MTA to Add Extra Service to 4 Overcrowded Subway Lines

Just days after the MTA said a surge in ridership last year caused issues with overcrowding and delays, the transit authority announced Friday it is adding additional service to four subway lines in an effort to reduce wait times between trains and accommodate more passengers. You'll just have to wait another eight months for it.

Starting in December of 2015, there will be more frequent trains on the 2, 7, L, and M lines -- the majority of which will be during off-peak hours, which the MTA said generally saw the biggest increases in ridership last year. In total, ridership eclipsed 1.75 billion people across the system in 2014, or the highest levels in 65 years.

Notably, the MTA is adding seven additional weekday round trips between 10:30am and 2pm to the L line, which saw increases in ridership at every station in Brooklyn last year, especially at the line's Bushwick stops. The increased service will reduce the time between trains to just 5 minutes during the day, according to the MTA.

Additionally, the 7 line will get two more round trips on weeknights from 8pm to 10:20pm, bringing the time between trains down to under 4.5 minutes.

The 2 line will get two additional weeknight round trips between 8:30pm and 9:30pm, putting 7.5 minutes between trains.

And the M train will get one more round trip on weekdays between 9am and 9:30am, which will also bring the wait between trains down to 7.5 minutes during that time.

The handful of service increases will cost the MTA about $1.6 million per year.

The MTA said the changes come as a result of residential development outpacing the city's infrastructure and correspond with population growth and ridership demands in certain areas of the city. Consequently, the transit agency is removing one round trip between the morning and evening rush hours on the D line, which will increase the time between trains to 10 minutes for Brooklyn-bound trains between 7:30am and 8am and Bronx-bound trains between 5:30pm and 6pm., according to the MTA.

Tony Merevick is Cities News Editor at Thrillist and likes the sound of more trains. Send news tips to tony@thrillist.com and follow him on Twitter @tonymerevick.