View source for Proposed expansion of the New York City Subway

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[[File:1929 IND Second System.jpg|thumb|right|250px|A 1929 plan]]
[[File:1939 IND Second System.jpg|thumb|right|250px|A 1939 plan]]
[[File:06 NYCTA69 newroutes map.jpg|thumb|right|250px|A 1969 plan]]
[[File:NYC subway-4D.svg|thumb|right|250px|Current services]]
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Since the [[Early history of the IRT subway|opening]] of the original [[New York City Subway]] line in 1904, and throughout the [[history of the New York City Subway|subway's history]], various official and planning agencies have proposed numerous extensions to the subway system. The first major expansion of the subway system was the [[Dual Contracts]], a set of agreements between the City of New York and the [[Interborough Rapid Transit Company|IRT]] and the [[Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company|BRT]]. The system was expanded into the outer reaches of the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens, and it provided for the construction of important lines in Manhattan. This one expansion of the system provided for a majority of today's system.

Even with this expansion, there was a pressing need for growth. In 1922, Mayor [[John Francis Hylan|John Hylan]] put out his plan for over 100 miles of new subway lines going to all five boroughs. His plan was intended to directly compete with the two private subway operators, the IRT and the BMT. This plan was never furthered. The next big plan, and arguably the most ambitious in the subway system's history, was the "Second System". The 1929 plan by the [[Independent Subway System|Independent Subway]] to construct new subway lines, the Second System would take over existing subway lines and railroad rights-of-way. This plan would have expanded service throughout the city with 100 miles of subway lines. A major component of the plan was the [[history of the Second Avenue Subway|construction]] of the [[Second Avenue Subway]]. The [[Wall Street Crash of 1929|Stock Market Crash of 1929]] put a halt to the plan, however, and subway expansion was limited to lines already under construction by the IND.

During the 1930s and 1940s, the plans were revised, with new plans such as a line to [[Staten Island]] and a revised line to [[Rockaway, Queens|the Rockaways]]. In the late 1940s and 1950s, a Queens Bypass line via the [[Long Island Rail Road]]'s [[Main Line (Long Island Rail Road)|Main Line]] was first proposed as a branch of the still-planned Second Avenue Subway. In addition, capacity on existing lines became improved through the construction of strategic connections such as the [[IND Culver Line|Culver Ramp]], the [[60th Street Tunnel Connection]], and the [[Chrystie Street Connection]], and through the rebuilding of [[DeKalb Avenue Junction]]. These improvements were the only things to come out of these plans. Eventually, these plans were modified to what became the [[Program for Action]], which was put forth by the [[New York City Transit Authority]] in 1968. This was the last plan for a major expansion of the subway system. The plan included the construction of the Second Avenue Subway, a Queens Bypass line, a line replacing the [[IRT Third Avenue Line|Third Avenue El]] in the Bronx, and other extensions in the Bronx, Queens, and Brooklyn. While ambitious, very little of the plan was completed, mostly because of the financial crisis in the 1970s.

Until the 1990s, there was little focus on expansion of the system because the system was in a state of disrepair, and funds were allocated to maintaining the existing system. In the 1990s, however, with the system in better shape, the construction of the Second Avenue Subway was looked into again. Construction of the Second Avenue Subway started in 2007, and the first phase was completed in 2017. Since the 1990s, public officials and organizations such as the [[Regional Plan Association]] have pushed for the further expansion of the system. Projects such as the TriboroRx, a circumferential line connecting the outer boroughs, the reuse of the [[Rockaway Beach Branch]], and the further expansion of the Second Avenue Subway have all been proposed, albeit  mostly unfunded.

==Triborough System==
{{See also|Dual Contracts}}
[[File:1910 IRT plan.png|thumb|200px|A 1910 plan for an [[Interborough Rapid Transit Company|IRT]] expansion]]

The Triborough System was a proclamation for new subway lines to the Bronx and Brooklyn. The new lines include the [[IRT Lexington Avenue Line]], [[IRT Pelham Line]], and [[IRT Jerome Avenue Line]]. The Manhattan Bridge line described below later became the [[BMT West End Line]], [[BMT Fourth Avenue Line]], the [[BMT Sea Beach Line]], and the Nassau Street loops.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://nycsubway.org/wiki/A_New_Subway_Line_for_New_York_City,_The_Triborough_System:_Its_History_(1910) |title=A New Subway Line for New York City, The Triborough System: Its History (1910) |publisher=www.nycsubway.org |access-date=March 25, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nycsubway.org/wiki/The_Dual_System_of_Rapid_Transit_(1912) |title=The Dual System of Rapid Transit (1912) |publisher=www.nycsubway.org |access-date=March 25, 2014}}</ref>

<blockquote>The route of the new subway&nbsp;... comprises a main trunk north and south through Manhattan Borough on Lexington Avenue and Irving Place from the Harlem River to Tenth St. and on Broadway, Vesey and Church Sts. from Tenth St. to the Battery; two branches in Bronx Borough, one northeast via 138th St. Southern Boulevard and Westchester Ave. to Pelham Bay Park. the other northerly via River Ave. and Jerome Ave. to Woodlawn Road, connecting with the Manhattan trunk by a tunnel under the Harlem River; a Manhattan-Brooklyn line extending from the North River via Canal Street across the East River on the Manhattan Bridge to connect with the Fourth Avenue subway in Brooklyn now being built, which thus becomes an integral part of the larger system; two branches southerly from the Fourth Ave. line extending south to Fort Hamilton and southeast to Coney Island; and a loop feeder line in Brooklyn through Lafayette Ave. and Broadway, connecting with the Fourth Ave. line at one end. and at the other crossing the Williamsburg Bridge and entering the Centre Street Loop subway in Manhattan which is thus also incorporated in the system.</blockquote>

In 1911, [[William Gibbs McAdoo]], who operated a competing subway company called the [[Hudson & Manhattan Railroad]], proposed building a line under [[Broadway (Manhattan)|Broadway]] between [[Hudson Terminal]] and [[Herald Square]].<ref name=":12">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1910/09/16/archives/madoo-would-build-a-west-side-subway-from-34th-st-down-broadway.html|title=M'Adoo Would Build A West Side Subway|date=September 16, 1910|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=July 19, 2011|page=10}}</ref> He later proposed that the Broadway line be tied into the IRT's [[Early history of the IRT subway|original subway line]] in Lower Manhattan. The Broadway line, going southbound, would merge with the local tracks of the IRT Lexington Avenue Line in the southbound direction at 10th Street. A spur off the Lexington Avenue Line in Lower Manhattan, in the back of [[Trinity Church (Manhattan)|Trinity Church]], would split eastward under [[Wall Street]], cross the [[East River]] to [[Brooklyn]], then head down the Fourth Avenue Line in Brooklyn, with another spur underneath Lafayette Avenue.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1910/11/19/archives/madco-ready-to-run-triborough-giving-a-5cent-ride-from-the-bronx-to.html|title=M'ADCO READY TO RUN TRIBOROUGH; Giving a 5-Cent Ride from the Bronx to the End of the Brooklyn Extension.|date=November 19, 1910|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 26, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

