Elevator At LIC Subway Closed For Repairs Months After Opening

LONG ISLAND CITY, QUEENS — In March, a new elevator opened at the Court Square-23rd Street station as part of an accessibility upgrade to the Manhattan-bound E/M platform.

The MTA lauded the $16 million or-so ADA-compliant entrance — which was built by the developer of the residential skyscraper above it — as an example of a successful private-public sector partnership. "I like this a lot. I want to see more projects like this," said MTA Chief Accessibility Officer, Quemuel Arroyo, at the time.

Seven months later, however, the elevator is closed for repairs, and the MTA doesn't know exactly when it will be back in service, since it is maintained by an outside organization.

The transit agency estimates it will be back up and running at 4:00 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 8.

For anyone at Court Square who needs an elevator to get from the street to the Manhattan-bound E/M subway platform, that journey now requires taking a bus to Queens Plaza, where there's an in-service elevator that connects to an E/M platform.

In response to an inquiry from Patch, an MTA spokesperson said that the agency is pushing the developers — who installed and maintain the elevator — to have it back in service as quickly, and safely, as possible.

Three developers financed and built the station's accessibility upgrades — United Construction & Development Group, FSA Capital and Risland US Holdings LLC — elevator included. None of them, however, immediately responded to Patch's request for comment about the elevator's closure, or its reopening date.

The station's newly accessible entrance includes other still-in-service ADA-compliant features, like widened staircases, a new ramp, and wheelchair access gates and turnstiles.