It’s been a century in the making — but the MTA is finally able to test trains along the tracks of the Second Ave. subway.
Over the weekend, test trains were running along the future stations of the Q train that will be rerouted to a new platform at the Lexington Ave.-63rd St. station and three new stops along Second Ave. up to 96th St., according to a Metropolitan Transportation Authority spokeswoman.
Test trains could be seen rolling through the new tracks on the Q line at the Lexington Ave.-63rd St. stop from a nearby F train platform, according to a video on YouTube taken by “Dj Hammers,” the handle of a prolific train enthusiast who films the transit system.
The MTA has been under pressure to open the four stations by Dec. 31 — a goal the agency is sticking to for the time being.
Andrew Albert, an MTA board member, said it was a good sign that trains are running on the tracks, but still cautioned that there’s more work needed in order for the agency to have every station open by the end of the year.
“It’s great that they’re running trains, which shows that there’s power all the way in the three new stations,” he said. “But this is not the same thing as saying for sure it’s going to open at the end of the year. There are several issues that need to be ironed out.”
Crews are having trouble wrapping up work at two stations, mainly due to elevator and escalator work.
In September, MTA brass got warnings from an independent engineer to ramp up the number of equipment tests it needs to complete each week in order to meet the Dec. 31 deadline.