The Triborough System later became part of the [[Dual Contracts]], signed on March 19, 1913 and also known as the Dual Subway System. These were contracts for the construction and/or rehabilitation and operation of rapid transit lines in New York City. The contracts were "dual", in that they were signed between the City and the IRT and Municipal Railway Company, a subsidiary of the BRT (later BMT).<ref>nycsubway.org—[http://www.nycsubway.org/wiki/The_Dual_Contracts The Dual Contracts]</ref>

Some lines proposed under the Contracts were not built, most notably an IRT line to [[Marine Park, Brooklyn|Marine Park]], Brooklyn (at what is now [[Kings Plaza]]) under either [[Utica Avenue]], using a brand-new line, or [[Nostrand Avenue]] and [[Flatbush Avenue]], using the then-new [[IRT Nostrand Avenue Line]]. There were also alternate plans for the Nostrand Avenue Line to continue down Nostrand Avenue to [[Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn|Sheepshead Bay]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1910/03/06/archives/transit-outlook-bright-in-brooklyn-first-branch-lines-on-assessment.html |title=Transit Outlook Bright in Brooklyn – First Branch Lines on Assessment Plan Likely to be Built in That Borough|date=March 6, 1910|newspaper=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=August 9, 2016}}</ref>

==Mayor Hylan's plan==
[[File:Nyc subway expansion 1920 map.jpg|thumb|200px|A 1920 plan for expansion]]
On August 28, 1922, Mayor [[John Francis Hylan]] unveiled his own plans for the subway system, which was relatively small at the time. His plan included building over {{convert|100|mi}} of new lines and taking over nearly {{convert|100|mi}} of existing lines. By the end of 1925, all of these routes were to have been completed. The lines were designed to compete with the IRT and BMT.<ref>{{cite news |title=Two Subway Routes Adopted by City |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1923/08/04/archives/two-subway-routes-adopted-by-city-estimate-board-accepts-wash.html |work=The New York Times |date=August 4, 1923 |page=9}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Plans Now Ready to Start Subways |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1924/03/12/archives/plans-now-ready-to-start-subways-commission-notifies-city-it-can.html |work=The New York Times |date=March 12, 1924 |page=1}}</ref>

Hylan's plan contained the following lines:<ref name="nycsubway">nycsubway.org—[http://www.nycsubway.org/wiki/History_of_the_Independent_Subway History of the Independent Subway]</ref>

* A line running along Manhattan's West Side, stretching from the edge of the city at [[Yonkers, New York|Yonkers]] to 14th Street. It would be a two-track line south to Dyckman Street, a three-track line to 162nd Street, and then-on it would be a four-track line. The line would have two southern branches that would diverge at 14th Street. A connection to the BMT Canarsie Line would use a pair of the tracks, while the other pair would go to [[Atlantic Avenue (New York City)|Atlantic Avenue]] and Hicks Street in Brooklyn through an East River tunnel. Then it would turn down to Red Hook. There would also be a loop at Battery Park. Another branch would be built; it would consist of two tracks, and would go between 162nd Street and 190th Street via Amsterdam Avenue.
* A [[First Avenue (Manhattan)|First Avenue]] line, consisting of four tracks, would stretch from the Harlem River to City Hall. At 10th Street, the line would cease to be a four-track line, with the line splitting into two branches. One branch would run to a loop near City Hall, while the other would go to a new Lafayette Avenue line in Brooklyn, running via [[Third Avenue]] and the [[Bowery]]. On the northern end, at [[East 161st Street|161st Street]], the line would split into two 3-track lines. One of the lines would go to Southern Boulevard and Fordham Road; the other would continue to 241st Street after merging with the existing IRT White Plains Road Line at Fordham Road and Webster Avenue.
* A line from [[Astoria, Queens]], likely connecting to the [[BMT Astoria Line]], across the [[East River]] and via [[125th Street (Manhattan)|125th Street]] (near today's [[Henry Hudson Parkway]]).
* A line running from Hunters Point in Queens heading southeast to Lafayette Avenue in Brooklyn. The line would consist of between two and four tracks, and at Lafayette Avenue, the line would split. Two of them would continue as a Lafayette Avenue, but would then become four tracks. The remaining two tracks would run to Franklin and Flatbush Avenues.
* A new 4-track trunk line along Lafayette Avenue in Brooklyn from [[Borough Hall (Brooklyn)|Borough Hall]] to [[Bedford Avenue]]. The line would narrow to three tracks to [[Broadway (Brooklyn)|Broadway]]. Then the line would have continued underneath the [[BMT Jamaica Line]] to [[168th Street (BMT Jamaica Line)|168th Street]]. By running underneath the Jamaica Line, the line would directly compete with the BMT. A two-track connection would also be provided to a First Avenue line.
* A new line running under [[Utica Avenue]] to [[Flatlands Avenue]]. The line would be a branch of the [[IRT Eastern Parkway Line]].<ref name="raskin">{{Cite Routes Not Taken}}</ref>{{rp|120}}
* A four-track Flatbush Avenue line to Emmons Avenue in Sheepshead Bay, before turning west to Surf Avenue in [[Coney Island]] via Emmons Avenue. Service to [[Floyd Bennett Field]] would be provided with a branch via Flatbush Avenue.
* The [[BMT Canarsie Line]] would be extended past 121st Street in Queens to the BMT Jamaica Line.
* A new line, which would run from 90th Street to Prospect Avenue, that would go via Fort Hamilton Parkway and 10th Avenue would be used by [[IND Culver Line|BMT Culver Line]] trains.
* Extension of the [[BMT Fourth Avenue Line]] in Brooklyn, south to [[Bay Ridge–95th Street (BMT Fourth Avenue Line)|Bay Ridge–95th Street]].
* Extension of the BMT Fourth Avenue Line east to the Fort Hamilton Parkway Line and the [[BMT West End Line]].
* A two-track line from the BMT Fourth Avenue Line at 67th Street to Staten Island via the [[Staten Island Tunnel]].<ref name=raskin/>{{rp|120–125}}
* Extension of the [[IRT New Lots Line]] from New Lots Avenue to Lefferts Boulevard.
* The IRT Flushing Line would be extended eastward to Bell Boulevard in [[Bayside, Queens|Bayside]] via [[Main Street (Queens)|Main Street]], [[Kissena Boulevard]], and [[Northern Boulevard]].
* At [[Roosevelt Avenue]] a branch would be constructed off the IRT Flushing Line to Jamaica.

