4. Four Groundbreaking Ceremonies Have Been Held For The Second Avenue Line

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The ceremonious groundbreaking of the Second Avenue line was done back in April 12, 2007, and while groundbreakings are supposed to symbolize the initiation of a project, in the case of the Second Avenue line it was a bit of a déjà vu. The first groundbreaking for the line was held on October 27, 1972 by Governor Nelson Rockefeller and Mayor Lindsay at the 103rd Street and Second Avenue block.

Two other groundbreakings were made in the subsequent years, in what was a period of activities on the Second Avenue subway which saw three segments of tunnel being built, before the city’s fiscal woes caused it to abandon construction. In 1973 groundbreaking was held at Canal Street and Bowery, which marked the construction on the southern side of the line; a segment of tunnel was built between groundbreaking and Chatham Square in Chinatown.

Finally, in the summer of 1974 the third groundbreaking for the Second Avenue line was held at Second Avenue and Second Street with now Mayor Abraham Beame. This was the most poignant of all groundbreakings, since no section of tunnel was ever built there.

And so, construction ended in 1975 with only three tunnels as remnants of the groundbreaking and constructions. The tunnels are between Canal Street and Chatham Square, 99th and 105th, and 110th and 120th Streets.