Filmed in the mid-1970s during New York City's fiscal crisis, "The Saga of the 2nd Avenue Subway" captures frustrated commuters and opinionated politicians and planners who debate the controversial proposed subway line. In 1920 the Second Avenue Subway was proposed as part of an expansion of the Independent Subway System (IND), setting the stage for a century-long transit saga.
MTA Chairman David L. Yunich, city officials, urban planners from the Regional Plan Association, borough presidents, and frustrated Second Avenue merchants clash over soaring costs, overcrowded subway lines, and the disappearance of past transportation bond funds.
Tracing roots from Alfred Ely Beach's secret 1870 pneumatic tube beneath Broadway (operated by a steam-powered fan and air pressure) to multi-million-dollar construction holes left boarded up across Manhattan, the broadcast examines the high stakes of New York City transit history.
Decades after these debates, the project completed its first phase on January 1, 2017. Three additional phases are mapped out for the full line: the 125th Street crosstown extension to Broadway (with work expected to begin in 2028), Phase 3 extending down the Second Avenue line from 63rd Street to Houston Street, and Phase 4 completing the route from Houston Street down to Hanover Square.
This program, filmed by A.J. Mikhitarian and Craig Mikhitarian for the THIRTEEN Vault's series "The 51st State," features contributions from David L. Yunich, Henry Stern, Boris Pushkarev, Carl H. Abraham, Robert Abrams, Donald Weeden, and Sigurd Grava.
The 51st State was The WNET Group's answer to a city in crisis. In a decade dominated by civil rights struggles, the Vietnam War, and economic freefall, New York City needed more than the nightly news could cover. The series focused on local issues affecting the city — not the homogenized broadcast of commercial networks, but something rawer, closer to home, and entirely New York's own.
