7 train at Queensboro Plaza (Photo: Unsplash @nathan_hurst)
Dec. 9, 2020 By Michael Dorgan
The MTA will not be providing 7 train service between Queensboro Plaza and 34 Street-Hudson Yards on most weekends in January and February.
The agency announced Friday that is it cutting service to conduct track work near the Grand Central-42 Street station.
Service will be suspended from 1 a.m. on Saturdays through 5 a.m. on Mondays on Jan. 9-11, Jan. 16-18, Jan. 23-25, Jan. 30-Feb.1, Feb. 20-22 and Feb. 27- March 1.
Service will also be cut on weeknights – every Monday through Thursday – from Jan. 11 through March 19, from 11:45 p.m. to 1 a.m. Service is expected to be down from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. during these dates anyway for overnight disinfecting.
During the weekend cuts, riders can take the N train between Queensboro Plaza and Times Square-42nd Street on Saturday’s from 7:15 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. and on Sundays from 10:15 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
W service will also be available between Queensboro Plaza station and Times Square-42nd Street station.
Free shuttle buses will service all 7 line subway stations between Queensboro Plaza and Vernon Blvd-Jackson Avenue. Riders can also transfer to the E, F, M and R lines at Jackson Heights-Roosevelt Avenue.
The agency said it is taking advantage of lower ridership due to the pandemic to conduct the work and to minimize the impact on riders.
The track near Grand Central-42 Street has reached the end of its service life and is in need of complete replacement, the MTA said.
Crews will also remove components from the old signal system since the move to the modernized Communications-Based Train Control system has been completed.
The upgrades will bring about improved reliability and better service, the MTA said.
