MTA improves energy efficiency, storm-proofing of primary office tower

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is advancing improvements that will make its primary office tower, at 2 Broadway in Lower Manhattan, more energy efficient and resilient against extreme storms, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has announced.

The upgrades will better adapt the building to a changing climate as the MTA consolidates its headquarters there next year, Cuomo said in a press release issued late last week, when the agency marked the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Sandy.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency already has bestowed its Energy Star certification on the building to recognize upgrades that helped reduce greenhouse-gas emissions, Cuomo said. The work also is helping to meet the goals of Build Smart NY, an initiative Cuomo launched last year to direct state agencies to increase energy efficiency in state buildings by 20 percent in seven years.

"As New York continues to rebuild after the major storms from the last few years, it is crucial that every part of state government takes smart steps to make their operations more resilient against future severe weather," Cuomo said.