On The Way: MTA to fix Brooklyn's worst subway bottlenecks
A report the MTA plans to publish on Wednesday lays out plans to fix two of the worst bottlenecks in the subway system — and identifies dozens of other pain points that cause daily headaches for millions of riders.
Under one plan, the 3 and 5 trains would swap tracks east of Franklin Avenue in Brooklyn in order to untangle the Nostrand Junction, which state Sen. Zellnor Myrie once called the “Crown Heights Cluster.” Officials are working to design new switches and a new section of track so trains no longer have to wait for one another to pass at the intersection. Once it’s done, the transit agency will send 3 trains along Nostrand Avenue and 5 trains beneath Eastern Parkway.
The MTA is also working with contractors to fix the DeKalb Interlocking, an aging set of switches near the foot of the Brooklyn side of the Manhattan Bridge where the B, D, N, Q and R lines all intersect. Crews rely on 1930s-era technology and — in some cases — paper maps to direct trains along those tracks when something goes wrong.
The MTA is already working to upgrade the signal systems on the B and the D lines, and the report says the agency is also working with contractors on designs to make the curves on the interlocking's tracks less sharp so trains can move through faster.
