Second Avenue Subway ridership continues to grow; MTA to add more trains
Just a month after opening on the first of the year, the Second Avenue Subway had eased congestion on the Lexington line by 11 percent. Now, nearly five months in, that figure has more than doubled, with ridership on the 4/5/6 decreased by 26 percent and a whopping 40 percent during peak morning hours. Moreover, Second Avenue’s average weekday ridership is up from 140,000 to 176,000 passengers, an increase which has prompted the MTA to add two additional train trips during rush hour come this November.
The two new train trips will cost $600,000 a year. According to DNAinfo, they include a new southbound train on weekdays between 8:15 and 9:14am, bringing the total number of trains during this time from 10 to 11, and a new northbound train between 6:30 and 7pm, bringing the total number of trains during this time from three to four.
Even though these figures point to a great increase in ridership, the MTA has yet to reach its goal of 200,000 average weekday riders. However, this projection was estimated based on October figures, when the MTA traditionally sees the highest ridership.
At the MTA’s Monday meeting, Board member Andrew Albert said even more Q trains should be added to further decrease wait times on the Lexington Avenue line, which are down three percent. “We get this really terrific report this morning that ridership is burgeoning on the Second Avenue line and how it’s taking pressure off the Lex [lines], and all we get is one round trip added?” he said. In response, the MTA’s senior director of service planning Judith McLane said the new trips are preemptive and that the agency is sending N and R trains up to 96th Street to avoid overcrowding.
[Via DNAinfo]
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