New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced on Thursday that New York City will not shut down the L train subway tunnel for 15 months.
The city had planned to close the tunnel, which runs between Brooklyn and Manhattan, for 15 months beginning in April to repair two tubes located beneath the East River. The tubes received serious damage during Hurricane Sandy in 2012.
New York City will instead adopt a new technology previously used for tunnel construction in Europe. The technology, which was recommended by teams from Columbia and Cornell Universities' engineering schools, has not been used in the US.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), New York City's transit agency, announced the planned L train tunnel closure in 2016. The MTA and other government agencies, like the Department of Transportation, had been working on a plan for the L line's 250,000 daily riders to use buses and other subway lines during the closure. Some Brooklyn residents had moved from the borough in anticipation of the closure as rents declined in neighborhoods that would have been affected by it.
Some Twitter users criticized Cuomo for taking over two years to introduce the alternative plan. Here's what Cuomo's critics are saying.
—Nick Riccardo (@nickriccardo) January 3, 2019
—Rebecca Fishbein (@bfishbfish) January 3, 2019
—erin mccann | subscribe to The Times (@mccanner) January 3, 2019
—Liz Savery (@lizsavery) January 3, 2019
—Sam Raskin (@samraskinz) January 3, 2019
—Nicole Serratore (@MildlyBitter) January 3, 2019
Read more:
- New York Governor Andrew Cuomo axes plan to shut down the L Train, saves Brooklynites from commuting hell
- New York's governor just killed a plan to shut down one of the most crowded subway lines in NYC — and people are freaking out
- New York's governor called Tesla to see if the company could help fix NYC's subway system
- New York Governor Andrew Cuomo killed a controversial plan that would have caused commuting hell for thousands of people — but it's terrible news for people moving to the area
- Lyft says it is 'optimistic' about Andrew Cuomo's solution to the L train shutdown after the ride-sharing service ran an ad campaign targeting stranded subway riders
