Brooklyn Boro

Weekend Special: Full-length G trains coming to a station near you

January 25, 2017 By Scott Enman Brooklyn Daily Eagle
A half-length, four-car G train enters the elevated Smith-Ninth Streets station. AP Photo/Mark Lennihan
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Brooklynites all too familiar with the notorious G train’s spotty service, outdated models and undersized cars are in for some good news.

For this weekend only, G trains will double in length from four cars (300 feet) to eight cars (600 feet), which means straphangers will not have to frantically run the length of the platform to catch their train.

With the introduction of the full-length, eight-car G trains, commuters will also not have to worry about waiting at the wrong end of the platform outside of the shorter G trains’ stopping position. Station wait times will also decrease, as conductors will not have to wait for customers running to catch the train from the other side of the platform.

This luxury, however, will be short lived, as it will only be available this weekend while the F train is out of service between Jay Street-MetroTech and Stillwell Avenue. Jamaica-bound F trains will run via the A line from Jay-Street MetroTech to West Fourth Street.

The longer G trains, which were used the past two weekends as well, will run the entire length of the line from Church Avenue to Court Square in Queens.

MTA Spokeswoman Marisa Baldeo confirmed with the Brooklyn Eagle on Tuesday that the full-length G trains are only being used while the F train is out of service and that the line will revert back to its shorter length after this upcoming weekend.

Brooklynites will, however, have gotten a taste of what is to come in 2019 during the L-train shutdown.

MTA spokesman Kevin Ortiz told the Eagle in May that the MTA plans on improving the G train during the L-train closure by using full-length trains, increasing service and operating more modern cars.

In addition, the unused L train cars, which are part of the subway system’s most modern fleet of cars, will be added to the G line, according to Ortiz. The modern line of cars provides passengers with a sleek interior and a user-friendly electronic board alerting straphangers of upcoming stops.

Since the end of July, G trains have been testing out new digital signs inside the cars that inform passengers of the date and time and that show a message that reads, “Thank you for riding with MTA New York City Transit!”

Ortiz told the Eagle that the MTA has not finalized whether or not the G train will return to its original service once construction on the L line is completed. 

 

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