[All photos by Rehema Trimiew for MTA Capital Construction via Gizmodo]
Last we heard of the plagued East Side Access Project, the tunnel extending the LIRR to Grand Central station was not due to be completed until 2023 at a cost of $10.8 billion, a decade later and $6.5 billion more than anticipated. Now, checking in with the project via a series of photos Gizmodo brought to our attention, we’re almost willing to forgive the delay and massive overdraft. The project is indeed moving forward, and doing so on a scale so massive that it’s almost too large for a picture to capture. The photos, on the Grand Central Terminal side of the project, show what will become a new subterranean station for the LIRR. Gizmodo notes that the tunnel’s yellow walls won’t stay that way forever, as the coatings are just geotextiles that will get covered over with some drab concrete. Nevertheless, these photos of the cavernous excavations taking place below our very feet are certainly humbling (and reassuring that progress is indeed being made.)