Work is progressing at the Fulton Street Transit Hub

For several years now, the progress at the Fulton Street Transit Center has been notable inside the station, below the streets, and behind construction fencing. But over the past several weeks, structural steel has been literally shaping the ground floor of the future Transit Center building at Fulton and Broadway -- beginning the process that will define its actual three-story shape above the fence line starting next winter.

The main building is the centerpiece of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s (MTA) much larger Transit Center project. Stretching from William to Church Street, the hub promises to clarify three long blocks of subterranean passageways linking four subway platforms. For riders, several benefits are already complete or will roll out in the coming years. Among them are new stairways on the 2/3 platform, the new southern entrances to the 4/5 platform, and the expanded Cortlandt Street northbound platform.

In addition, natural light already is seeping through construction fencing on the 4/5 platform, creating a sneak peek of the future station’s illumination. It was designed specifically to “funnel” sunlight through the main building’s roof “oculus” and down to underground corridors -- partly as an added wayfinding aid.

MTA planners are now working on the last portions of the Transit Center’s construction. Crews reached a major milestone this spring when they completed underpinning of the historic Corbin Building, which was key to stabilizing that structure for surrounding construction, as well as to incorporate it into the complex as a new entry point on John Street. Along with new escalators to be installed in its base, the entire Corbin Building will undergo a renovation starting next month.

Contractors also have mobilized to complete the Dey Street underground concourse, building the new entrance house at Dey and Broadway, and renovating the 4/5 station. In coordination with Port Authority work on the west side of Church Street, contractor Skanska Construction will rebuild the R/W Cortlandt Street southbound platform, which has been closed for several years during World Trade Center mass excavation.

Another milestone is that the MTA has awarded all of the contracts to complete the complex, with the final one -- to erect the Transit Center main building -- going jointly to Schiavone and Plaza Construction. That work is expected to begin in fall 2010, following substructure completion.

With the various contracts on schedule and fully funded, the MTA expects the new Fulton Street Transit Center to be complete by mid-2014.

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