Only some of Hylan's planned lines were built to completion. Completed lines included:<ref name="nycsubway" /><ref>{{cite web |title=Three Rapid Transit Contracts are Let |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/12/29/102910695.pdf |work=The New York Times |access-date=June 28, 2015 |date=December 29, 1922}}</ref><ref name="StationOpening">{{cite web |title=95th&nbsp;St. Subway Extension Opened at 2&nbsp;{{not a typo|P.|M.}} Today |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/59905307/?terms=95th+street+subway|work=Brooklyn Daily Eagle|publisher=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 29, 2015|date=October 31, 1912}}</ref>

* An extension of the Fourth Avenue Line to 95th Street.
* Two major trunk lines in midtown Manhattan, with one running under [[Eighth Avenue (Manhattan)|Eighth Avenue]] and one under [[Sixth Avenue (Manhattan)|Sixth Avenue]], which already had an elevated line.
* A crosstown subway under 53rd Street (connecting with the Eighth and Sixth Avenue subways) running under the [[East River]] to Queens Plaza (Long Island City), meeting with a [[Brooklyn]]–[[Queens]] crosstown line, and continuing under [[Queens Boulevard]] and Hillside Avenue to [[Jamaica – 179th Street (IND Queens Boulevard Line)|179th Street]], where bus service would converge.
* A subway under the [[Grand Concourse (Bronx)|Grand Concourse]] in [[the Bronx]], diverging from the Eighth Avenue Line in Manhattan at 145th Street and [[Saint Nicholas Avenue (Manhattan)|Saint Nicholas Avenue]].

Major Phillip Mathews disagreed with the [[New York City Board of Transportation|Board of Transportation]]'s plan, and in response, he published a report, on December 24, 1926, titled "Proposed Subway Plan for Subway Relief and Expansion". He said that that congestion would not be addressed for Brooklyn and the Bronx; only the planned Grand Concourse line would alleviate congestion, in this case congestion on the [[IRT Jerome Avenue Line]]. There would be little relief on the two lines jointly-operated between the IRT and the BMT. He came up with his own plan. He proposed that the Eighth Avenue Line, through a connection from Fulton or Wall Streets to Chambers Street, be connected to the BMT's lines to Coney Island, with a possible connection at the [[Manhattan Bridge]]'s south side.<ref name="nycsubway" />

In Manhattan, he proposed a new four-track line running down Third Avenue from City Hall, with connections to the White Plains Road and Pelham Lines in the Bronx. The line would therefore have to be built to IRT clearances. At the line's southern end, a connection would be built to the Eastern Parkway Line near [[Franklin Avenue–Botanic Garden (New York City Subway)|Franklin Avenue]] via a new set of tubes under the East River. To alleviate congestion on the Queens lines, a new trunk line would run from Eighth Avenue in Manhattan to Jamaica, with transfers to the north–south lines in Manhattan and to Brooklyn Crosstown service. This would later be built as the [[IND Queens Boulevard Line]].<ref name="nycsubway" />

To round out expansion in Manhattan, he proposed that an extension of the [[BMT Canarsie Line]] to [[Eighth Avenue (BMT Canarsie Line)|Eighth Avenue]]. This was built at a later date. To connect the outer boroughs, a four-track Brooklyn-Queens crosstown line would be designed, with the possibility for future extensions into the Bronx and Staten Island.<ref name="nycsubway" />

==Subways to New Jersey==
In 1926, a loop subway service was planned to be built to [[New Jersey]]. The rationale given was:<ref name="nycsubway to nj">nycsubway.org—[http://www.nycsubway.org/wiki/Extensive_Rapid_Transit_Plan_Proposed_for_North_Jersey_(1926-1927) Extensive Rapid Transit Plan Proposed for North Jersey (1926–1927)]</ref>

<blockquote>Principal features of a comprehensive plan for passenger transportation between communities in the nine northern counties of New Jersey and the city of New York are outlined in a report submitted on Jan. 15 to the Legislature of the state by the North Jersey Transit Commission. A preliminary report presented about a year ago was abstracted in ''[[Electric Railway Journal]]'' for Feb. 7, 1925... The ultimate object of the program recommended is the creation of a new electric railway system comprising {{nowrap|82.6 miles {{bracket|{{convert|82.6|mi|disp=out}}}}}} of route, and the electrification of {{nowrap|399 route-miles {{bracket|{{convert|399|mi|disp=out}}}}}} of railroad now operated by steam. As the first step it is proposed to construct an interstate loop line {{nowrap|17.3 miles {{bracket|{{convert|17.3|mi|disp=out}}}}}} in length connecting with all of the north Jersey commuters' railroads and passing under the Hudson River into New York City by two tunnels, one uptown and one downtown. A new low-level subway through Manhattan would complete the loop. Construction costs of this preliminary project are estimated at $154,000,000, with $40,000,000 additional for equipment. The cost of power facilities is not included in this estimate.<ref name="nycsubway to nj"/></blockquote>

Because it would be utilized in both directions, the capacity of the proposed interstate loop line would be equivalent, it is said, to two 2-track lines or one 4-track line from New Jersey to New York City due to its having two crossings between New Jersey and New York. The loop was said to be able to carry 192,500 passengers per hour, or 4.62{{nbsp}}million daily passengers, had it been built. The estimate was based on the operation of 35 trains per hour in each direction, and each train would be eleven cars long and would carry 100 passengers per car. It was to be built as a multi-phase project, wherein the IRT and BMT would work together to build that system to New Jersey. Extensions of the [[IRT Flushing Line]] and [[BMT Canarsie Line]] were both considered; the Canarsie Line was to be extended to [[Hoboken, New Jersey|Hoboken]] near [[the Palisades (Hudson River)|the Palisades]], while the Flushing Line was to be extended to Franklin Street between Boulevard and Bergenline Avenues in [[Union City, New Jersey|Union City]]. Ultimately, the cost was too great, and with the [[Great Depression]], these ideas were quickly shot down.<ref name="nycsubway to nj"/>

In 1954, Regional Plan Association advocated for an extension of the BMT Canarsie Line from Eighth Avenue to Jersey City under the Hudson River. The tunnel under the Hudson would have cost $40 million. The extension would have provided access to commuter railroads in New Jersey as most lines converged there, and the lines that didn't would be rerouted to stop there. The RPA also suggested having a parking lot there for access from the Pulaski Skyway and the New Jersey Turnpike. It was suggested that either the New York City Transit Authority, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey or the Bi-State Metropolitan Rapid Transit Commission would do the construction.<ref name="NYT1954">{{cite news |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1954/06/14/83882024.pdf |title=City Subway Link to New Jersey At 14th St. Urged to Ease Traffic |date=June 14, 1954|access-date = February 8, 2016 |work=The New York Times |page=23}}</ref>

