Today TransitCenter, along with other disability-rights organizations, sent a letter to MTA Chairman Pat Foye, urging the agency to amend the 2015-2019 MTA Capital Program to include the next 50 accessible subway stations. This idea was generated by Commissioner Larry Schwartz during the July 2019 MTA board meeting, and would spend a portion of New York State’s undelivered $7.3 billion commitment on the current program.

The signatories to the letter, including United Spinal, Disabled in Action, Rise and Resist, and PCAC, strongly endorse amending the 2015-2019 MTA Capital Program to accelerate work on the next 50 accessible stations. Riders with disabilities, seniors, parents with strollers, and many others have waited far too long for an accessible subway. Taking this step will help to demonstrate the MTA’s commitment to improving access to the subway system for everyone by prioritizing accessibility as promised in the Fast Forward plan.

We support adding 50 station accessibility projects to the 2015-2019 Capital Program under the following conditions: any amendments to the 2015-19 Capital Program do not reduce the overall size of the program or come at the expense of other critical priorities; the state maintains its $7.3 billion pledge of general fund support for the 2015-2019 Capital Program; and subsequent programs include funding for station accessibility upgrades that keep the MTA on track to deliver a fully accessible subway system by 2034.

Read the letter in its entirety here.