$40M Times Square overhaul will start this fall, finish in 2015

The $40 million Times Square upgrade will begin this fall, according to a new timetable released by the city cited by DNAinfo, and will be complete this fall. The project will make the pedestrian plazas and benches along Seventh Avenue and Broadway permanent, add electrical outlets and repave the roads with a mosaic design embedded in the concrete. All the while, a 15-foot wide path will be open to pedestrians, two lanes will be open to vehicular traffic, the annual New Year’s festivities will go on as planned and access to all buildings will be maintained.

However, merchant deliveries will be blocked for extended times, and some buildings will go days without water, DNAinfo said.

Work will conclude for the area along Broadway between West 42nd and West 47th streets by the end of next year, while the Seventh Avenue revamp finish in the fall of 2013.

Times Square Alliance supports the plan, but wants to make some of the benches removable to allow for crowds at large-scale events. [DNAinfo]