MTA Plans to Clean Trash From All 469 Subway Stations in 2-Week Span

The MTA has noticed its subway stations could use a deep cleaning — or 469.

The agency announced its new clean-up initiative on Friday, aimed at cleaning all 469 stations in the subway system over a two-week span beginning on Sept. 12. The MTA says it will deploy 500 workers to remove trash and debris from the tracks in order to prevent track fires and the resulting delays.

The clean-up will be done overnight in underground stations, and an MTA spokesperson says it will have "no impact" on commuters. It will be done during the day at outdoor and elevated stations.

"We’re approaching this as a sustained effort to get the tracks clean, and keep them as clean as possible over the long haul," said Ronnie Hakim, President of NYC Transit, in a statement. "Even as we redouble our efforts, it’s important for everyone to realize that riders have a critically important role to play as well – keeping the tracks clean means that everyone has to pitch in by disposing of trash properly."

The two-week clean-up is just one part of a four-phase solution, according to the MTA. The first phase was already implemented in June and involved increasing track clean-up from 34 stations every two weeks to 94 stations every two weeks. That schedule will continue going forward.

Phase 2 is the two-week deep cleaning which will target all 469 stations, and over 10 miles of in-station track.

Phases 3 and 4 involve the addition of new equipment to the MTA fleet. The MTA is currently developing a new portable track vacuum which will go into use at the end of 2016.

And lastly, the MTA will finally be able to admit its subway cars suck when they unveil brand new vacuum trains in 2017. Those trains will be able to remove 14 cubic yards of trash per day. Two are expected to go into service next year, and a third will arrive in 2018.

The MTA even made a cute video to tell you all about its operation, freshly titled "Operation Track Sweep."

Photo/Video Credit: MTA