MTA New York Metropolis Transit President Demetrius Crichlow.
Marc A. Hermann / MTA
We speak quite a bit about “state of good repair” right here at New York Metropolis Transit, and for good motive. The subway system is 120 years outdated and wishes common upkeep and renewal to maintain working nicely, particularly for the tracks.
There are 850 miles of metal rails snaking from Van Cortlandt Park to Far Rockaway. To repair broken sections, staff used to have to hold wood monitor ties over their shoulder to put in replacements separately. At present the method – managed by Chief Upkeep Officer Dom Gallo — is very technical, and way more environment friendly.
It begins in East New York at our Linden Store. There, led by Superintendent Rameshwar Sambhu and Upkeep Supervisor Ronnie DeMaria, we fabricate and assemble each single foot of rail, each swap, and each monitor tie that goes into the subway system. That’s a large operation, requiring 36 flatbed vans, 26 trailers, three cranes, and fixed use of labor trains, overseen by Upkeep Supervisor Kenneth Schulze.
Knowledgeable welders like 34-year MTA veteran Rob Frantzen use their abilities to organize each factor of steel rail. They carry out work generally known as “frog welding” as a result of, by repairing and rebuilding switches, they allow trains to “jump” from one monitor to a different safely. This system permits us to rebuild some switches three or 4 occasions. Welders additionally create super-long segments of constantly welded rail – as much as 390 ft lengthy — which can be loaded onto feeder tables and fabricated separately in our welding plant.
NYC subway riders board and depart a 6 prepare in Manhattan on March 12, 2025.Photograph by Dean Moses
Renewing the subway system’s 168 miles of elevated tracks is very complicated. Elevated monitor is made up of 39-foot-long wood panels, every purpose-built for its section. Every little thing from curves to elevation adjustments must be thought-about within the design, like items of a jigsaw puzzle.
Earlier than work begins, our sketching workforce diagrams the monitor, marking exactly the place each beam, plate, and rail ought to go. Then, the workforce on the sawmill churns out tailored wood ties. Every little thing comes collectively within the store, the place plates are drilled into the ties, rail is laid down, and each section of the panel is knitted collectively. Cranes then load every panel onto a flatbed for drivers like James Salerno to ferry to their vacation spot.
Final 12 months, crews put in 960 of those monitor panels, essentially the most we’ve ever accomplished. That’s roughly 37,500 ft of brand name new, extra dependable elevated monitor. This 12 months, we’re decided to lift the overall larger but by working extra effectively than ever. Simply final week, Observe Building Superintendent Stanley Summer time’s workforce changed sections of monitor on the F line close to Kings Freeway and Superintendent Roydell Brathwaite’s workforce changed sections of monitor on the two line close to 233rd Road within the Bronx.
One of the best half? We do that work throughout the center of the day and on weekends, decreasing delays and restoring full service for weekday rush hours with time to spare. To proceed bettering security and repair, it’s important we preserve our tracks in good working order – and because of the efforts of lots of of colleagues to resume the system, we’re doing simply that.
Demetrius Crichlow is president of New York Metropolis Transit.
