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A (New York City Subway service)

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"A" train symbol
Eighth Avenue Express
Map of the "A" train
Note: dashed line shows rush hour only service
Northern endInwood – 207th Street
Southern endLefferts Boulevard, Far Rockaway, or Rockaway Park (limited rush hour service)
Stations65
Rolling stockR46
R179
R211A[1][2]
(Rolling stock assignments subject to change)

The A Eighth Avenue Express is a rapid transit service in the B Division of the New York City Subway. Its route bullet is colored blue on route signs, station signs, and the official subway map since it runs on the IND Eighth Avenue Line in Manhattan.[3]

The A operates at all times. The daytime service pattern is between 207th Street in Inwood, Manhattan and Mott Avenue in Far Rockaway, Queens or Ozone Park – Lefferts Boulevard in Richmond Hill, Queens via Central Park West / Eighth Avenue Express in Manhattan, Fulton Street Express in Brooklyn and Liberty Avenue / Rockaway Local in Queens. The A provides the longest one-seat ride in the system, at over 31 miles between Inwood and Far Rockaway.[4]

Five rush hour trips run between Manhattan and Beach 116th Street in Rockaway Park, Queens in the peak direction.[note 1] At all times, a shuttle train (S – Rockaway Park Shuttle) operates between Broad Channel, where it connects with the A, and Rockaway Park.[5]

During late nights, approximately 10:30 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. (Saturdays to 6 a.m., Sundays to 7 a.m.), the A makes all stops along its entire route. After about 12:30 a.m., the A originates and terminates at Far Rockaway only; a shuttle train (Lefferts Boulevard Shuttle) runs between Euclid Avenue and Lefferts Boulevard.[note 2][6]

History

An R46 train in A service at its full-time southern terminus of Broad Channel.

The A and AA were the first services on the IND Eighth Avenue Line when it opened on September 10, 1932. The A ran express between 207th Street and Chambers Street, adjacent to the Hudson Terminal (today's World Trade Center station), and the AA was a local between 168th Street and Hudson Terminal. During late nights and Sundays, the A did not run and the AA made all stops along the line.[7]

The A was extended to Jay Street – Borough Hall on February 1, 1933, when the Cranberry Street Tunnel to Brooklyn opened; an extension to Bergen Street opened on March 20, and to Church Avenue on October 7.[8]

On April 9, 1936, the IND Fulton Street Line was opened to Rockaway Avenue. The 1936 completion played an integral part in the establishment of Bedford-Stuyvesant as Brooklyn's central African American community. The A train connected Harlem, Manhattan's central African American community to areas of Bedford-Stuyvesant that provided residential opportunities for African Americans not found throughout the rest of New York City.[9]

On December 30, 1946 and November 28, 1948, the line was extended to Broadway – East New York (now Broadway Junction) and Euclid Avenue, respectively.[10]

On October 29, 1949, express service in Brooklyn to Broadway – East New York (now Broadway Junction) begins with the A running express during rush hours, with the E extended to provide local service.[8]

On April 29, 1956, Grant Avenue was opened, and the line was extended over the BMT Fulton Street Line to Lefferts Boulevard. Weekdays except midnights, alternate trains terminated at Lefferts Boulevard and at Euclid Avenue. During weekends, they terminated at Euclid Avenue with a shuttle to Lefferts Boulevard.[8]

Two months later, on June 28, 1956, the former Long Island Rail Road Rockaway Line was rebuilt to subway specifications,[11] and service began to Rockaway Park[12] and Wavecrest (Beach 25th Street).[13] At this time, rush hour express service on the Fulton Street Line with the E train began.

On September 16, 1956, the A was extended to the Rockaways replacing the E. At the time, alternate trains continued running to Lefferts Boulevard.[8] On January 27, 1957, non-rush hour through service to the Rockaways was discontinued and was replaced by a shuttle running between Euclid Avenue and Wavecrest (now Beach 25th Street). Non-rush hour A train service is now to Lefferts Boulevard. This may also be the time that the E replaced the A again in the Rockaways.[8][14]

On January 16, 1958, a new terminal was created at Far Rockaway – Mott Avenue, and the through connection to the Long Island Rail Road's Far Rockaway station was severed. On September 8, 1958, the A train replaced the E train in the Rockaways again. "Round-robin" service from Euclid Avenue to both Rockaway terminals began, non-rush hours, while through A service runs to Lefferts Boulevard. In September 1959, the A begins to run local in Brooklyn at all times, as the E becomes express in Brooklyn.[8]

In 1963, the E train was extended to the Rockaways, and the A train ran local to Euclid Avenue or Lefferts Boulevard at all times. (HH shuttle service from Euclid Avenue provided all service to the Rockaways).

