Bill de Blasio Calls Lack of L Train Alternatives 'Troubling'

The mayor wishes the MTA had come up with transportation alternatives before announcing the L train shutdown this week.

Bill de Blasio spoke about the impending L train shutdown for the first time since returning to New York City from the Democratic National Convention on Friday's Brian Lehrer Show — and he is not happy.

"This decision – although I’m sure it has a practical, underlying rationale – announcing it without a plan to deal with the impact is troubling to me," de Blasio told the radio host.

The 18-month shutdown, which won't come until January 2019, was announced by the MTA on Monday. The L train will be closed between Eighth Avenue in Manhattan and Bedford Avenue in Brooklyn in order to make repairs to the Canarsie tunnel, which was damaged by Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

De Blasio has never had the coziest relationship with the MTA, which is run by the state and therefore Gov. Andrew Cuomo, as opposed to the city. The mayor reminded listeners to that fact on Friday.

"The MTA – I like to remind all New Yorkers – is run by the State of New York, not the city," de Blasio said. "And therefore, we see the MTA do things sometimes that are not pleasing to us as New Yorkers."

Although de Blasio doesn't control the MTA, he does control many city agencies which will be asked to pick up the slack in the L train's absence. State Sen. Daniel Squadron and a host of city politicians — 32 in total — sent a letter to de Blasio, as well as Cuomo and MTA Chairman Thomas Prendergast, on Tuesday asking for a working group to be formed immediately to come up with alternatives.

"Since the spring we have been working with the community, elected officials and other stakeholders to develop a robust outreach plan that will address service alternatives and minimize impacts on L line riders," MTA spokesperson Beth DeFalco said Tuesday. "We will continue to do so as we agree on the best available options for our customers."

A few of the ideas floated for alternatives include additional ferry service, a dedicated bus line and even shutting down 14th Street in Manhattan to only buses, bikes and pedestrians. State Sen. Brad Hoylman suggested shutting down the street to help ease the loss of the closed Manhattan stations. De Blasio seemed hesitant to endorse that plan on Friday.

"The other point about [closing] 14th Street – it’s a big decision," de Blasio told Lehrer. "We’ve only just begun to think about what we might do. It’s not one that on first blush sounds to me easy, given how important 14th Street is. But we’ll look at everything and anything we can do."