F Express Update: (Temporarily) Next Year or By 2012 or 2013

Brooklynites that have been pushing for an F Train may get some short-term relief in the form of a temporary F Express if work on the Culver Viaduct project falls behind schedule, but otherwise, the New York City Transit says that express service on the F won't be possible until 2012 or early 2013. Andrew Inglesby, the MTA's Assistant Director of Government and Community Relations, gave a long update on the status of F Train service at the Carroll Gardens Neighborhood Association meeting last night.

Mr. Inglesby reiterated that work on the Culver Viaduct, which runs above-ground between the Carroll Street Station and the Fourth Avenue Station, is a critical capital project and that work must be completed before an F Express can be put in place. He said the viaduct is "in extreme need of repair." Netting and tarp have surrounded the viaduct for about five years to keep chunks of concrete from falling. The MTA expects to award contracts for the work next year. "F Express service just can't happen until the end of that period." He said the work will result in "an automatic elimination of any F Express."

The transit official did offer possibility that if work on the viaduct project is "significantly delayed" by a year or more, then the Transit Authority "will go ahead and examine the possibility of putting in an F Express." Express service would depend on the availability of cars and funding. So, an F Express could make an appearance for a year or 18 months, if there is a delay in the big repair project.

The bad news for residents of Carroll Gardens, from whence much of the push for F Express service has come, is that an express train would likely stop at Jay Street, Seventh Avenue and Church Avenue; it would bypass Bergen Street, Carroll Street, Smith-9th Street, 15th Street and Fort Hamilton Parkway.

Residents that use the local stops, however, were assured their trains would become less crowded. Gary Reilly, who started the F Train Express petition drive that got a great deal of press attention, said that "It wouldn't just be a zero-sum game for the neighborhoods" and that the changes would "free up some excess capacity."

There is also a push to extended the V Train to Brooklyn to provide local service. G Train service is slated to be extended to Church Avenue in 2009. (Mr. Inglesby said the extension of the V isn't "a complete dead issue.")

The MTA and New York City Transit are still examining options. "Nothing is set in stone," Mr. Inglsby told residents.