Rejoice, Brooklyn residents who live near the subway stops at Fourth Avenue-Ninth Street, Seventh Avenue, 15th Street-Prospect Park, Fort Hamilton Parkway, and Church Avenue: The MTA gods have heard your prayers, and they are granting your request to make the G train extension permanent. At least, that's what the Daily News hears—reached for comment, MTA spokesman Kevin Ortiz would neither confirm nor deny, but according to the News' sources, the G train will run to Church Avenue forevermore.
In 2009, the G line was extended an additional five stops beyond Carroll Street in order to accommodate rehabilitation on the Culver Viaduct. This was only supposed to be temporary, but residents and business owners along the line have been lobbying the MTA to make the extension permanent after the work is done. At a rally in March, Public Advocate Bill de Blasio said, "These extra five stops are a lifeline that Brooklyn residents and small businesses have come to depend on."
The News' sources also say the MTA's finances "have improved to the point that transit executives are confident they can ramp up service in parts of the system," and according to the MTA's most recent finance report, it has $90 million more on hand than it projected back in February. Most of the service improvements are expected to target the Bronx and Brooklyn, where the semi-isolated neighborhood of Red Hook will reportedly get expanded bus service, as will Bay Ridge.
