Getting around by subway this Memorial Day weekend may be tricky. The MTA is doing track and signal work that’s impacting nine lines. WNYC’s Stephen Nessen reports, the MTA knows it’s a pain for riders, but says it can get a lot of work done in three days.

When the MTA does track repairs, or installs signals, it takes a lot just to set up a work site. Crews have to move all the trains out of the way, turn off power to the third rail, and get all the supplies in place. And then clean up in time for the start of the work week. While recent ridership data shows people are back to riding the subways on the weekends at levels pretty close to what is was before the pandemic, the MTA insists disruptive weekend outages are still the best time to get work done. The head of the agency says they’re still looking at ways to adjust schedules to adapt to new ridership trends.]