Yankee Stadium subway station’s replacement elevators break down for months; one won’t return until
Lifts at the busiest subway station in the Bronx worked only 56% of the time in August. The MTA points to low voltage and old electrical equipment.
Five elevators installed this spring at 161st Street, the Bronx subway stop that serves Yankee Stadium, have broken down far more often than lifts elsewhere in the system, MTA data shows. One of them is not expected back until winter 2027.
Work to replace the elevators began in November 2024 and was originally supposed to wrap up last December. The new lifts started coming back in April, when they ran 99% of the time. By August, the most recent month with public figures, availability had dropped to 56%. The average for elevators across the system is 95%.
How often the Yankee Stadium station elevators failed
Most of the breakdowns were not planned. Of the 37 times an elevator at the station went out of service from April through August, 31 were unscheduled, according to the agency’s own records. That matters at a stop where no other Bronx station sees more riders: last year, more than 6.1 million people used the B, D and 4 trains there.
John Ortiz, 64, who passes through the station daily with a walker, said the elevators are always broken and that the repairs took nearly two years. Joe Rappaport, executive director of the Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled, said “The MTA has an obligation to keep its elevators up and running” and added that the agency failed at the station during baseball season. Jessica Murray, a member of Rise and Resist’s Elevator Action Group, called the disruptions concerning. “New machines should not be having outages like that,” she said.
Why the MTA says the elevators keep breaking down
According to the MTA, many of the outages came from low voltage reaching the station and from aging infrastructure in and around the complex. James Splendore, an assistant director who handles public affairs for the MTA’s construction and development unit, said the elevators stopped getting enough voltage once summer heat strained the power grid. He said a joint review with Con Edison turned up problems in both the utility’s equipment and the station’s own electrical system.
Elevator 135, the link between the mezzanine and the northbound B and D platform, remains out of service. The MTA’s website said it would stay down until “Winter 2027” because of Con Edison power issues, then on Thursday switched the stated reason to “final contract items.” Splendore said the agency has determined it must add more infrastructure on its own side to power that elevator. In the meantime, some riders have turned to the stairs or to other ways of getting around.
What it means for you
The street elevator at 161 St-Yankee Stadium is on the northeast corner of 161st St and River Ave, according to the MTA’s accessible stations page.
Quick answers
When will Elevator 135 at 161st Street-Yankee Stadium reopen?
The MTA's website projects it will stay out of service until winter 2027.
Why do the Yankee Stadium station elevators keep failing?
The MTA says low voltage reaching the station and old electrical infrastructure, including Con Edison equipment, caused many of the outages.
Which elevator is out at 161st Street-Yankee Stadium?
Elevator 135, which links the mezzanine with the northbound B and D platform.
