on the

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

MTA New York City Transit's ambitious maintenance program, FASTRACK, began its second round on the Lexington Avenue line last night.  FASTRACK entails the partial closure of a subway line to train service on four consecutive nights for seven continuous hours, 10 p.m. to 5 a.m.  With no trains running along the lines from Grand Central-42 St to Atlantic Av-Barclays Ctr, maintenance crews were able to work on and near the tracks without the need to stop work every few minutes to allow a train to move through the area.  This is a safer work environment for employees and a more efficient way to maintain and clean New York City's massive subway system that runs around the clock.

More than 800 Transit employees were able to inspect and perform maintenance work in stations, on tracks, signals, switches and associated components. Work crews were able to replace rails and cross ties and scrape track floors, resulting in the removal of dirt and debris. In subway stations, paintable areas not reachable during normal train operation were scraped, primed and painted. Workers were also able to clean lighting fixtures, change bulbs and repair platform edges as well as perform high-intensity station cleaning. These maintenance activities improve train performance and efficiency while also providing a pleasant and inviting station environment.

Major accomplishments from last night's maintenance effort include servicing 15 signals, eight gap fillers, and nine timers, and replacing a signal head cable.  The night’s activities generated 2,130 bags of debris, resulting in the removal of 14,800 pounds of scrap and debris.  For a quieter, smoother and safer ride, 17 running rails, 252 tie plates, and 18 tie blocks were installed.  Maintenance crews also made repairs to 134 linear feet of bench wall (an extension of the station platform that is located in tunnels and used by maintenance personnel and for emergency egress), installed 60 linear feet and cleaned 1,640 linear feet of "no clearance signs," scraped 200 linear feet of track trough (the space between the two rails) and replaced 616 tunnel lights.  Work crews also corrected 375 third rail defects and scraped 1,110 feet of track under and around the third rail. 

For a more pleasant, safer and easier to navigate station environment, workers replaced seven platform edge signs, 6,100 square feet of paintable surface was scraped, 3,000 square feet was primed and 6,600 square feet was painted.  Also, 20 square feet of tactile warning (ADA) tiles were replaced, 530 linear feet of rubbing board (vertical edge of the platform that is parallel to the side of the train) was repaired and 1,720 linear feet of rubbing board was painted.  Nearly 100 graffiti hits (markings) were removed.

With customer safety in mind, eight cameras and seven monitors on Closed Circuit Television systems at 14 St-Union Square received maintenance. Elevators at Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall and Canal St stations also received preventative maintenance.

How this impacts service?

Reliable service –service you can depend on to get you to where you need to go when you need to get there – requires regularly scheduled maintenance to critical components you never see. Pumps, signals, track, and power are just some of the vital system equipment we are focusing on so that we can continue providing our riders with train service that is safe and reliable.