wow, I didn’t know that we were gonna be starting this so soon!
They’re beginning, but much like Gateway, the Trump administration is holding funds hostage, so they’re also suing to regain their federal money, as they may stop work if the funds aren’t restored.
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Another entry on the 25th Amendment “pros” list.
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I haven’t heard about the Second Avenue subway in 20 years,” Trump said. "I guess they got to get it finished. They spent trillions of dollars, practically. I know they spent more money on that than on anything, I think, in the history of our city in New York City. And it’s been under construction for a long time. It’s very sad, actually.
This man is in the White House.
The first phase literally opened during his first term. And he apparantly doesn’t know the difference between billions and trillions of dollars. That tracks actually.
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And all that [unnecessary] war and military money that could go to bringing us 1st class infrastructure. I truly weep!
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He knows enough to cut blind checks to a nation actively committing war crimes and to spend billions (within weeks) on a pointless war that said nation goaded him into participating in instead of focusing on domestic issues. (What happened to “America First”?)
This is objectively false since he was responsible for halting the funding in the first place, and there’s a lawsuit against him by the MTA over it. I bet he saw how the Gateway lawsuits played out and realized it’s better to just release the funding than the court laying down the law on him and forcing him to do it.
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106th Station Contract awarded. Very expensive, but at least it’s done.
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Are they still planning to build the stations halfway to the earth’s core?
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This portion will utilize existing tunnels built during the 1970s which were cut-and-cover. So no, not all stations will be deep.
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Is $1B for one station or more ?
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I know she’s doing this for political motivations in 2026 but it’s nice to not have Albany actively trying to sabotage building transit. Get it built.
“Expanding the Second Avenue Subway even further across 125th Street is an extraordinary opportunity, and I am not going to waste any time advancing this project,” said Gov. Hochul. “By securing funding to design the tunnel and accelerating environmental review, we have set the MTA up to deliver this project as soon as possible and save hundreds of millions of dollars in potential project costs.”
Creative problem solving has not always been a hallmark of Albany’s transit policies, but MTA executives said it’s becoming a more regular occurrence.
“This is an example of the governor and the legislature taking the minutiae of government very seriously and making a very technical tweak that allows this project to move forward,” Fitzpatrick told Streetsblog. “I think it’s a sign of the seriousness with which they’ve taken transit over the last few years, and that’s a very gratifying thing for us.”
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I’m sure the transit fans on this site are aware but for those that are not, the MTA regularly posts photos to their Flickr account. There’s weekly updates as well as event-based ones.
Here’s two albums posted in the last few days regarding the SAS:
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The weekly updates are facinating and the flickr albums provide more photos than what are contained in the articles. For those who are interested, here is the whole official archive of construction updates where the MTA discusses in detail a bunch of projects happening throughout the system.
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Amazing! Thank you!
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I read their most recent newsletter:
| June 9, 2026 |
|---|
Welcome back to This Week in MTA Construction!
Second Avenue Subway Phase 2 is one of the most transformative transit projects in the country—and this week, it hit a major milestone.
Governor Hochul joined us in East Harlem to break ground on the launch site for our gargantuan, state‑of‑the‑art Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs). Next year, those machines will be delivered and lowered deep underground to carve out the tunnels that will finally bring
service from 96 St to 125 St.
It was one of the most significant moments in the project’s decades-long history—and a clear sign that Phase 2 is pushing ahead.
Last August, we told you about the four contracts that make up this project. For our second-ever Second Avenue Subway Special Issue, we’ll do things differently. Let’s walk the route and show you how we’re turning rock, sand, and a very old tunnel into three world-class subway stations in East Harlem.
— Sophie
The road to 106 St station
To make our way to the future 106 St station, we’ll build new tunnels using a “cut‑and‑cover” method—the most efficient approach for the soft soil conditions in this stretch. Crews will open up the street block by block and construct the tunnel structure that will house the new station. When they’re done, they’ll restore the roadway, sidewalks and bike lanes above. Same road, just now with a subway tunnel underneath it.
This is the third contract for Phase 2, awarded in April. Advance utility relocation in this area is on track to wrap up six months ahead of schedule, meaning crews will be able to start work later this summer.
The tunnel to 116 St station
A few blocks past the 106 St station, cut‑and‑cover will give way to a half-mile stretch of tunnels built in the early 1970s, then abandoned for half a century. This tunnel was a clear symbol of the project’s stop‑and‑start past. Now, it’s a symbol of the new MTA’s creativity.
By adapting and reusing these tunnels, we’re saving $500 million—a major contributor to the $1.3 billion plus in total savings we’ve achieved so far. But they need serious upgrades to meet modern standards.
The first task is removing the old duct banks that run along the tunnel walls. These were built with dozens of clay conduits to carry critical power cables—but they also proved highly vulnerable during Hurricane Sandy. Today, crews are tearing out those 1970s‑era ducts and soon will begin installing stronger iron ducts, where needed, and shifting essential wiring overhead.
Next, we’ll repair steel and concrete throughout the tunnels to get them ready for 21st-century subway service and make room for the platform at the future 116 St station.
The dig to 125 St station
The 1970s tunnels come to an end at 120 St—so to reach 125 St, we’re deploying two TBMs. Each has a 22‑foot, diamond‑studded drill head capable of chewing through Manhattan bedrock while reinforcing the tunnel lining behind it. They’re faster, stronger, and more efficient than anything we used in Phase 1.
But before they can start digging, the 1.5‑million‑pound machines need to get underground. So, we’re building a 60-foot-deep shaft to lower them in.
That’s what our groundbreaking yesterday was all about—with Governor Hochul herself turning the first shovelful of dirt.
Crews are now installing guide walls and secant piles so we can safely excavate the shaft area before the TBMs are lowered in next year.
The blasts at 125 St station
Because a TBM carves a tunnel only wide enough for the tracks, we’ll need to excavate a much larger cavern for the terminal station at 125 St and Lexington Av. We’ve completed the essential Support of Excavation work: more than 100 concrete secant piles form a watertight perimeter around the excavation area, reinforced by giant steel bracing across the site.
Now, the hard part begins.
Breaking through Manhattan schist requires controlled blasting—a safe, proven method, and the same technique we used when we brought Long Island Rail Road service to Grand Central just a few years ago.
Later this week, we’ll conduct our first test blast. These small, precise blasts help us calibrate vibration levels and confirm that nearby buildings remain safe. Nearly 1,000 sensors across the neighborhood monitor every blast in real time, with FDNY experts on site throughout. After a series of successful tests, we’ll move into controlled blasting, going deeper with every round.
It’s a careful, controlled process that brings us one step closer to delivering the modern, reliable transit system East Harlem deserves.
The headline
The Daily News declared October 27, 1972 “the day the Second Avenue Subway started for real." The Governor said it best: “This really, really is for real.”
Your fun fact of the week
Phases 1 and 2 combined will serve about 300,000 riders a day. That’s a little more than the ridership of the entire SEPTA system in Philadelphia and close to MBTA in Boston.
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