NYC, MTA eye first-of-its-kind plan that might keep subway platforms cooler
Could the summer swelter on New York City subway platforms be put to good use?
The city and MTA are studying a first-of-its-kind idea to cool some of the hottest subway platforms.
The idea is to both keep subway platforms cool in the summer, as well as heat up nearby municipal buildings in the winter by creating what's called a thermal energy network, which would take the heat that makes subway riders miserable during the summer, capture it, store it, and use it to help nearby buildings when it gets cold.
If the new system is implemented, officials say it would be the first thermal energy network installed in a U.S. transit system. Thermal energy networks are already in use at several hospitals and universities, officials said.
"This technology has never been tested before in a transit system here in this country, but it is being used elsewhere in the city, like at St. Patrick's Cathedral, they're using it, and also at the New York Botanical Garden," MTA Chairman and CEO Janno Lieber said.
Gov. Kathy Hochul, Mayor Zohran Mamdani and the MTA announced an $800,000 feasibility study at the Brooklyn Bridge City Hall 4, 5 and 6 station and the connected Chambers Street J and Z station. The timing isn't random -- the 113-year-old station will soon be undergoing a comprehensive revitalization.
Officials say it's the right place to try this out because it is one of the hottest stations in the system, averaging 96 degrees during summer 2025, according to the city.
"We want to see if we can get it down a few degrees. That would make the difference between total misery and merely sweltering in our worst days," Lieber said.
"For years, New Yorkers have suffered through sweltering summer heat on subway platforms, with seemingly no hope for a cooler ride in sight. Today, I can assure riders during this hot summer week that help is on the way," Hochul said.
Hochul said the effort will utilize "cutting-edge climate technology for a truly cool purpose."
"There are few feelings worse than escaping the extreme summer heat, only to find yourself on a subway platform that is even hotter. Unfortunately, for millions of commuters, that is the reality of our transit system -- with some stations soaring up to 20 degrees hotter than the outside temperatures," Mamdani said.
The captured heat from the platforms would be moved through pipes and stored underground for use in buildings.
"It's $1.4 million to the city just to heat the David Dinkins Municipal Building. So this has the potential to save the city money. It has the potential to combat the climate crisis," Mamdani said.
The $800,000 price tag for the feasibility study had at least one subway rider questioning if it's worth it.
"That's money wasted, in my opinion, that could be used for other funding that's really needed," one straphanger told CBS News New York.
The study is expected to be conducted in the fall. If the idea proves to be practical, design work could begin in early 2027.
