MTA subway refurbishment projects wrap up citywide upgrades

MTA subway refurbishment projects have reached completion across New York City’s subway network, according to Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) New York City Transit in an MTA press release. The update covers a mix of station refresh work, a major New York City Transit LED lighting installation, and systemwide cleanup efforts.

This is reported by the railway transport news portal Railway Supply.

New York City Transit LED lighting installation across 472 stations

At the centre of the programme is the shift to LED station lighting. NYC Transit says new LED fixtures are now in place across all 472 subway stations, a milestone also reflected in a recent Railway Supply overview of New York subway safety and lighting efforts. Alongside the lighting work, crews completed repainting and tile work, and removed substantial waste from the system—1,460 tonnes of bagged garbage and nearly 700 tonnes of debris taken from between stations.

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New York City Transit President Demetrius Crichlow said the focus on safe and reliable service starts as soon as customers enter the system, pointing to brighter and cleaner stations as part of that effort. He added that, with historically high on-time performance, new ridership milestones and a continued emphasis on reviving stations, 2025 was “a great year to be a subway rider.”

Timeline and scope of the NYC subway LED lighting project

The MTA says the NYC subway LED lighting project began at the start of January 2024 under Governor Kathy Hochul’s five-point safety plan for subway riders. Since then, more than 181,000 fixtures have been replaced or converted to LED, completing the work well ahead of the original end date of mid-2026.

The authority expects the lighting change to deliver about 5.9 million USD in annual savings. NYC Transit also says the new fixtures are brighter than fluorescent lighting for nearly 4 million daily subway riders and provide enhanced imaging capability for over 15,000 security cameras across the subway system.

Revive station projects NYC subway and other 2025 refurbishment work

Beyond stations, the MTA reports that work has also been carried out to upgrade fluorescent lights in other parts of the network, including aboard trains and in AC-powered tunnels. As a result, 73% of subway trains are now equipped with LED lighting.

NYC Transit said crews have completed 40 Revive station projects across the system. The locations listed include 81st St, 110th St Cathedral Pkwy, Beach 67th St., 190th St, Bergen St., 50th St., Union St., Central Ave, 53rd St., Fresh Pond Road, 207th St, 176th St, Broad Channel, Saratoga Avenue, Cypress Avenue, Wall Street, Mets-Willets Point, Rockaway Ave, 23rd St, Beach 98th St, 23rd St, 110th St – Malcolm X Plaza, 25th Ave, Dyckman Street-200 Street, Montrose Avenue, Bay 50th St, Forest Hills – 71 Av, Grand Central, Simpson Street, Grand Central, Grand Central, Clark Street, 59th, Court Square – 23 Street, 145th St, Bergen St, New Lots Av, 28th St, Church Av, and Graham Ave.

The MTA added that other works carried out by crews in 2025 included repainting 1.1 million square feet of the system and installing or replacing over 9,700 square feet of tiles. Communications rooms at the aforementioned stations were also refreshed, alongside new lighting, paint, flooring, and a deep clean of the HVAC system.

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