MTA Testing New Type Of Flooring
Any rider of the NYC Subway knows how disgusting the floors look all over the system. It is bad enough we get used to the smell of urine or rats running around, but to have to see & step on floors dirty with gum & other things puts it over the top. The MTA hopes a new type of flooring will not only help in the fight against cleanliness but provide safety benefits as well. The new flooring would also illustrate routes to exits if the lights go out in an emergency. Pete Donohue of the New York Daily News has more in this report:
There may be glow-in-the-dark flakes on the subway station floors of the future.
NYC Transit is testing a new type of flooring with iridescent flakes that can illustrate routes to exits if the lights go out in an emergency.
The resin-based material is poured like concrete, allowing flakes to be set in a pattern.
Safety aside, the resinous flooring might conquer an unsightly foe that’s defeated many a subway cleaner: gum.
Many subway stations have porous concrete surfaces that are difficult to maintain and deteriorate into gum-spattered eyesores. Some stations have granite floors, which are easier to scour but expensive to install: $1.7 million for an average-sized station.
Resinous flake flooring is easier to maintain and less expensive, about one-third the cost of granite, officials said.
Some stations have porcelain floors, but NYC Transit has decided to stop installing them, because they are expensive and can crack.
NYC Transit’s test is taking place at the Chambers St. station where the 1, 2 and 3 trains stop. The material has been placed on the mezzanine to see if it can take relentless pounding from riders.
Click here for the complete report.
I hope the testing for this new flooring goes well. While the MTA is facing severe budget issues, they can’t just ignore the cleanliness & upkeep of our system. The costs seem high at first glance but if the results stand up, the savings & benefits versus other types of flooring (including some that are more expensive) would be huge. A project like this is just the kind of thing they can show our elected officials in terms of why they need proper funding.
xoxo Transit Blogger
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