Photo by Jonathan Custodio
After over a year of petitioning, commuters who rely on the No. 4 train at Mosholu Parkway can finally expect an elevator to be installed.
But just how long the process or even when that installation will take place is up in the air.
Under the persistent roar of uptown and downtown service, elected officials gathered under the train station on Sept. 25 to announce the plan, which is to be funded by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s (MTA) $51.5 billion capital budget for 2020-2024.
A total of 70 stations in the city are expected to receive accessibility improvements. Though plans are nowhere near drafted for the Mosholu Parkway elevator, the station could receive upwards of three elevators.
Dustin Jones, an advocate for the Center for Independence of the Disabled, New York (CIDNY) who relies on a wheelchair to get around, says that he sometimes must hail a pricey taxi ride because subway stations lack elevator access. “On a personal level, I am happy. We’ve been fighting for this for a year,” he notes, while also maintaining that pressure on the MTA must be maintained because of their past history in fumbling on capital projects. “We need to push that the MTA has a legal binding statement.”
Spearheaded by Eric Dinowitz, who worked with Jones in advocating for the renovation, elected officials present at the news conference included Assemblyman Jeff Dinowitz, Assemblywoman Nathalia Fernandez, and State Sen. Jamaal Bailey. North Central Bronx Hospital executive director Cristina Contreras also shared her excitement for the planned project.
Only 24 percent of stations in all five boroughs are ADA-compliant.
“We are so happy that we are included in this list of recipients,” says Jean Hill, president of the Tracey Towers Tenants’ Association. “A lot of us have been in this area for more than 40 years.”
Photo by Jonathan Custodio
Wen Williams, one of those 40-year residents, is dubious of the project’s completion. “They’ve been saying that for years. I hate to say it but if we were in downtown or in Riverdale, it would have been done,” says the retired senior as she returns home from a doctor’s appointment.
The station sits in a hub of commerce, transit, and community resources that include Montefiore Medical Center, North Central Bronx Hospital, Tracey Towers, and transfers to multiple bus lines.
Not only is the elevator expected to provide access for the disabled, but it will also make commuting easier for those who struggle walking up stairs, including parents carrying strollers.
There is no timeline on when the project will begin or how long the design and construction process will take. Fernandez believes the elevator should be placed on the side of the street in front of Tracey Towers, which sits below the southbound side of the train.
The Coalition for Accessible Subways at Mosholu Parkway, comprised of elected officials, community institutions and local activists, collected 2,000 signatures and presented them to the MTA board last year.
“God forbid that public transportation be actually accessible to the entire public,” says Bailey, who echoed Fernandez’s call for more accessibility to be increased at more subway stations in the Bronx, spotlighting the 2 and 5 lines on Allerton Avenue. “But for today we will celebrate a job well done.”
The MTA plans to submit the Capital Program to the Capital Program Review Board by Oct. 1.
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Welcome to the Norwood News, a bi-weekly community newspaper that primarily serves the northwest Bronx communities of Norwood, Bedford Park, Fordham and University Heights. Through our Breaking Bronx blog, we focus on news and information for those neighborhoods, but aim to cover as much Bronx-related news as possible. Founded in 1988 by Mosholu Preservation Corporation, a not-for-profit affiliate of Montefiore Medical Center, the Norwood News began as a monthly and grew to a bi-weekly in 1994. In September 2003 the paper expanded to cover University Heights and now covers all the neighborhoods of Community District 7. The Norwood News exists to foster communication among citizens and organizations and to be a tool for neighborhood development efforts. The Norwood News runs the Bronx Youth Journalism Heard, a journalism training program for Bronx high school students. As you navigate this website, please let us know if you discover any glitches or if you have any suggestions. We’d love to hear from you. You can send e-mails to norwoodnews@norwoodnews.org or call us anytime (718) 324-4998.
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Is a lot of crime NYC, sometimes ago it was calmed, can’t go outside someone kick u and robe u.
Governor and Mayor not doing anything.
Safety is the real problem for that line
First they need to clean up that whole train. Very unsafe the last two times I rode it from Woodlawn to Yankee stadium. Train is full of crime.
First time woman walking around with a
carpet cutter. Second time someone
branding a knife. Enough number 4 for me.
Is about time for a elevator, train four and D train. People with wheelchairs or cane.
First they need to clean up that whole train. Very unsafe the last two times I rode it from Woodlawn to Yankee stadium. Train is full of crime.
First they need to clean up that whole train. Very unsafe the last two times I rode it from Woodlawn to Yankee stadium. Train is full of crime.
First time woman walking around with a carpet cutter. Second time someone branding a knife. Enough number 4 for me.
Safety is the real problem for that line
First they need to clean up that whole train. Very unsafe the last two times I rode it from Woodlawn to Yankee stadium. Train is full of crime.
First time woman walking around with a carpet cutter. Second time someone branding a knife. Enough number 4 for me.
Safety is the real problem for that line
First they need to clean up that whole train. Very unsafe the last two times I rode it from Woodlawn to Yankee stadium. Train is full of crime.
First time woman walking around with a carpet cutter. Second time someone branding a knife. Enough number 4 for me.