Can the New York City subway system endure another 120 years?
NEW YORK — The New York City subway system has been open for 120 years, and it's no secret that, at times, it shows its age.
The subway undoubtedly could use some much-needed attention – from crippling infrastructure to outdated and dirty subway cars that are older than some of the people who ride them to elevated structures that appear to be on their last legs.
Take, for example, the rusted and corroded beams in Brooklyn that hold up trains weighing over 80,000 pounds.
MTA votes in favor of nearly $68.5 billion capital plan
Most recently, the MTA board voted in favor of a five-year, nearly $68.5 billion capital plan – an ambitious proposal that transit leaders say could be the fix to some of its problems.
"There is a tremendous amount of money that needs to go into this old lady," said Lisa Daglian, executive director of the Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA.
CBS News New York's Elijah Westbrook spoke exclusively with MTA Transit President Demetrius Crichlow about the subway's milestone.
"It's no question that we have a lot to live up to, right?" Crichlow said.
Westbrook also questioned if the system can endure another century at the rate its going.
"We have teams out there around the clock maintaining our tracks, our signals, our infrastructure, making sure that every day is a safe day," Crichlow said.
How the congestion pricing pause impacts the MTA
The MTA had its eyes set on congestion pricing, which was paused at the last minute by Gov. Kathy Hochul. At the time, she cited it would be a financial setback for New Yorkers footing the $15 toll to enter the Central Business District, but transit leaders say that decision cost them $15 billion.
"It needs money so that it doesn't deteriorate, so that we don't have a summer of hell," Daglian said.
In 2017, a series of subway failures became so severe that summer, New Yorkers nicknamed the period the "summer of hell." It included train derailments and poor on-time performance averaging as low as 65%. Then-governor Andrew Cuomo declared a state of emergency for the subway system.
"Somebody who is 120 years old needs money to stay young and vital and vibrant, and the subways are 120 years old and they need money for their upkeep," Daglian said.
But with no publicly stated back-up plan from the pause in congestion pricing, it's possible the tunnel ahead could be challenging.
In February, MTA Chairman and CEO Janno Lieber said there was no plan B for the funding.
"It's a real concern. There's no plan B for $15 billion to show up magically," he said at the time.
While there's great uncertainty surrounding the future of the New York City subway system because of the pause in congestion pricing, the transit's agency isn't derailing plans to expand it – from game-changing projects like the Interborough Express linking Brooklyn and Queens to the Second Avenue subway extension into East Harlem.
There's certainly a future for this system as it continues to think of ways to provide more options for the 3.6 million daily riders who rely on it.
