After storms cause massive subway flooding, MTA chief calls on NYC to grow sewer capacity

CBS News

17-07-2025

MTA Chairman and CEO Janno Lieber is calling on New York City to build up its sewer system after massive subway flooding during Monday's storm.
He spoke to CBS News New York's Dick Brennan about what happened and how to fix things for future storms.
Video from the West 28th Street station in Chelsea showed water gushing from a drain and completely flooding the platform.
"This manhole cover was levitating about this high because there was the water pressure actually exploded it out," Lieber said.
Out of the subway system's over 490 total stations, about 20 were put out of service during the storm.
"That's no excuse for those 20 stations that were unavailable, had bad conditions. But this is not going to knock out the whole system and we were ready to go the next morning," Lieber said.
He said hundreds of people worked overnight to make sure the trains were back up and running for the Tuesday morning commute.
During those storms, the subway system got hit with a double whammy — torrential rain from above and a sewer system that couldn't handle it below.
New York City Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Rohit T. Aggarwala says they've done a good job to maintain the sewer system, but climate change is sending storms nobody could have expected.
"Addressing storm water resilience to fix this underground infrastructure is going to be the work of tens of years, decades. We put out our report last spring that estimated a total cost of roughly $30 billion," Aggarwala said.
But Lieber says the city has to step up and pay up to fix their sewers.
"Because the rainfalls are going to keep happening, we need them to grow the capacity so it doesn't back up into the subways," he said.
Lieber says the city could focus area by area if the money is there.
"There is no quick solution to the big issue, but you can do it in a localized way," he said.
In the meantime, Lieber says the MTA is hardening its infrastructure.
One of the improvements to fight subway flooding the so-called step-up into the station. By placing a raised platform at the entrances to underground subway stations, the water then has to rise higher before it goes cascading down the steps into the station.
Lieber says the MTA already spent $8 billion on resiliency after Hurricane Sandy and has spent close to $1 billion from the new capital budget.
He says the system has a knack for bouncing back and is hoping to be ready when the next storm hits.