On July 9, 1967, the A train was extended to Far Rockaway middays, evenings, and weekends, replacing the HH shuttle on that branch. Five years later, it would also be extended during rush hours. On January 6, 1974, the A train became the express service along Fulton Street and the E train became the local.[15] Finally, in 1976, the C became the Fulton Street Local during rush hours.[16]

In 1985, the Independent Subway System's practice of using double letters to indicate local service was discontinued. The AA service was renamed the K. In 1988, it was discontinued and replaced by the C.[17]

Until 1993, the A train ran to Lefferts Boulevard during late nights, while the Far Rockaway service did not run late nights; at this time, a transfer to a shuttle at Euclid Avenue was available. In 1993, this pattern was switched, with late-night A service running to Far Rockaway. Since then an A shuttle started providing service from Euclid Avenue to Lefferts Boulevard during late nights. A few years later, special A service began running from Rockaway Park to Dyckman Street during the morning rush, and from 59th Street – Columbus Circle to Rockaway Park during the evening rush. In 1999, the A became the express on the Fulton Street Line on evenings and weekends after C service was moved from World Trade Center to Euclid Avenue during that time.[18]

On January 23, 2005, a fire at the Chambers Street signal room crippled A and C service. Initial assessments suggested that it would take several years to restore normal service, but the damaged equipment was replaced with available spare parts, and normal service resumed on April 21.[19][20]

A service was affected by Hurricane Sandy in October 2012 due to extreme damage to the IND Rockaway Line. Trains that normally traveled to Far Rockaway or Rockaway Park terminated at Howard Beach – JFK Airport. Service to the Rockaways resumed on May 30, 2013.[21][22] The Far Rockaway part of the route was served by the temporary free H shuttle that ran between Far Rockaway and Beach 90th Street via the connecting track at Hammels Wye.[23][24][25]

  • Take the A Train is a jazz standard by Billy Strayhorn, referring to the A train, going at that time from eastern Brooklyn up into Harlem and northern Manhattan, using the express tracks in Manhattan. It became the signature tune of Duke Ellington and often opened the shows of Ella Fitzgerald. Part of the significance of this is sociological: it connected the two largest Black neighborhoods in New York City, Harlem and Bedford-Stuyvesant.
  • In the Broadway musical In the Heights, during the title song, Usnavi tells the audience to "take the A Train" (to the melody of Strayhorn's Take the A Train) "even farther than Harlem to Northern Manhattan and maintain. Get off at 181st and take the escalator. I hope you're writing this down, I'm gonna test ya later."

Route

Service pattern

The following table shows the lines used by the A service, with shaded boxes indicating the route at the specified times:

Line From To Tracks Times
Lefferts
Service 		Rockaway
Service
all ex.
nights 		late
nights 		all ex.
nights 		late
nights 		rush
peak
IND Eighth Avenue Line (full line) Inwood – 207th Street 168th Street all          
163rd Street – Amsterdam Avenue Canal Street express  
local        
Chambers Street High Street all      
IND Fulton Street Line (full line) Jay Street – MetroTech Shepherd Avenue express  
local        
Euclid Avenue all        
Grant Avenue Rockaway Boulevard local
104th Street Ozone Park – Lefferts Boulevard    
IND Rockaway Line (full line) Aqueduct Racetrack Howard Beach – JFK Airport          
Broad Channel all
Beach 67th Street Far Rockaway – Mott Avenue  
Beach 90th Street Rockaway Park – Beach 116th Street      

Stations

For a more detailed station listing, see the articles on the lines listed above.