In 1963, three major commuter groups in New Jersey made expansion proposals. One of them would have involved an extension of the IRT Flushing Line under the Hudson River with a three-track tunnel and then connect with the [[New York, Susquehanna and Western Railroad]].<ref name=":1">{{cite news |title=Commuters Offer Transit Proposals |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1963/06/12/80448570.pdf |access-date=August 17, 2015 |work=The New York Times |date=June 12, 1963}}</ref>

In 1986, the [[Regional Plan Association]] suggested extending the IRT Flushing Line to New Jersey's [[Meadowlands Sports Complex]].<ref name=nyt19860321/>

On November 16, 2010, the plan was revisited yet again, as ''[[The New York Times]]'' reported that Mayor [[Michael Bloomberg]]'s administration had been working on a plan to extend the 7 service across the Hudson River to [[Hoboken, New Jersey|Hoboken]] and continue to [[Secaucus Junction]] in [[New Jersey]], where it would connect with most [[New Jersey Transit]] commuter lines. It would offer New Jersey commuters a direct route to [[Grand Central Terminal]] on the East Side of Manhattan and connections to most other New York City subway routes. This was being planned as an extension of the already-under construction [[7 Subway Extension]] (see [[#7 Subway Extension|below]]).<ref>{{Cite news |title=Take the No. 7 to Secaucus? |first=Bagli |last=Charles V. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/17/nyregion/17tunnel.html |work=The New York Times |date=November 17, 2010 |access-date=July 3, 2013}}</ref> 

In April 2012, citing budget considerations, the director of the [[Metropolitan Transportation Authority|MTA]], [[Joe Lhota]], said that it was doubtful the extension would be built in the foreseeable future, suggesting that the [[Gateway Project]] was a much more likely solution to congestion at Hudson River crossings.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Haughney |first=Christine |title=MTA Chief rules out subway line to New Jersey |work=The New York Times |date=April 3, 2012 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/04/nyregion/transit-agency-chief-rules-out-new-york-new-jersey-subway.html |access-date=April 4, 2012 }}</ref> A feasibility study commissioned by the city and released in April 2013 revived hope for the project, however, with Mayor Bloomberg saying "Extending the 7 train to Secaucus is a promising potential solution ... and is deserving of serious consideration."<ref>[http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2013/04/plan_to_extend_no_7_city_subwa.html Plan to extend No. 7 subway from NYC to New Jersey could be back on track], Mike Frassinelli, The Star-Ledger, April 10, 2013</ref><ref name="nycedc 2">{{cite report |first=Parsons |last=Brinkerhoff |title=No 7 Secaucus Extension Feasibility Analysis Final Report |publisher=NYCEDC |date=April 2013 |url=http://www.nycedc.com/sites/default/files/filemanager/Resources/Studies/No_7_Secaucus_Extension_Final_Report_April_2013.pdf |access-date=April 10, 2013 |page=III–X |archive-date=November 5, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105204804/http://www.nycedc.com/sites/default/files/filemanager/Resources/Studies/No_7_Secaucus_Extension_Final_Report_April_2013.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 2017, a further extension of the 7 train to New Jersey was suggested once again, this time as an alternative to constructing a replacement for the Port Authority Bus Terminal.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nj.com/traffic/index.ssf/2017/04/new_york_subway_extension_to_nj_may_not_be_dead_after_all.html|title=New York subway extension to N.J. may not be dead after all|last=Higgs|first=Larry|date=April 21, 2017|website=NJ.com|access-date=February 28, 2018}}</ref> An alternative would include a new terminal at Secaucus Junction in conjunction with the 7 extension.<ref>{{cite news | last = Smith | first = Sandy | title = On-Again, Off-Again New Jersey Bus Terminal May Be On Again | publisher = Next City | date = April 26, 2017 | url = https://nextcity.org/daily/entry/new-jersey-bus-terminal-norway-airport-transit-la-metro-tunnel-boring | access-date = May 5, 2017}}</ref> In February 2018, it was revealed that the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey had advertised for consultants to write a feasibility study for such an extension, and that it had received bids from several companies. This extension was being planned along with the Gateway Project and, if built, would be able to accommodate a projected 38% increase in the number of people commuting between the two states. The 18-month study would include input from the Port Authority, the MTA, and [[NJ Transit]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amny.com/transit/7-train-nj-1.16981061|title=Cross-Hudson study options include 7 line extension into NJ|last=Barone|first=Vincent|date=February 27, 2018|website=am New York|access-date=February 28, 2018}}</ref> If the New Jersey subway extension were to be constructed, it could complement the Gateway Project, which might become overcrowded by 2040.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/27/nyregion/subway-expand-new-jersey.html|title=A Subway Ride to New Jersey? It Could Happen, Officials Say|last=McGeehan|first=Patrick|date=February 27, 2018|work=The New York Times|access-date=February 28, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/transit-study-running-no-7-train-new-jersey-article-1.3844933|title=Transit study will look into running No. 7 train into New Jersey|date=February 13, 2018|website=NY Daily News|access-date=February 28, 2018}}</ref>

{{anchor|IND Second System}}

==1929–1939 plans==
{{Bar chart
| title      = IND Second System plan: route miles by borough
| label_type = Borough
| data_type  = Number of route miles
| data_max   = 53
| label3 = Queens    | data3 = 52.37
| label4 = The Bronx | data4 = 19.04
| label5 = Brooklyn  | data5 = 16.84
| label6 = Manhattan | data6 = 11.87
}}

Before unification in 1940, the government of [[New York City]] made plans for expanding the subway system, under a plan referred to in contemporary newspaper articles as the '''IND Second System''' (due to the fact that most of the expansion was to include new IND lines, as opposed to BMT/IRT lines). The first one, conceived in 1929, was to be part of the city-operated [[Independent Subway System]] (IND). By 1939, with unification planned, all three systems were included. Very few of these far-reaching lines were built, though provisions were made for future expansion on lines that intersect the proposals.<ref name="nycsubway 1929 plan"/>

The core Manhattan lines of the expansion were the [[IND Second Avenue Line|Second Avenue Line]] (with an extension into [[the Bronx]]) and the [[Worth Street Line]], connecting to [[the Rockaways]]. The Rockaways were eventually served by the subway via a city takeover of the [[Long Island Rail Road]]'s [[Rockaway Beach Branch]]. A segment of the proposed [[Second Avenue Subway]] opened for passenger service in January 2017. The majority of the proposed lines were to be built as elevated subways, likely a cost-cutting measure. The majority of the expansion was to occur in Queens, with the original proposal suggesting {{convert|52|mi}} of track be built in Queens alone.<ref name="nycsubway 1929 plan"/>

