Uptown Subway Stations To Close As Elevators Replaced

WASHINGTON HEIGHTS-INWOOD, NY — Two uptown subway stations will close for one year to facilitate the complete replacement of elevators with a current tendency to break down, the MTA announced Tuesday.

The MTA's new project represents the first time that elevators will be replaced in their entirety at the 168th Street, 181st Street and 191st Street 1 train stations and the 181st Street and 190th Street A train stations, transit officials said. In addition to replacing elevators, the MTA will upgrade communications, security and fire alarm systems at the stations.

"Replacing these elevators is long overdue and critical for reliable access to these unique ‘deep stations,’ and we’ve put together a schedule that takes care not to cause unnecessary inconvenience for customers," MTA New York City Transit President Andy Byford said in a statement.

The 168th Street and 181st street 1 train stations will be entirely shut down during construction. The three remaining stations will remain open at non-elevator entrances.

The first station that will be shut down is the 168th Street 1 train station, which will close for repairs on Jan. 5, transit officials said. The MTA has staggered its construction schedule so that no two stations on the same line are closed at the same time, transit officials said.

Construction is expected to take between 11 and 12 months at each station due to the age of the elevator equipment and years of water damage and decay and the depth of the stations, transit officials said.

Local elected officials called the project overdue and noted that the 168th Street station is one of uptown Manhattan's central transit hubs.

"I commend the MTA on its progress to begin the long overdue renovations at 168 St subway station, a main mode of commuter transportation to the Columbia University Medical Center and surrounding area. It remains critical that our city infrastructure systems are safe, secure and reliable," Congressman Adriano Espaillat said in a statement. "The upcoming renovation will force the station to close for nearly a year, however our city and surrounding communities will benefit tremendously once the station is complete."

A $61 million contract to replace elevators at the 1 train stations was awarded to Skanska USA and a contract to replace elevators at the A train stations has yet to be awarded, transit officials said.

Editor's note: An initial MTA announcement stated that all five stations will be shut down. The transit authority updated the announcement to reflect that only two of the five stations will shut down in entirety during construction. This article has been updated accordingly

Here's the updated schedule for construction:

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