New South Ferry Station

Common folks are being squeezed these days, but amid all of the grim news there are occasionally moments of hope. Consider the case of the MTA and the South Ferry Station.

This month, while MTA and Albany duke it out over nasty fare hikes and the Straphangers Campaign call on New Yorkers to fight it, MTA opened New York's first new subway station in 20 years. The new South Ferry Station in Lower Manhattan is a testament to the MTA's ability to create beautiful spaces out of the commonest of everyday places. After spending $530 million (much of it funded federally with allocations for rebuilding Lower Manhattan after 9/11) , the new renovated station opened this month with much fanfare. Functionally the new station finally connects the R and W trains (well, soon to be just R) with the 1 train, allows riders to alight from all cars, and offers a much nicer entrance in what is otherwise a barren asphalt plaza before the Staten Island Ferry Terminal. As if this weren't enough, the station has excellent new public art, created by the Starn Studio, commissioned by the MTA Arts for Transit program. The work, See it Split, See it Change, is composed of tree branch silhouettes in large fused glass panels and stainless steel; A large leaf in fused glass panels and a tile mosaic map of Manhattan hang over the stairwell. The effect is a beautiful composition that elevates an otherwise ordinary station to an attractive destination befitting of a major transit hub. The most successful part of See it Split, See it Change is the sense of depth created looking through the branch shapes of the steel gates to the black branches on the pale glass tiles. So, while the $2.5o per ride fare will smart, the view just got a lot better.

See Metropolis Magazine's January Preview of the station, complete with beautiful images, here.