Station service legend
Stops all times Stops all times
Stops late nights only Stops late nights only
Stops weekdays during the day Stops weekdays during the day
Stops rush hours in the peak direction only Stops rush hours/weekdays in the peak direction only
Time period details
Disabled access Station is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act
Disabled access ↑ Station is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act
in the indicated direction only
Disabled access ↓
Elevator access to mezzanine only
A service Stations Disabled access Subway transfers Connections/Other Notes
Manhattan
Stops all times Inwood – 207th Street Disabled access Bx12 Select Bus Service
Stops all times Dyckman Street
Stops all times 190th Street
Stops all times 181st Street
Stops all times 175th Street Disabled access George Washington Bridge Bus Terminal
Stops all times 168th Street Disabled access C all except late nights
1 all times (IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line)
Stops late nights only 163rd Street – Amsterdam Avenue
Stops late nights only 155th Street
Stops all times 145th Street C all except late nights
B weekdays during the day ​D all times (IND Concourse Line)
Stops late nights only 135th Street
Stops all times 125th Street Disabled access ​B weekdays during the day ​C all except late nights ​D all times M60 Select Bus Service to LaGuardia Airport
Stops late nights only 116th Street
Stops late nights only Cathedral Parkway – 110th Street
Stops late nights only 103rd Street
Stops late nights only 96th Street
Stops late nights only 86th Street
Stops late nights only 81st Street – Museum of Natural History
Stops late nights only 72nd Street
Stops all times 59th Street – Columbus Circle Disabled access ​B weekdays during the day ​C all except late nights ​D all times
1 all times ​2 late nights (IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line)
Stops late nights only 50th Street Disabled access E all times (IND Queens Boulevard Line) Station is ADA-accessible in the southbound direction only.
Stops all times 42nd Street – Port Authority Bus Terminal Disabled access ​C all except late nights ​E all times
1 all times ​2 all times ​3 all times (IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line)
7 all times <7> rush hours until 9:30 p.m., peak direction​ (IRT Flushing Line)
N all times ​Q all times ​R all except late nights ​W weekdays only (BMT Broadway Line)
S all except late nights (42nd Street Shuttle)
at Times Square – 42nd Street 		Port Authority Bus Terminal
M34A Select Bus Service
Stops all times 34th Street – Penn Station Disabled access ​C all except late nights ​E all times M34 / M34A Select Bus Service
Amtrak, LIRR, NJ Transit at Pennsylvania Station
Stops late nights only 23rd Street E all times
Stops all times 14th Street Disabled access ​C all except late nights ​E all times
L all times (BMT Canarsie Line)
Stops all times West Fourth Street – Washington Square Disabled access ​C all except late nights ​E all times
B weekdays during the day ​D all times ​F all times <F> two rush hour trains, peak direction ​M weekdays during the day (IND Sixth Avenue Line) 		PATH at Ninth Street
Stops late nights only Spring Street E all times
Stops all times Canal Street ​C all except late nights ​E all times
Stops all times Chambers Street ​C all except late nights ​E all times
2 all times ​3 all except late nights (IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line at Park Place) 		PATH at World Trade Center
Stops all times Fulton Street Disabled access C all except late nights
2 all times ​3 all except late nights (IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line)
4 all times ​5 all except late nights (IRT Lexington Avenue Line)
J all times ​Z rush hours, peak direction (BMT Nassau Street Line)
Brooklyn
Stops all times High Street C all except late nights
Stops all times Jay Street – MetroTech Disabled access C all except late nights F all times <F> two rush hour trains, peak direction​
N late nights R all times ​W limited rush hour service only (BMT Fourth Avenue Line)
Stops all times Hoyt–Schermerhorn Streets C all except late nights
G all times (IND Crosstown Line)
Stops late nights only Lafayette Avenue
Stops late nights only Clinton–Washington Avenues
Stops late nights only Franklin Avenue Disabled access S all times (BMT Franklin Avenue Line)
Stops all times Nostrand Avenue C all except late nights B44 Select Bus Service, LIRR Atlantic Branch at Nostrand Avenue
Stops late nights only Kingston–Throop Avenues B15 bus to JFK Airport
Stops all times Utica Avenue Disabled access C all except late nights
Stops late nights only Ralph Avenue
Stops late nights only Rockaway Avenue
Stops all times Broadway Junction C all except late nights
J all times ​Z rush hours, peak direction (BMT Jamaica Line)
L all times (BMT Canarsie Line)
Stops late nights only Liberty Avenue
Stops late nights only Van Siclen Avenue
Stops late nights only Shepherd Avenue
Stops all times Euclid Avenue Disabled access C all except late nights
Stops all times Grant Avenue
Queens
Stops all times 80th Street
Stops all times 88th Street Southbound trains will skip this station due to station rehabilitation from May 12, 2014 until late September 2014.
Stops all times Rockaway Boulevard
Services to Lefferts Boulevard and The Rockaways split
Service to Lefferts Boulevard
Stops all times 104th Street Southbound trains will skip this station due to station rehabilitation from May 12, 2014 until late September 2014.
Stops all times 111th Street
Stops all times Ozone Park – Lefferts Boulevard Q10 bus to JFK Airport
Rockaway Line services
Stops all times Aqueduct Racetrack Disabled access Station serves northbound trains only
Stops all times Aqueduct – North Conduit Avenue
Stops all times Howard Beach – JFK Airport Disabled access AirTrain JFK
Stops all times Broad Channel S all times (Rockaway Park Shuttle)
Services to Far Rockaway and Rockaway Park split
Service to Far Rockaway
Stops all times Beach 67th Street
Stops all times Beach 60th Street
Stops all times Beach 44th Street
Stops all times Beach 36th Street
Stops all times Beach 25th Street
Stops all times Far Rockaway – Mott Avenue Disabled access LIRR Far Rockaway Branch at Far Rockaway
Rush Hour Only Service to Rockaway Park
Stops rush hours in the peak direction only Beach 90th Street S all times (Rockaway Park Shuttle)
Stops rush hours in the peak direction only Beach 98th Street S all times (Rockaway Park Shuttle)
Stops rush hours in the peak direction only Beach 105th Street S all times (Rockaway Park Shuttle)
Stops rush hours in the peak direction only Rockaway Park – Beach 116th Street Disabled access S all times (Rockaway Park Shuttle)

