MTA Starts $1.9B CBTC Signal Upgrade for Brooklyn and Queens A/C Lines

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has begun a $1.9 billion signal and track modernization project serving the A and C lines in Brooklyn and Queens. Funded through congestion pricing, the work will replace 1930s-era equipment with Communications-Based Train Control (CBTC), a system designed to let trains operate safely at higher speeds and closer intervals. The project spans 42 track miles along the Fulton and Liberty lines, from High St to Ozone Park–Lefferts Blvd, and covers 23 stations. The source describes it as the largest signal and track replacement project in MTA history.

The infrastructure upgrade is intended to improve service frequency and reliability for riders. The corridor serves approximately 350,000 riders each weekday and connects with seven other subway lines, 36 bus routes, and the Long Island Rail Road. Across their full routes, the A and C lines carry approximately 750,000 riders each weekday. The MTA says signal issues are the leading cause of subway delays, making the replacement of aging train-control systems an operational priority as well as a major construction program.

For contractors, the current award is a closed procurement, not an open solicitation: the design-build contract was awarded to L.K. Comstock & Railworks in December 2025. The project is expected to reach completion in the second quarter of 2032, creating a long delivery horizon for the awarded team and a useful reference for firms assessing MTA design-build delivery, CBTC implementation, track work, and systems integration. MTA Construction & Development President Jamie Torres-Springer said, “By using new construction methods that cut our per-mile costs by a third, we’re proving that we can modernize the system better, faster, and cheaper than ever before.” That stated cost-reduction approach may be relevant to firms preparing for future transit modernization work, though it does not guarantee future awards or solicitations.

The broader pipeline signal is the separate $5.4 billion investment in signal modernization across more than 75 miles on other lines, supported through the MTA’s 2025–2029 Capital Plan. The announced corridors include Broadway N/Q/R/W, Liberty Avenue A, Rockaway A/S, and Nassau Street J/Z. Combined with the current A/C project and earlier CBTC investments along Eighth Avenue, these plans indicate sustained demand for rail signaling, construction, and integration capabilities. Companies can use the project’s scale, multi-year schedule, and stated emphasis on reducing per-mile costs to evaluate delivery capacity, teaming arrangements, and readiness for future MTA procurements; the source does not identify those future procurements as currently open.

• Contract status: The $1.9 billion A/C signal and track project was awarded to L.K. Comstock & Railworks in December 2025; it is not an open solicitation.
• Delivery schedule: The project is expected to reach completion in Q2 2032, giving the awarded team a multi-year delivery horizon.
• Scope: Replace 1930s-era signals with CBTC across 42 track miles and 23 stations on the Fulton and Liberty lines.
• Service area: The corridor runs from High St to Ozone Park–Lefferts Blvd and serves approximately 350,000 weekday riders.
• Network reach: Corridor connections include seven subway lines, 36 bus routes, and the Long Island Rail Road; A and C routes carry approximately 750,000 weekday riders overall.
• Future pipeline: A separate $5.4 billion MTA investment targets signal modernization across more than 75 miles on other lines.
• Named future corridors: Broadway N/Q/R/W, Liberty Avenue A, Rockaway A/S, and Nassau Street J/Z are included in the additional modernization investment.
• Contractor takeaway: Assess CBTC, signaling, track construction, and systems-integration capabilities, and consider teaming and delivery strategies for potential future MTA opportunities.
• Cost-efficiency signal: Jamie Torres-Springer said new construction methods cut per-mile costs by a third; contractors can monitor how this approach informs future project packaging and delivery expectations.