===Details===
The first plan was made on September 15, 1929 (before the IND even opened), and is detailed in the table below.<ref name="nycsubway 1929 plan">nycsubway.org—[http://nycsubway.org/wiki/IND_Second_System_-_1929_Plan IND Second System – 1929 Plan]</ref> Cost is only for construction, and does not include land acquisition or other items.<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/packages/pdf/nyregion/20070408_SUBWAY_DOCS/19290916_subway_doc.pdf 100 Miles of Subway in New City Project; 52 of them in Queens], ''[[The New York Times]]'' September 16, 1929, p. 1. Retrieved June 11, 2014</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Line
!Streets
!From
!To
!Tracks
!Route miles
!Track miles
!Cost
!Notes
|-
!colspan=9|Manhattan
|-
|rowspan=2|East Manhattan trunk line ([[IND Second Avenue Line|Second Avenue Line]])||Water Street – New Bowery – Chrystie Street||Pine Street||Houston Street||2 from Pine Street to Chambers Street<br />4 to Houston Street||1.34||4.68||$11,300,000||subway
|-
|Second Avenue||Houston Street||Harlem River||4 to 61st Street<br />6 to 125th Street<br />4 to Harlem River||6.55||32.84||$87,600,000||subway
|-
|''61st Street Line''||Sixth Avenue – 61st Street||52nd Street||Second Avenue||2||1.1||2.2||$6,700,000||subway
|-
|(Rockaway Line)||[[IND Worth Street Line|Worth Street – East Broadway – Grand Street]]||Church Street||East River||2||1.95||3.9||$13,300,000||subway
|-
|(Utica Avenue Line)<!--Houston Street Line-->||Houston Street||Essex Street||East River||2||.93||1.86||$7,900,000||subway
|-
|colspan=5|'''Manhattan subtotal'''||11.87||45.48||$126,800,000||
|-
!colspan=9|Bronx
|-
|Bronx trunk line||Alexander Avenue – Melrose Avenue – Boston Road||Harlem River||West Farms||4||3.97||15.88||$40,400,000||subway, with a portal between Vyse Avenue and 177th Street, then elevated into the existing [[IRT White Plains Road Line]] near 180th Street
|-
|''White Plains Road Line''||Morris Park Avenue – Wilson Avenue||Garfield Street||Boston Road||2||3.5||7.9||$13,700,000||branching off the existing elevated [[IRT White Plains Road Line]], and then going into subway
|-
|IRT Lafayette Avenue Line||163rd Street – Hunts Point – Lafayette Avenue – 177th Street||Washington Avenue at Brook Avenue||East Tremont Avenue||2||5.02||10.04||$12,900,000||subway to near Edgewater Road and Seneca Avenue, then elevated
|-
|Concourse Line Extension||Burke Avenue – Boston Road||Webster Avenue||Baychester Avenue||2||2.15||4.3||$8,900,000||extension of the [[IND Concourse Line|Concourse Line]]
|-
|[[IRT White Plains Road Line|White Plains Road Line]]||&nbsp;||180th Street||241st Street||&nbsp;||4.40||13.2||$2,100,000||owned by [[Interborough Rapid Transit Company|IRT]], to be taken over ("recaptured") by IND
|-
|colspan=5|'''Bronx subtotal'''||19.04||51.32||$77,000,000||
|-
!colspan=9|Brooklyn
|-
|Broadway Branch Line (Rockaway Line)||Broadway||East River||Havemeyer Street at South Fourth Street||2||rowspan=2|3.16||rowspan=2|13.5||rowspan=2|$34,800,000||subway
|-
|rowspan=4|Utica Avenue Line (and Rockaway Line from Havemeyer Street to Stuyvesant Avenue)||Grand Street – South Fourth Street – Beaver Street||East River||Stuyvesant Avenue||2 to Driggs Avenue<br />4 to Union Avenue<br />8 to Bushwick Avenue<br />4 to Stuyvesant Avenue||subway
|-
|Stuyvesant Avenue – Utica Avenue||Broadway||Flatbush Avenue||4||5.85||23.4||$39,300,000||subway to Avenue J, then elevated
|-
|Avenue S||Utica Avenue||Nostrand Avenue||2||1.1||2.2||$2,000,000||elevated
|-
|Nostrand Avenue||Avenue S||Voorhies Avenue||4||1.3||5.2||$3,200,000||elevated
|-
|Rockaway Line||Myrtle Avenue||Bushwick Avenue||Palmetto Avenue||4||1.34||5.36||$14,300,000||subway
|-
|''Fulton Street Line''||Liberty Avenue||Fulton Street and Eastern Parkway||Grant Avenue||4||1.84||7.36||$13,500,000||subway extending the [[IND Fulton Street Line|Fulton Street Line]] to a portal at Liberty Avenue and Crescent Street, then elevated to connect to the [[BMT Liberty Avenue Line]] (now part of the [[IND Fulton Street Line|Fulton Street Line]]) at [[Grant Avenue (IND Fulton Street Line)|Grant Avenue]]
|-
|''Nostrand Avenue Extension''||&nbsp;||Flatbush Avenue||Avenue S||2||2.25||4.5||$7,400,000||Extension of [[IRT Nostrand Avenue Line|Nostrand Avenue Line]] as subway to Kings Highway, then elevated
|-
|colspan=5|'''Brooklyn subtotal'''||16.84||61.52||$114,500,000||
|-
!colspan=9|Queens
|-
|rowspan=3|Rockaway Line||Myrtle Avenue – Central Avenue||Palmetto Avenue||78th Street||4||2.1||8.4||$17,300,000||subway to Central Avenue near 73rd Place, then along the surface or elevated
|-
|98th Street – 99th Street – Hawtree Street||78th Street||[[Hammels (LIRR station)|Hammels Station]]||4 to Howard Beach<br />2 to Hammels||9.2||26.2||$20,200,000||along the surface or elevated
|-
|Rockaway Beach Boulevard||Beach 116th Street||Mott Avenue||2||5.0||10.0||$7,400,000||along the surface or elevated
|-
|''Newport Avenue Line<br />(Rockaway Line Extension)''||Newport Avenue||Beach 116th Street||Beach 149th Street||2||1.6||3.2||$2,400,000||along the surface or elevated{{anchor|Winfield Spur}}
|-
|Winfield Spur||Garfield Avenue – 65th Place – Fresh Pond Road||Broadway and 78th Street||Central Avenue||2||3.34||6.68||$10,100,000||subway to 45th Avenue, then elevated to Fresh Pond Road, then subway;<br />terminal station partially-built as part of [[Jackson Heights–Roosevelt Avenue/74th Street station#Unused upper level|Roosevelt Avenue-Jackson Heights station]], with short trackways leading to the spur.
|-
|''Brinckerhoff - Hollis Avenue Line<br />(Fulton Street Line Extension)''||Liberty Avenue – 105th Avenue – Brinckerhoff Avenue – Hollis Avenue||Lefferts Boulevard||Springfield Boulevard||2||6.2||13.3||$10,700,000||elevated extension of the [[BMT Liberty Avenue Line]] (now part of the [[IND Fulton Street Line|Fulton Street Line]])<br />includes branch connection to [[BMT Jamaica Line]] ([[Brooklyn–Manhattan Transit Corporation|BMT]]) at 168th Street, via 180th Street and Jamaica Avenue
|-
|Van Wyck Boulevard Line||137th Street – Van Wyck Boulevard||87th Avenue||Rockaway Boulevard||2||2.3||4.6||$6,600,000||subway to about 116th Avenue, then elevated
|-
|120th Avenue Line||120th Avenue – Springfield Boulevard||Hawtree Street near North Conduit Boulevard||Foch Boulevard<br /><small>(now [[Linden Boulevard]])</small>||4 to Van Wyck Boulevard<br />2 to Foch Boulevard||5.23||13.92||$9,500,000||elevated
|-
|Bayside Line||Roosevelt Avenue – First Street – Station Road – 38th Avenue||Main Street||221st Street||3 to 147th Street<br />2 to 221st Street||3.6||7.78||$9,600,000||extends the [[Brooklyn–Manhattan Transit Corporation|BMT]]/[[Interborough Rapid Transit Company|IRT]] [[IRT Flushing Line|Flushing Line]] as a subway to 155th Street, then elevated
|-
|College Point and Whitestone Line||149th Street – 11th Avenue||Roosevelt Avenue and 147th Street||11th Avenue and 122nd Street||2||3.4||6.8||$6,000,000||subway to 35th Avenue, then elevated
|-
|Long Island City-Horace Harding Boulevard Line||Ditmars Avenue – Astoria Boulevard – 112th Street – Nassau Boulevard ([[Long Island Expressway]])||Second Avenue||Cross Island Boulevard||2 to Astoria Boulevard<br />4 to Parsons Boulevard<br />2 to Cross Island Boulevard||8.1||26.71||$17,700,000||extends the [[Brooklyn–Manhattan Transit Corporation|BMT]]/[[Interborough Rapid Transit Company|IRT]] [[BMT Astoria Line|Astoria Line]] as an elevated, except that part of it may be depressed near Nassau Boulevard ([[Long Island Expressway]])
|-
|[[BMT Liberty Avenue Line|Liberty Avenue Line]]||&nbsp;||Grant Avenue||Lefferts Boulevard||3||2.3||6.9||$1,600,000||owned by [[Brooklyn–Manhattan Transit Corporation|BMT]], to be taken over ("recaptured") by IND<br />now part of the [[IND Fulton Street Line|Fulton Street Line]]
|-
|colspan=5|'''Queens subtotal'''||52.37||136.49||$119,100,000||
|-
|colspan=5|'''Total'''||100.12||294.81||$438,400,000||
|}

