and tunnels that were already dug back in the 1970s below 110th Street to 120th Street, but due to various constraints the project was delayed for decades.
Now, crews will connect new tunnels to the old, saving time and money -- an estimated $500 million.
"We have found a way to use those tunnels, even though they're slightly not the right size we'd like in our modern system," Roche said.
READ MORE: East Harlem residents, business owners sound off about Second Avenue Subway expansion
Meanwhile, above ground, there are renderings of three accessible stations that will be built at 106th, 116th and 125th streets in what commuters say is currently a transit desert.
"I live at 116th Street. I ride my bike from there here to get this train," said one commuter, who bikes 20 blocks to get to his train.
Rose Woods said she will no longer have to walk from Second Avenue to Lexington to catch a train.
"Those are long avenues. You see those avenues? So that will save you all that walking, especially in bad weather," Woods said.
READ MORE: Second Avenue Subway expanding into Harlem in Phase 2 of project: When and where
The entire project is estimated to cost $6.9 billion -- $3.5 billion from the federal government and the rest from the MTA, which will rely on funding from congestion pricing.
As for the timeline, officials hope the project will be complete by the early 2030s.
The first above-ground work New Yorkers will notice will start in March, when crews will start shifting lane markings and bike lanes.