Notes

  1. ^ The special rush hour trips are designated in the schedule and on trains.
  2. ^ The separate shuttle service is identified on the late night map as , in the schedule as , and on trains as .

References

  1. ^ 'Subdivision 'B' Car Assignment Effective December 23, 2023'. New York City Transit, Operations Planning. December 23, 2023.
  2. ^ "Subdivision 'B' Car Assignments: Cars Required December 23, 2023" (PDF). The Bulletin. 67 (2). Electric Railroaders' Association. December 2021. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  3. ^ http://web.mta.info/developers/resources/line_colors.htm
  4. ^ "MTA NYC Transit — Info — Subways". Archived from the original on 19 June 2006. Retrieved 2006-07-08. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  5. ^ "S Subway Timetable, Rockaway Park Shuttle, Effective December 17, 2023". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved June 28, 2024.
  6. ^ "Late Night Subway Service" (PDF). Metropolitan Transportation Authority. March 23, 2023. Retrieved June 2, 2023.
  7. ^ "Gay Midnight Crowd Rides First Trains in New Subway". New York Times. September 10, 1932. p. 1.
  8. ^ a b c d e f http://www.erictb.info/linehistory.html
  9. ^ Echanove, Matias. "Bed-Stuy on the Move". Master thesis. Urban Planning Program. Columbia University. Urbanology.org. 2003.
  10. ^ Williams, Keith. "Weaving the Broadway Junction tapestry". The Weekly Nabe. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  11. ^ Template:PDFlink, December 2004 Edition
  12. ^ Rockaway Park Station History (Arrt's Arrchives)
  13. ^ LIRR Station History
  14. ^ http://www.subchat.com/read.asp?Id=1014398
  15. ^ http://www.nycsubway.org/perl/caption.pl?/img/maps/calcagno-1974-system.gif
  16. ^ http://www.nycsubway.org/perl/caption.pl?/img/maps/calcagno-1978-system.gif
  17. ^ [1]
  18. ^ http://www.stationreporter.net/htrain.htm
  19. ^ [2]
  20. ^ [3]
  21. ^ "Rebuilding the Rockaways After Hurricane Sandy". mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  22. ^ Cuomo: MTA To Restore A Train Subway Service To The Rockaways May 30
  23. ^ MTA's tweet on partially restoring the Rockaway shuttle
  24. ^ Hurricane Sandy Recovery Service As of November 20
  25. ^ Beginning Tuesday, Fare-Free H Shuttle Replaces Portion of A Line in Rockaways
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