The MTA officially scrapped the dreaded December G train shutdowns.
This pivot brings massive relief to North Brooklyn business owners and residents ahead of the holidays.
Repairs finished ahead of schedule
Crews finished the long-overdue tunnel repairs ahead of schedule. The G train still requires some minor work. However, it will run normally during the busy holiday season.
State Sen. Kristen Gonzalez praised the agency. “I am grateful to the MTA for listening to our community,” she said. She thanked them for completing the work without hurting small businesses during their most profitable month.
A tough year for Greenpoint
The MTA originally planned to close the G train for three consecutive weekends in December. Workers needed to fix lingering tunnel damage from Hurricane Sandy. Earlier this year, the agency discovered the tube under Newtown Creek required far more work than expected.
This news devastated Greenpoint business owners. They had already endured periodic interruptions since 2024. The G is the neighborhood’s only train line. Past weekend shutdowns already dealt a hefty financial blow.
Community organizing gets results
A recent report from Shop Small Greenpoint highlighted the economic damage. Most surveyed businesses saw sales decline at least 22% during shutdown weekends.
In response, 39% of shop owners cut staff shifts or hours. WonderMart owner Perri Salka noted that December brings in a full quarter of her store’s annual revenue.
Local business owners formed a coalition and sent a letter to the MTA. They demanded the agency reconsider the closures. Local elected officials echoed their calls.
Looking ahead to the holidays
The MTA completed over 6,400 feet of grouting and leak mitigation in the Greenpoint tube. This rapid progress allowed them to cancel the December outages.
Agency spokesperson Laura Cala-Rauch promised to finish the transformative project efficiently. She emphasized keeping future outages to an absolute minimum.
Partial shutdowns will still happen on a few October weekends. Crews are actively installing Communications-Based Train Control (CBTC) to provide faster, more reliable service.
“This is proof that when a neighborhood organizes, it gets results,” Salka said. Greenpoint shop owners can finally count on a full, uninterrupted holiday season.