9/16/10
btw. 91st and 92nd streets
I ventured out last Thursday evening, after enjoying a nice meal at Nina's Argentinian Pizzeria, to shoot a few images for the blog - knowing that the combination of little drizzle and a very bright floodlight would create a nice photographic effect.
9/16/10
91st Street - NE corner - looking N
Clearly there is no room on this sidewalk at the moment for outdoor seating. (I like the wonderfully long shadows in this shot.)
9/16/10
btw. 91st & 92nd streets - looking E
A view from across the street.
9/16/10
btw. 91st & 92nd streets - looking E
Another view - this time a few steps further north on the avenue. (In this shot I like how the red neon sign reflects off the rain water on the street.)
9/16/10
95th Street - looking N
Up near 95th Street I found a location where construction materials had been neatly laid out for another day. (I like the symmetry in this image, of the wood planks and the line of street lights.)
9/16/10
95th Street - SW corner - looking E
A lone cab speeds by, as the machines sit silent - as they rest, waiting for a new work day.
::
Now jump forward to Saturday afternoon --
9/18/10
97th Street - NW corner - looking N
Just north of 97th Street I came across a trench that is being built by the contractors E. E. Cruz / Tully Construction JV.
I'd guess that the trench in this image is about 100 feet long, 20 feet deep and about 10 feet wide.
9/18/10
btw. 96th & 97th streets - looking W
(click on this stitched image for a larger view)
The image above shows the lot on the SW corner of Second Avenue and 97th Street - which is the future site of Ancillary Building No. 2 for the 96th Street station. (Sorry about the bluish tint. One of the setting on the camera was clearly not correct when I captured this image.)
The contractors here are continuing their efforts to shore up the foundations of the buildings near this location.
9/18/10
btw. 96th & 97th streets - west side of the avenue
9/18/10
96th Street - NW corner - looking NW
The scene in front of 1867, 1869, 1871, and 1873 Second Avenue.
9/18/10
This is an image of a large gate valve that I found mounted on the side of a storage tank.
9/18/10
btw. 95th & 96th streets - looking N
A truck load of old cast iron pipe waiting to be hauled away.
9/18/10
btw. 86th & 87th streets - looking W
These are sections of new 30 inch steel pipe that I believe will soon be installed for gas service.
9/18/10
This section of pipe has been cut recently.
9/18/10
And this is a new 30 inch cap - waiting to be put in place.
9/19/10
btw. 91st & 92nd streets
This image shows an air compressor hose connection that has been protected with a so-called "whipcheck" safety cable. The safety cable would prevent this hose from "whipping around" if the hose coupling were to blow out.
::
9/18/10
93rd Street - NW corner - looking SE
In this image, if you look carefully, you can see that the contractors have now built a wooden shell that surrounds the conveyor belt. One could imagine that this was done to prevent any rocks from being ejected too far from the belt.
9/18/10
A close-up view of the wooden shell over the conveyor belt.
::
9/18/10
btw. 68th & 69th streets - west side of street
This is a newly constructed station for the MTA's Select Bus Service which is scheduled to be launched, on First and Second avenues, on October 10, 2010.
The basic idea is that you pay the fare before you board the bus using one of the payment machines shown in this image. The machine gives you a receipt and then you can board the bus using any of the available doors.
The Select Bus service will surely provide a speedier travel experience on the M15 -- while we wait for the eventual inauguration of Q Line service under Second Avenue ... in a few years.
::
A footnote:
I had also hoped to report the current location of the TBM under Second Avenue but at the moment this information does not appear to be readily available (to me).
As soon as the latest TBM position data is released I will of course update the blog.
::::
Here's a listing of the recent additions
to the right-hand column of The Launch Box:
"Second Ave. Subway Construction Affects Businesses" (1:53)
By Adrian Carrasquillo
Fox 5 News - 9/4/10
"Second Avenue Subway Debate" (7:08)
Fox 5 News - 9/7/10
"Plumbing an Obstacle to 2nd Ave. Subway"
By Michael M. Grynbaum
The New York Times - 9/9/10
Maloney Hails $275 Million Federal Grant for 2nd Ave. Subway
Press Release
Office of Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney - 9/20/10
