NYC subway cleanup is getting underway

This first phase of track cleanup will last two weeks

New Yorkers can breathe a huge sigh of relief (and perhaps some clean air too) now that the MTA has commenced a two-week long, large-scale cleanup process on the subway system, Metro New York reports.

The cleanup got underway Monday morning and will include all of the subway’s 469 stations. 500 MTA workers will take part in the exercise, which will see the removal of trash and debris from about 10-miles of tracks. It’s part of the overall ‘Operation Track Sweep,’ as the MTA has labeled it.

Cleanup will take place during the day on outdoor and elevated tracks, while underground stations will be cleaned at night during low ridership hours. Signs will be posted at all stations outlining the exact cleanup schedule for that particular station.

The effort is being undertaken in large part to avoid track fires, and in turn delays on the subway.

"There’s no question that a concerted and sustained effort to limit trash on subway tracks will have a significant impact on the efficiency of subway service," Thomas Prendergast, the CEO of the MTA told Metro.

from
http://ny.curbed.com/2016/9/13/12894660/nyc-subway-cleanup-mta-track-sweep