The MTA recently announced that the L-train shutdown, originally due in 2017, will not happen until 2019. This will impact hundreds of people who rely on this popular subway line to commute to and from work and school daily. The Canarsie tubes were severely damaged after Hurricane Sandy in 2012, and are just now being considered for repair.
For this story, I will interview L-train commuters and get their take on this shutdown and how it will impact their daily commutes. The L train services many parts of Brooklyn that are disconnected from other subway lines, therefore making it very newsworthy. In addition, it is interesting that the MTA is choosing to do repairs to this line seven years after it was damaged by Hurricane Sandy. This poses the larger question of whether New York City is really prepared to deal with natural disasters, and whether or not the city has reliable public transit.
In addition to interviewing commuters, I would also seek comment from an MTA representative. The article in its whole would follow those commuters who will ultimately be impacted by this shutdown, while exploring NYC’s mass transit system as a whole and its reliability.