NYC to Capture Subway Heat for Winter Heating of Municipal Buildings

Mayor Zohran Mamdadi, alongside MTA head Janno Lieber, revealed plans for a joint feasibility study to install a thermal energy network (TEN) at the Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall and Chambers Street subway stations, which have recorded summer temperatures as high as 96 degrees. The concept involves extracting heat from the platforms, channeling it through pipes to geothermal boreholes drilled beneath an unused section of Chambers Street, and using the stored energy to warm municipal facilities like City Hall, the David Dinkins building, Tweed Courthouse and Surrogate’s Court in the colder months.

Officials expect to award a contract for the study by the fall and move to design work in early 2027. If successful, the project would become the first TEN deployed within a U.S. transit system, complementing a larger renovation of the Chambers Street station financed by congestion-pricing tolls. The plan highlights a novel approach to urban climate adaptation by turning subway-generated heat into a resource for city infrastructure.