===Other plans during the same time===

====Revised 1932 plan====
{{Bar chart
| title      = 1932 plan: Route miles by borough
| label_type = Borough
| data_type  = Number of route miles
| data_max   = 24
| label3 = Queens    | data3 = 23.21
| label4 = Brooklyn  | data4 = 13.14
| label5 = Manhattan | data5 = 12.49
| label6 = The Bronx | data6 = 12.09
}}

The IND expansion plan was revised in 1932. It differs from the 1929 plan, but there are {{nowrap|60.93 route‑miles ({{convert|60.93|mi|disp=out}})}}, of which {{convert|12.49|mi}} are in Manhattan, {{convert|12.09|mi}} in the Bronx, {{convert|13.14|mi}} in Brooklyn, and {{convert|23.21|mi}} in Queens. It would include a new [[34th Street (Manhattan)|34th Street]] crosstown line, a [[Second Avenue Subway]] line, a connection to the [[New York, Westchester and Boston Railway]], and extensions of the [[IRT Nostrand Avenue Line]], [[IRT Flushing Line]], and [[BMT Astoria Line]]. It would have created a subway loop bounded by 2nd and 10th Avenues, and 34th and 125th Streets. This plan included no extensions to [[Whitestone, Queens]], however, with the plan to instead serve more densely populated areas such as [[Astoria, Queens|Astoria]] and the [[Roosevelt Avenue]] corridor.<ref name="nyt 19320229">{{cite news|title=New Links Planned For Subway System – Revised City Program Includes Acquisition of Rockaway Division of Long Island – Recapture of a B.M.T. Line – Use of Local Tracks of Boston & Westchester Road in Bronx Also Is Contemplated – Based on 2d Av. Project – Crosstown Tube at 34th St. Part of Plan to Be Offered Soon – No Construction for at Least a Year|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1932/02/29/archives/new-links-planned-for-subway-system-revised-city-program-includes-a.html |work=The New York Times|date=February 29, 1932|access-date=May 27, 2017}}.</ref>

The plan would also take over the local tracks of the New York, Westchester and Boston Railway, and the [[Rockaway Beach Branch]] of the [[Long Island Rail Road]].<ref name="nyt 19320229"/>

