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Here is some excellent news for you cellphone addicts: the 42nd Street Shuttle, which runs between Grand Central Terminal and Times Square in midtown Manhattan, is now equipped with a cell network—which means you'll get to scroll through Instagram or make some calls in-between stations while inside the trains.
“This is a major step forward in modernizing our transit system, whether it’s checking email, answering a phone call, people want to be able to do work on the mass transit system,” MTA Chair Janno Lieber said during an official press conference. “And we also have to recognize there’s a lot of people who want to play Candy Crush or continue their domestic arguments, and we have to accommodate them as well.”
The effort is part of a larger project by the MTA to add 5G connectivity throughout the entire underground transportation system. They hope to wrap up the plans by 2032—so we're still a pretty long time away from headaches induced by people chatting loudly on their devices while riding the train.
Gothamist reports that the project is part of a $600 million deal with Boldyn Network, the company that will install the system "at no cost to the MTA."
Next up: the 4 and 5 subway lines that connect Brooklyn and Manhattan through an East River tunnel.
MTA construction chief Jamie Torres-Springer revealed that those upgrades will likely be completed by the middle of next year. After that, officials will start concentrating on the 4, 5, and 6 routes between Grand Central Terminal and the Bronx.
As excited as we are about this, we can only imagine what sorts of shutdowns and delays will come along with the execution of the project (yes, we are still scarred from this summer's G train shutdown).