By Gus Saltonstall
An Upper West Side train station is out of service through the end of June, according to the MTA.
Downtown 1 trains and overnight local 2 trains will skip the 86th Street station until the end of the month.
The MTA will use the time to perform “structural maintenance” within the station.
For those who use 86th Street as their home station, the agency suggests taking the 1, 2, or 3 train to 72nd Street, and then the uptown 1 or local 2 to 86th Street.
The work on the 86th Street downtown station comes a few months after the downtown 79th Street 1 train station was also closed for “structural maintenance.”
The 86th Street 1 train station is one of the original 28 stations to open within the city in 1904.
You can check in on updates about the 1 train at the 86th Street downtown station — HERE.
West Side Rag will update this story when the work is done and the station is reopened.
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How you gonna take the 2 and 3 trains from 86th st! ?? Only the local 1 stops there!
…. And this information from the MTA…!? Sad!
I think the idea is that if you are north of 86th street and want to get off there you take the 1/2/3 to 72nd and then take the local 1 north to 86th.
The 2 runs local late nights.
“The 86th Street 1 train station is one of the original 28 stations to open within the city in 1904.” Loved the historical tidbit! Thank you!
It is beyond inconvenient not to be able to take the downtown No 1 train at 86th St. Buses don’t come often enough and are slow. Taxis are expensive.
If they renovate it every 120 years we’ll survive.
How difficult is it to walk to either 79th or 96th St for a short amount of time while critical repairs are made that will enable you to use that station for many years? Or take the No 1 uptown to 96th St and switch to a downtown train. Everything is not a huge disaster.
Boris,
For better or worse, people are allowed to opine here – even if we don’t all agree.
Yes?
(Also my sense is you mostly bicycle so perhaps not on the subway much?)
Thanks for standing up for my right to opine here.
I’m actually on the subway a lot and was directly affected by both the NB & SB closures at 79th St. months ago. I either walked to/from 72nd or 86th St or jumped on a bus if it happened to arrive the same time. I also made use of Citibike if it was convenient. I didn’t lose my mind over this necessary capital repair project. The alternative is to not have a station there at all if it falls apart and fails disastrously.
They have been staggering this work on many stations along the 1 line for the last year. But I have yet to see what “structural maintenance” actually means. Does anyone have a link to something official that explains what they are doing?
Drivey, many of the stations on this line have been closed for structural repairs over the past couple of years. Of course it’s inconvenient but would you rather have the stations fall apart even more and potentially cause injuries to passengers?
I passed by the closed sign by the 87th street entrance a few weeks agago. I wonder how long this will actually take.
I don’t understand why everyone is so clueless about station closings. The MTA plasters signs all over the place and has all the details on its website. No one is going to call you personally to inform you.
Good point. They are practically flawless in providing signage regarding station closures and reroutes. I can’t tell you how many times I see people waiting for a train when there is a sign at practically every structural post detailing what’s not running and when.
In fairness to the MTA, the work at 79th was completed on time. So though this is an inconvenience, if they meet their dates, it will be okay.
Coincidentally, for many years, although 86th was my station, on my way back home, I almost never used it.
I got out at 72nd or 96th, either to do some walking (good for your health and it’s a beautiful neighborhood) or to do some grocery shopping on my way home.
Mornings are smth else however, especially if you have to travel in the rush hour. Not easy to experiment with the routine so early in the day. On the bright side, you’re still living in UWS and a month goes by very fast.
I’ve been walking up to 96th Street; the most southerly entrance is on 94th St; it is far from an onerous hike. The major improvement needed at 86th Street is a second entrance on the northbound side at 87th Street. It should have happened when they extended the platforms and closed the 91st Station in February 1959, but we know that will never happen now.
Ugh! People are so spoiled! Can’t deal with a little inconvenience!