West 13th Street Will Never Be Finished

Last November, Gothamist marveled that part of 6th Avenue near 13th Street had been paved over, but today, the Washington Square News tackles construction woes on West 13th Street. Some students are complaining about the noise and congestion outisde the Thirteenth Street dorm.

New York’s Metropolitan Transit Authority began the project in April 2002 to improve the ventilation on the F, V, L, 1, 2 and 3 subway lines near the 14th Street station was schedule to be completed by July 2005.

MTA spokesman James Anyansi said the project will now not be finished until early next year, though above-ground construction is projected to be completed by late spring. Delays arose because of the massive amount of excavation required for the project and inaccurate subway maps, Anyansi said.

“Things we found were not on maps saying they were there,” he said, pointing to outdated underground plans from Con Edison.

Aha! Of course the project is taking longer than the MTA expected - and of course the subway maps were inaccurate as well! That's why nothing has been fixed at Chambers Street subway station over a year after the fire! This is not just the story of a street with neverending construction - this is a story of how our city is more likely to finish projects way behind schedule. We're not exactly complaining, but it's very frustrating.

And Gothamist got the book, The Works, for Christmas (thank you, Santa) and it is so awesome. If your Valentine is interested in city infrastructure, pick it up.

Photograph from the Washington Square News