The table of route miles is as follows:<ref name="nyt 19320229"/>

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Line
!Streets
!From
!To
!Route miles
!Notes
|-
!colspan=6|Manhattan
|-
|[[Second Avenue Subway|Second Avenue Line]] || Water Street, [[Bowery]], [[Chrystie Street]], [[2nd Avenue (Manhattan)|2nd Avenue]] || Water Street || Alexander Avenue (Bronx) || 8.64  ||
|-
|34th Street Line || [[34th Street (Manhattan)|34th Street]] || [[2nd Avenue (Manhattan)|2nd Avenue]] || [[10th Avenue (Manhattan)|10th Avenue]] || 1.39  ||
|-
|Worth Street, East Broadway and Grand Street Line || [[Worth Street]], [[East Broadway (Manhattan)|East Broadway]], and [[Grand Street (Manhattan)|Grand Street]] || [[Church Street (Manhattan)|Church Street]] || Lewis Street || 1.53  ||
|-
|Houston Street Line || [[Houston Street]] || [[Essex Street]] || [[East River]] || 0.89  ||
|-
|colspan=4| '''Manhattan subtotal''' || 12.49  ||
|-
!colspan=6|The Bronx
|-
|Alexander Avenue, Third Avenue, Boston Road, Melrose Road and East 172nd Street Line || Alexander Avenue, [[Third Avenue]], [[Boston Road (Bronx)|Boston Road]], Melrose Road and East 172nd Street || [[Harlem River]] || East 180th Street and Morris Park Avenue || 4.41 ||
|-
|Morris Park Avenue Line|| Morris Park Avenue and Wilson Avenue ||Morris Park Avenue, East 180th Street || Boston Road || 3.35 ||
|-
|143d Street–Garrison Avenue and Lafayette Avenue Line || 143rd Street, Garrison Avenue, and Lafayette Avenue || Brook Avenue || Sound View Avenue || 2.48 ||
|-
|Burke Avenue–Boston Road Line || Westchester Avenue, Brook Avenue || Burke Avenue || Baychester Avenue || 2.48 ||
|-
|colspan=4| '''Bronx subtotal''' || 12.09  ||
|-
!colspan=6| Brooklyn
|-
|Stuyvesant Avenue–Utica Avenue Line || Stuyvesant Avenue, [[Utica Avenue]] || [[East River]] || [[Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn|Sheepshead Bay]] || 10.71 ||
|-
|[[IND Fulton Street Line|Fulton Street and Rockaway Boulevard Line]] || [[Fulton Street (Brooklyn)|Fulton Street]] || Rockaway Avenue || Borough line with [[Queens]] || 2.43 ||
|-
|colspan=4| '''Brooklyn subtotal''' || 13.14 ||
|-
!colspan=6| Queens
|-
|[[IND Rockaway Line|Rockaway Peninsula Line]] || [[Rockaway Beach Branch]] || [[Queens Boulevard]] || [[Rockaway, Queens|The Rockaways]] ([[Rockaway Park – Beach 116th Street (IND Rockaway Line)|Rockaway Park]] and [[Far Rockaway – Mott Avenue (IND Rockaway Line)|Far Rockaway]]) || 14.92  || Was actually built south of [[Liberty Avenue (New York City)|Liberty Avenue]]
|-
|Van Wyck Boulevard Line || [[Van Wyck Expressway|Van Wyck Boulevard]] || [[Hillside Avenue (Queens)|Hillside Avenue]] || Rockaway Boulevard || 2.30 || Eventually partially-built (~0.4&nbsp;mi) and connects to the [[Archer Avenue lines|IND Archer Avenue Line]]
|-
|[[IND Queens Boulevard Line|Hillside Avenue Line]] || Hillside Avenue || 178th Street || [[Springfield Boulevard]] || 2.48 ||
|-
|[[IND Fulton Street Line|Fulton Street and Rockaway Boulevard Line]] || Rockaway Boulevard, 120th Avenue || Borough line with [[Brooklyn]] || Springfield Boulevard || 3.51 || 
|-
|colspan=4| '''Queens subtotal''' || 23.21 ||
|-
|colspan=4| '''Total''' || 60.93 ||
|}

