A and C Subway Lines Get $1.9B Signal Overhaul
The six-year project replaces 1930s-era signals on 42 track miles, with a nine-day full closure starting November 7, 2026.
Updated on Nov. 2, 2026 in Telecommunications
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The MTA has begun a $1.9 billion signal and track replacement project on the A and C subway lines, covering 42 track miles and 23 stations from Queens into downtown Brooklyn. The project is in progress and not a future plan, with a full closure between Rockaway Boulevard and Lefferts Boulevard scheduled from November 7 through November 16, 2026.
Why it matters
Signal failures are a leading cause of subway delays across the system, and the project replaces infrastructure dating back to the 1930s with upgraded control that helps maintain safe train spacing. The extended closure is needed because the scope of the work cannot be completed in a single weekend.
The figures are MTA project-scope numbers: $1.9 billion in total cost across 42 track miles and 23 stations, compared with a system where only the L and 7 trains previously ran modern signaling. Whether service reliability will measurably improve has not yet been quantified.
The players
Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA)
The state agency operating New York City's subway system, which is funding this project through congestion pricing revenue.
The details
Crews are replacing some of the oldest signal equipment still operating in the subway, which includes demolishing switches and replacing track. Communications-based train control, a newer system that tracks trains continuously and coordinates their movement, has already been installed along the Eighth Avenue corridor serving the A, C and E lines. Signals govern how trains move and how far apart they stay, so upgrading them reduces the risk of collisions and delays.
Timeline
Week of November 2, 2026: service changes begin on portions of the A line, with overnight work continuing through Friday.
November 7 through November 16, 2026: full closure between Rockaway Boulevard and Lefferts Boulevard, with shuttle buses replacing trains.
Approximately six years: expected duration of the signal modernization on the A and C tracks.
The Tech Race
The A and C work extends the communications-based train control already running on the Eighth Avenue corridor, which serves the A, C and E lines. Additional signal upgrades are planned for the G line and the B, D, F and M lines, extending the same modernization across more of the system.
Riders on the A and C lines will face service changes starting the week of November 2, 2026, and a nine-day full closure between Rockaway and Lefferts Boulevards from November 7 to 16, with shuttle buses replacing trains. Over the roughly six-year project, riders should expect ongoing disruption, with the stated payoff being more efficient trains and more reliable service.
The takeaway
Watch for the November 7 to 16, 2026 closure as the first major test of the work's disruption, and track whether signal-related delays fall on the A and C lines once the upgrades are complete. The project's roughly six-year timeline sets a clear benchmark against which progress can be measured.
What happens next
Full closure between Rockaway Boulevard and Lefferts Boulevard runs November 7 through November 16, 2026, with shuttle buses replacing train service during that period.
Further reading
For more on how modern signaling is reshaping urban transit, see Telecommunications coverage in New York City.
Source note: This article includes information reported by WPIX.
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