Angry About the L Train Shutdown? Here's Your Chance to Yell at MTA Officials

Image via the New York Transit Museum

WILLIAMSBURG, BROOKLYN — The MTA will host the "first of many" public meetings on repair plans for the L Train this May, according to State Assemblyman Joseph R. Lentol, who represents most of Williamsburg and Greenpoint.

In a statement, Lentol said a Brooklyn meeting will take place "at the beginning of May," with a date and location to be announced soon.

A second public meeting will take place in Manhattan the following week, he said.

According to Lentol, at the meetings, the MTA will discuss its repair proposals for the line, as well as "initial recommendations on ways to mitigate service disruptions."

The agency will also be taking comments from the public, he said.

MTA spokesman Kevin Ortiz wouldn't confirm the news Wednesday, saying only that the agency " will be releasing details soon" on a meeting.

The L Train's Canarsie Tube, which transports about 300,000 riders under the East River on a typical weekday, was damaged badly by saltwater during Superstorm Sandy in 2012.

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The MTA is weighing three different options to repair the Canarsie Tube. In the first, which would last 18 months, the L Train would be shut down altogether. In the second, which would last three years, the tube's two tunnels would be shut down on an alternating schedule, resulting in limited L service. And in the third, which would last seven years, the L Train would be shut down completely on nights and weekends.

A group of Brooklyn activists known as the L Train Coalition has been urging the MTA to discuss its plans with the public.

The group recently sent a letter to agency chairman Thomas Prendergast. In it, they demanded "a detailed presentation on the project including engineering, consulting, and financial aspects of the repairs, including data and photos."