F Train Returns Full Service To Upper East Side Soon: MTA

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — F train service is coming back on April Fools Day.

We're not kidding. And hopefully the MTA isn't either.

A major track-replacement project affecting F train riders is finally coming to an end, bringing a sigh of relief to thousands of commuters on the Upper East Side.

"This project improves reliability, mitigates leaks preventing future corrosion and deterioration, and extends the life of existing infrastructure," the MTA said in their announcement.

The work, according to the MTA, is set to be completed on budget and on time, and regular service for the F train will be restored on April 1, as initially projected.

Starting in late August, the F train line has been rerouted between Manhattan and Queens, running on the E line between Rockefeller Center and Jackson Heights, to allow for the work on a stretch of track between 47-50 Streets-Rockefeller Center in Manhattan and 36 St in Queens.

That has meant no downtown service at all at the Lexington/63 St stop, forcing all downtown riders onto crowded Q trains at the station.

A shuttle train with 20 minute headways ran between Lexington/63 St. and 21 St-Queensbridge, stopping at Roosevelt Island, but the shuttle does not run overnight.

Since the project began, crews replaced existing track, constructed new concrete roadbeds, installed 25,643 feet of new third rail, replaced cables and electrical equipment, installed new signals and repaired cracks and leaks, the MTA said Tuesday.

The F train runs from Jamaica, Queens to Coney Island. Full service will be restored at 5 a.m. on April 1, the MTA said.