While most of the subway stations we use on a regular basis are nothing more than subterranean whirlpools of shame and desperation, a some lucky straphangers in the Bronx are about to start enjoying a veritable cathedral to commuting. Today the MTA unveils a completely renovated East 180th Street 2/5 Station. With this 2 year, $66.5-million dollar project completed, the station is now fully handicap-accessible, and fully face-lifted!
Located at the southern tip of Bronx Park, the 100-year-old station services both the Bronx Botanical Garden and Bronx Zoo and sees over 2-million riders annually. The renovations give the station a significant cosmetic update, including new mosaic tiles, a large timepiece, and restored platforms, mezzanines and windows.
"The building was designed with arches and balconies that give it the distinct look of an Italian villa," said the MTA in a press release today. "On the exterior is a restored plaque topped with the head of Mercury, the Roman god of transportation."
Added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980, the building formerly served as the administration office for the old New York, Westchester and Boston Railway system. The terminal once connected the Bronx with White Plains and Port Chester. In 1940, NYC took ownership of the Bronx portion of the line and tied it into the IRT.
"This station is certainly one of the oldest in the Bronx, but also one of the oldest and most vital in the entire city,” said City Council Member James Vacca. “Not only do these renovations now include full accessibility to handicapped straphangers with a ramp and elevator, but it has given a beautiful facelift to a station that has been serving our city for over 100 years.”
So chin chin all around for Bronx residents and tourists headed to the beautiful Bronx Zoo and Botanical Garden. As for the rest of us, we'll be waiting around three years while the MTA restores this moldy, gutted station that looks straight out of a nightmare.