Glop from above – underneath the ‘J’ line
It’s that time of the year again.
Though the temperatures this week may be in the 60s and 70s, when last week the thermometer soared into the 80s, people under the “J” train had to deal with the “sticky mess from above” – the creosote that drips from the elevated line in Richmond Hill and Woodhaven.
“It’s a major, major problem that we’ve been addressing for 10 years,” said Wendy Bowne, President of the Richmond Hill Block Association (RHBA), headquartered on Jamaica Avenue, underneath the “J.” “Not much is being done.”
According to the web site for FELA, or the Federal Employers Liability Act, “Creosote is the name used for numerous substances that are produced using high temperature treatment of coal, certain woods, or resin from the creosote bush.
Widely used and unregulated for almost two centuries, creosote can be found in thousands of miles of railroad tracks and rail yards across the country. However, recent research has linked creosote to a number of health hazards, including convulsions, liver disease, cancer, and even death.”
In August of 2007, then-Governor Eliot Spitzer partially banned the manufacture, sale and use of creosote in New York State, but it did not pertain to the “J” line.
In the past year or two, Bowne said, the MTA has tried putting a plastic covering over the railroad ties – from which the creosote drips – but “it wasn’t working. It was still seeping through.”
Then, she said, they tried cloth tarping, “but these were worse.”
And last spring, with the urging of former Senator Serphin Maltese, the MTA actually replaced the ties in an effort to curtail the problem, but Bowne said, “As soon as the weather gets warm it starts dripping.”
James Anyansi, spokesperson for New York City Transit, told The Courier that the agency is again “wrapping up problem areas.”
Weather permitting, he said, they should be finished by Friday, May 8.
“Some leak, some don’t,” he said. “In the meantime, we’re still looking for alternatives.”
He urged residents to call the NYC Transit complaint line if they know of a location from which creosote drips.
“We inspect, but we may not know about it,” said Anyansi.
The number to call, he said, is 718-243-3322.
