By Kelsey Durham
Commuters in northeast Queens will be offered an alternative route by the MTA intended to soften the impact of upcoming track work that will shut down parts of the No. 7 train for nearly two dozen weekends in 2014.
A free shuttle bus will operate along the No. 7 line between closed stations when the suspensions start late in the evening Feb. 14, according to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Continued maintenance to address ongoing signal problems will also shut down sections of the line in western Queens throughout the rest of the year starting on Feb. 28.
Kevin Ortiz, spokesman for the MTA, said the shuttle will begin running Saturday, Feb. 15, from the Flushing-Main Street to Mets-Willets Point stations, where service on the No. 7 train will be suspended in both directions from 11:45 p.m. Friday, Feb. 14, until 5 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 18.
Riders can take the shuttle from Flushing-Main Street and catch the No. 7 train at Mets-Willets Point for normal service out of that station throughout the weekend. The bus will also make return trips in the other direction.
The MTA announced its latest plans and dates for the upcoming work in a news release and also addressed other routes riders can take to avoid the closures.
“We have timed this vital work to minimize impacts to customers, pedestrians and vehicular traffic and to avoid dates with high-projected ridership,” said MTA NYC Transit President Carmen Bianco.
The shuttle offers a small relief for commuters facing shrinking public transportation options in the Bayside and Auburndale areas, where weekend bus service on the Q31 was suspended in 2010 during the height of the MTA’s financial crisis.
With no bus to take riders to E and F trains at Jamaica Station on weekends, the Q27 to Flushing-Main Street remains one of the only routes toward Manhattan. The shuttle along the No. 7 line will enable Bayside and Auburndale commuters to avoid searching for an alternative weekend subway route.
Ortiz said the shuttle will run every four to 10 minutes, depending on the time of day, and the service will last for the duration of the train suspensions, which are currently planned for certain weekends through July with more dates to come. For weekend service into Manhattan, Ortiz said riders from northeast Queens can also take the free shuttle to the nearest open No. 7 train station and ride to 74th Street-Broadway to transfer to an E, F or R train.
The MTA said it will also increase service on the N and Q trains out of Queensboro Plaza as the No. 7 train suspensions increase throughout the year, spreading farther west and eventually into Manhattan as service from Queensboro Plaza to Times Square will be cut off. Riders taking the free shuttle out of Flushing can transfer from a No. 7 train to either the N or Q at Queensboro Plaza unless otherwise posted, the MTA said.
Ortiz said the MTA is aware of the effects the shutdowns will have on riders all across the borough, while the news release said the agency will work hard to ensure that this portion of a multimillion-dollar capital improvement project is completed as quickly as possible.
“We understand that these service disruptions are inconvenient to the customers who depend on the No. 7 train, and we appreciate their patience,” Bianco said.
Reach reporter Kelsey Durham at 718-260-4573 or by e-mail at kdurham@cnglocal.com.
