Clark Street Station Elevator Fact Sheet
April 2022 Update: MTA NYC Transit reports that they will complete the Clark Street 2/3 Station Elevator Replacement Project in Brooklyn Heights, and will reopen the station with the three new elevators by the end of April 2022. MTA started to replace all three aging elevators in November of 2021, and the Clark St. 2/3 was bypassed in both directions during this time. The upper level of the station has remained open, preserving public access to businesses.Click here to read the full project details from the MTA.
September 19, 2019
| Link to survey | Link to survey results |
Why do the elevators at the Clark St 2/3 need to be replaced?
- MTA NYC Transit (NYCT) will replace the elevators due to safety reasons & the age of the elevators
- The elevators were built in 1919 & 1931, and only parts of the elevators were replaced ~20 years ago
- Over the past 10 years, each elevator was closed an average of more than 60 days per year for both planned and unplanned outages
- Last year, straphangers were trapped in a Clark St elevator for an hour until FDNY came to the rescue
| Options | Operation | Positive | Negative/Risk |
| Option 1 Bypass station for 8 months (NYCT preferred plan) | No elevators | Least expensive with shortest duration | No current plans for Shuttle Bus Service due to the 3 other stations within a 5-block radius (though NYCT was open to the possibility at the 9/16 community meeting) |
| Option 2 Work on one elevator at a time for 24 months | 2 elevators operational at all times | Station remains open | ● Station will be bypassed if any elevator fails ● Reliability concerns of operating elevators ● Customer flow concerns ● Construction of partition wall required to work separately in elevators in shared shaft ● Safety of worker (worker near operating equipment / shared machine Rooms) ● Standby NYCT Personnel required ● Only 1 elevator can be replaced at a time due to fire code / safety |
| Option 3 Work on one elevator at a time for 22 months | 2 elevators operational only during peak hours (roughly, peak hours = weekdays, 7am-10am & 4pm-7pm) | Station remains open |
What else has been discussed?
At a 9/16 community meeting hosted by State Senator Brian Kavanagh, Assemblymember Jo Anne Simon, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, Council Member Stephen Levin, with Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez, NYC Transit President Andy Byford spoke with community members about the repair of the elevators at the Clark Street station and said that he would look into:
- Finding ways to support the vendors in the station (businesses will be able to remain open regardless of the option used, but there are concerns about the impact of a reduction in foot traffic); &
- The possibility of a shuttle bus to connect Clark Street to other nearby stations.
The above-mentioned elected officials are conducting a survey to gather your feedback. We will share the results with NYCT and the public. Please note on the survey any other comments you have that would impact your support or disproval for any of the options.