Here Are the Alternatives to the L Train During 2019 Shutdown, NYU Study Says

EAST VILLAGE, NY — Imagine if the collective panic attack New Yorkers are having over the impending L train shutdown could somehow be alleviated. NYU is trying to get a conversation going on ways to make the shutdown a little less apocalyptic.

A new study from the NYU Rudin Center for Transportation proposes several ways for the MTA to work around the L train shut-down for construction beginning in January 2019. The alternatives proposed include working with private ride-sharing companies, increasing service on other subway lines, creating an express bus lane on the Williamsburg Bridge and even constructing air gondolas over the bridge.

The MTA is planning to shut down the L train beneath the East River starting Jan. 19 for 18 months to fix damage caused by Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

"The big takeaway from this study is that this is a huge opportunity for the city and the MTA to explore new opportunities, and to think completely outside of the box," Sarah M. Kaufman, one of the authors of the study, told Patch. "It's an opportunity to think about new, crazy ideas, like a gondola."

Here are the alternatives the Rudin Center presents:

1.) Express MTA bus service: The Williamsburg bridge could have an express bus lane built in for the daily commuters between the Lower East Side and Williamsburg, the study says. They refer to the model of high-speed bus service used after Hurricane Sandy.

"The system implemented after Sandy was an entirely new system implemented here that New York had never done anything like before," Kaufman said. "It both shows the capabilities of buses to carry large numbers, and it shows New Yorkers' capacity to absorb a new mode of transportation."

2.) Ride-shares: Formal public-private partnerships between the MTA and ride-sharing companies like UberPOOL and LyftLine to help shuttle Brooklynites to popular Manhattan hotspots.

3.) The East River Ferry: The ferry runs every 20 minutes during rush hour, and each boat only holds 150 passengers — way fewer than the 1,160 per L train, according to the study. That's why the ferry service should be increased, and MetroCards should be accepted on the ferries, the study says.

4.) Air gondolas: A new system of high-speed air gondolas over the Williamsburg Bridge that would connect the Lower East Side to Williamsburg would put a dent in the car and bike traffic on the bridge. The new system, under the branding East River Skyway, was first proposed by Dan Levy of real estate site CityRealty, who told DNAInfo in May that it would have the capacity to transport 200,000 passengers from Williamsburg to the Lower East Side every day. A monthly pass would cost about $25, he said.

5.) More subway service: The MTA is improving the M line in 2017 to make sure that line can take a lot more passengers when the L is down. The G line services should be increased as well, which can transfer to the E, M and R lines northbound and the A, C and F lines southbound. The MTA should also start to allow aboveground free transfers between the L and the 3 at Junius Livonia and between the G and J, M at Broadway, the study says.

"The subway remains the fastest way to get around New York, even if people have to divert to a different line," Kaufman said. "I think it's important that the subways are run more frequently so they can deal with the added capacity, especially overnight. Williamsburg has a 24-hour economy."

Image via Patch