The Brooklyn Paper reports that four elected officials, identified as U.S. Rep. Max Rose (D–Bay Ridge), State Sen. Andrew Gounardes (D–Bay Ridge), Assemblywoman Mathylde Frontus (D–Coney Island), and Councilman Justin Brannan (D–Bay Ridge), have written to Transit Authority CEO Andy Byford asking that he consider suspending service in both directions between Court Street here in Brooklyn Heights and Whitehall Street in lower Manhattan in order to expedite needed repair work. As you may recall, an identical service suspension took place between October 2013 and September 2014 to repair damage to the tunnel under the East River caused by Hurricane Sandy. Whatever needs urgent repair must be in that tunnel. Presumably N trains, which follow the R route late at night between Canal Street and Atlantic Terminal-Barclays Center, would follow their daytime route over the Manhattan Bridge between DeKalb Avenue and Canal, and R trains would follow that route on weekends.
The Brooklyn Paper story includes reactions from four straphangers. Three of them — one from Brooklyn Heights and two from Bay Ridge — were strongly opposed, noting that it would complicate their commutes and make them take longer. One Ridgite was in favor, saying she thinks “the line needs a quick fix” since improvements to signals will probably be at least ten years off.
