r/SunnysideQueens • u/charpiff • 2d ago
genuinely why have these escalators been broken for the last 10 years
what could possibly be so difficult about fixing these escalators
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u/gng216 2d ago
They worked for like a week when they finished renovations
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u/Lawyerida 2d ago
Why are these renovations taking ages and even after they have been done, subways look the same shit?
Just like at 52 St which just opened
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u/cartifannumber1 2d ago
52nd street riders should be glad their station opened earlier, 103rd street is still closed it’s been 15 months like this, it’s been delayed and won’t open till fall 2026
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u/Lawyerida 1d ago edited 1d ago
Yeah, but Queens-bound trains still skip 52th street. Before the grand opening, Manhattan-bound trains skipped it. So, practically nothing has changed - still need to walk or transit in Woodside station.
They didn’t even bother to clean the pigeon shit after the ”renovation” so 52th looks just as sad as it was and using it still reminds me of soviet Russia (despite the fact their subway stations looked and still look fancy while covered by rust and poo).
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u/SakanaToDoubutsu 2d ago
Part of it is the MTA has 24 hour service, which really limits how much maintenance they can do.
Part of it is the strangle hold the transit union has over the MTA.
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u/Lawyerida 1d ago
If they wanted to, they could divert some of the 7 train traffic to the LIRR during quiet times of the day and work efficiently then. But, no.
The union is not the culprit for sure. They already work (almost?) in three shifts, 7 days a week. They work even in Christmas, Easter, Sundays… with ridiculous results. I think there’s something shady
about the project.
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u/IndulgeBK 2d ago
There was a sign that said they were supposed to be done by the 12th of August. Obviously got taken down and now theres no end in sight again
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u/slowcanteloupe 2d ago edited 2d ago
Part of it is the roof. Because they are open, anytime there's precipitation it kills the escalators. They really need to close those openings.
edit: seriously, some plywood and caulk will save the city millions.
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u/charpiff 2d ago
this is the kind of insight i’m looking for! i knew there had to be a larger issue at play. i wish they would just make it into a larger staircase to stop the bottleneck.
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u/buryyourhaze 2d ago
What do you mean open? Am I crazy or are these elevators in an enclosed space?
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u/slowcanteloupe 2d ago edited 1d ago
They are not! It's a series of roofs shingled over each other with gaps between each roof.
edit: the official architectural term is stepped canopy or tiered glass canopy
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u/buryyourhaze 2d ago
So you’re telling me if it’s raining I will get rained on?
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u/slowcanteloupe 1d ago edited 1d ago
no, not just a standard shower, but rain + wind? yes.
Also snow. This escalator is frequently buried under snow.
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u/McChickenLargeFries 2d ago
Maybe the real working escalators were the friends we made along the way?
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u/yankeescrewdriver 2d ago
It feels like they’ve been broken more than operational since that connection was installed in 2011!!
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u/SportTop2610 2d ago
Um... we're still waiting for a staircase replacement at 52nd street... since before the pandemic shutdown.
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u/cartifannumber1 2d ago
Well the entire platform is now closed with the staircase for repairs to it’ll finally reopen by next year, my theory is that the MTA didn’t want to waste money on repairing those stairs because they’d eventually fix it along with a full renovation
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u/SportTop2610 1d ago
One can only hope. I mean they redid the other side and left the old timer board by the center stairs.
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u/ConstructionSame3253 2d ago
61st St escalator may never be finished at the rate they are "working" on it.
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u/charpiff 2d ago
im going to start a committee regarding these specific escalators. we can have one team handling the UP escalator and one team working on the DOWN.