L train line: Overcrowded, dilapidated and now alarmingly very smelly

NEW YORK (FOX 5 NY) - It has been a rough few months for L train riders. First, they had to deal with fears of a shutdown. Now, a noxious odor is causing headaches and nausea.

The pungent smell of gasoline is as strong as the one you find at gas station attempting to fill up. Riders reported it (and Fox 5 confirmed it ) at the Graham Street stop and also at Lorimer, where the smell is overwhelming. Riders say the smell has been overwhelming for days.

The MTA said the air is "100 percent safe" with "absolutely no risk to the public."

While a smelly subway station is not unusual, something about this four-day assault is causing riders real concern.

On Wednesday, three MTA workers went to a hospital to be checked out. Others wore gas masks—an unsettling sight, to be sure.

The MTA is testing the air quality and using high-powered fans to ventilate the area.

The Transport Workers Union is calling on the MTA to work harder and faster to solve this problem.