====Smaller plans====
Other plans, proposed during the same time as the IND Second System plans, included the following:
* (1931 plan) A line splitting from the Second Avenue Line north of Houston Street, running southeast under East 16th St, turning southwest under Avenue C, merging with the Houston Street Line, and crossing the East River from Stanton Street towards the huge line under South Fourth Street.
* (1931 plan) A line splitting from the Crosstown Line where it turns from Lafayette Avenue to Marcy Avenue, continuing under Lafayette Avenue and Stanhope Street to a junction with the line under Myrtle Avenue.
* (1932 plan) A rapid transit shuttle operating from a terminal adjacent to the [[IRT Flushing Line]] and [[Whitestone Landing (LIRR station)|Whitestone Landing]] operating over the [[Long Island Rail Road]]'s [[Whitestone Branch]]. The line would have been under private operation and would have had a 5 cent fare.<ref>{{cite news |title=Whitestone Group Has Shuttle Plan: Board of Estimate is Asked to Back Private Operation of Abandoned Line |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1932/03/09/105788192.pdf |access-date=August 17, 2015 |work=The New York Times |date=March 9, 1932}}</ref>
* (1939 plan) A line splitting from the South Brooklyn (Culver) Line at [[Fort Hamilton Parkway (IND Culver Line)|Fort Hamilton Parkway]] or Church Avenue, and running under Fort Hamilton Parkway to 86th Street. A branch would split to run under Ovington Avenue and Senator Street, with a tunnel under the Narrows to [[Staten Island]] at the [[St. George Terminal]]. The line would split, with the north branch ending at [[New Brighton (Staten Island Railway station)|Westervelt Avenue]] around Hamilton Avenue, and the south branch ending at Grant Street around St. Pauls Street. It was presumably designed this way to provide future service to both the Main Line and North Shore [[Staten Island Railway]] lines.<ref name="BrooklynDailyEagle-SITunnel-July1933">{{cite web |title=Tunnel Prospects Bright |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/59847315/?terms=staten+island+tunnel |work=Brooklyn Daily Eagle |publisher=Newspapers.com |access-date=June 29, 2015 |date=July 19, 1933}}</ref><ref name="Panix-SITunnel">{{cite web |url=http://www.panix.com/~danielc/nyc/sibktunl.htm |title=DC: A Tunnel from SI to Brooklyn? |publisher=Daniel Convissor |access-date=December 16, 2010}}</ref> The [[Staten Island Tunnel]] commenced construction in 1923 to serve the BMT Fourth Avenue Line, but was not completed.<ref name="SIRapidTransit-EssentialHistory">{{cite web |last1=Leigh |first1=Irvin |last2=Matus |first2=Paul |title=State Island Rapid Transit: The Essential History |url=http://thethirdrail.net/0201/sirt1.html |website=thethirdrail.net |publisher=The Third Rail Online |access-date=June 27, 2015 |date=January 2002}}</ref><ref name="BrooklynRail-SITunnel-1964">{{cite web |last1=Niebuhr |first1=Robert E. |title=They Called The 1923 Narrows Tunnel: 'Hope And A Hole In The Ground' |url=http://www.brooklynrail.net/images/si_bk_tunnel/Narrows_Tunnel_Article_1stPage.jpg |website=[[Brooklyn Historic Railway Association|brooklynrail.net]] |publisher=Home Reporter and Sunset News, [[Brooklyn Historic Railway Association]] |access-date=June 27, 2015 |date=November 27, 1964}}</ref>
* (1940 plan, revised 1945) The IND Fulton Street Line would connect to what is now the [[IND Rockaway Line]]. A branch of the IND Fulton Street Line would run to a stub-end terminal at 105th Street. The line, east of Euclid Avenue, would be 4 tracks until Cross Bay Boulevard, where the two branches would split.<ref name="track map fulton st">[http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HDTTMT-jAHs/T5_WEPEViiI/AAAAAAAAAMw/F9yGC2LHtD8/s1600/76st_b.jpg Track diagram of the revised plan]</ref>
* (unknown date) A third 2-track tunnel under the East River, from the north side of the South Fourth Street/Union Avenue station (as built for six tracks) west to Delancey Street.
* (unknown date) A line splitting from the Stuyvesant Avenue line, going southeast under Broadway.
* (unknown date) A line under Flushing Avenue from the huge line under Beaver Street to Horace Harding Boulevard ([[Interstate 495 (New York)|Long Island Expressway]]).
* (unknown date) A 4 track subway under Bedford Ave in Brooklyn connecting to the Worth St Subway and 2nd Ave Subway.
An earlier plan in 1920 had an even more expansive plan, with several dozen subway lines going across all five boroughs.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://transitmaps.tumblr.com/post/47218108024/ny-subway-expansion-1920 |title=Transit Maps |publisher=Transitmaps.tumblr.com |date=April 5, 2013 |access-date=March 25, 2014 |archive-date=March 18, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140318191553/http://transitmaps.tumblr.com/post/47218108024/ny-subway-expansion-1920 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Provisions for new lines===
[[File:East Broadway Station.jpg|thumb|250px|right|At [[East Broadway (IND Sixth Avenue Line)|East Broadway]] on the IND Sixth Avenue Line (shown), part of a two-track station was built for the IND Worth Street Line under East Broadway, above the existing line. The indent for the never-built line is seen at the top of the picture, crossing the ceiling.]]
[[File:Lex Ave - 63rd St platform.JPG|thumb|250px|The [[Lexington Avenue–63rd Street (63rd Street Lines)|Lexington Avenue–63rd Street]] subway station has two island platforms split across two levels. Their northern sides were walled off until the first phase of the Second Avenue Subway was opened. This is the station's lower level.]]
The following provisions were made for connections and transfers to the new lines. It is of note that only four of these provisions were completed.
*At [[Second Avenue (IND Sixth Avenue Line)|Second Avenue]] on the [[IND Sixth Avenue Line]], the ceiling drops at the west end. Above the ceiling is a provision for a four-track [[IND Second Avenue Line]]. The future Second Avenue Line will not utilize this provision; it will instead be built under the station, if a transfer station is ever built.
*At [[East Broadway (IND Sixth Avenue Line)|East Broadway]] on the IND Sixth Avenue Line (under Rutgers Street at this station), part of a two-track station was built for the IND Worth Street Line under East Broadway, above the existing line. Most of the constructed portion is now part of the [[Mezzanine (architecture)|mezzanine]], with a small unused section blocked by a door.
*At [[Broadway (IND Crosstown Line)|Broadway]] on the [[IND Crosstown Line]], traces of passageways are visible going towards a six-track station on the line to Utica Avenue, as well as a stair to an upper mezzanine on top of the unfinished station.
*At [[Utica Avenue (IND Fulton Street Line)|Utica Avenue]] on the [[IND Fulton Street Line]], a four-track station above can be seen in the ceiling of the existing station. This portion of the Utica Avenue Line was built with the construction of the Fulton Street Line. Ramps were built from the mezzanine to the platforms because the normal vertical distance of ten feet from the mezzanine floor to the platforms was increased to 25 feet in anticipation of the Utica Avenue Line. The existing mezzanine passes over the unused space.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://nytm.pastperfectonline.com/photo/F50005AD-CA24-4087-A0F1-449448612030|title=Drawing of Stair Layout at Utica Avenue Station : IND Fulton Line|website=nytm.pastperfectonline.com|publisher=Board of Transportation|access-date=November 5, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yW4qAQAAMAAJ&q=%22RAMPS+WERE+BUILT%22|title=Bulletin|date=1934|publisher=General Contractors Association of New York|pages=89|language=en}}</ref>
*At [[Jackson Heights – Roosevelt Avenue (IND Queens Boulevard Line)|Roosevelt Avenue]] on the [[IND Queens Boulevard Line]], a two-track upper level was built for the Winfield Spur towards the line to the Rockaways. Unlike the other stations, this one was completed, except for track.
*[[Hillside Avenue]] considerably widens between 218th Street and 229th Street in Queens Village, and gains a very wide [[Median (highway)|median]]. This section was widened in the 1930s to accommodate construction of the proposed eastern terminus of the [[IND Queens Boulevard Line]] at [[Springfield Boulevard]] and Rocky Hill Road ([[New York State Route 25|Braddock Avenue]]) and to accommodate an underpass for Hillside Avenue underneath Springfield Boulevard and Braddock Avenue.<ref name="NYTImes-QnsArteries-1928">{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1928/05/13/archives/queens-interlaced-with-new-arteries-new-boulevards-parks-and.html |title=Queens Interlaced with New Arteries: New Boulevards, Parks and Parkways Important Factors in Growth of Borough|date=May 13, 1928|work=The New York Times|access-date=July 8, 2015}}</ref><ref>* {{cite web|url=http://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/1931-hillside-av-widening-queens-494116324|title=1931 Hillside Av Widening Queens Village Bellerose SUBWAY Map NYC New York Map – #494116324|date=December 17, 2013|website=Worthpoint|access-date=February 5, 2017}}
* {{cite web|url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/127872292@N06/21873145625/|title=Hillside Avenue Widening at Springield [sic] Boulevard and 219th Street for the future extension of the Hillside Avenue Subway|date=October 1, 2015|website=Flickr|access-date=February 5, 2017}}
* {{cite web|url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/127872292@N06/21846988536/|title=Hillside Avenue Widening at Springield [sic] Boulevard and 219th Street for the future extension of the Hillside Avenue Subway|date=October 1, 2015|website=Flickr|access-date=February 5, 2017}}
* {{cite web|url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/127872292@N06/21685311678/|title=Hillside Avenue Widening at Springield [sic] Boulevard and 219th Street for the future extension of the Hillside Avenue Subway|date=October 1, 2015|website=Flickr|access-date=February 5, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/127872292@N06/30084210478/in/photostream/|title=In The Matter Of The Widening of Hillside Avenue Queens Boro. Petition For Relief From Assessment|date=November 19, 1937|language=en-us|access-date=August 9, 2018}}</ref> Six station entrances would have been provided at Springfield Boulevard and Braddock Avenue. The station would have stretched as far east as 88th Avenue. The two tracks would have continued to 229th Street.<ref>* {{Cite web|url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/127872292@N06/30084211408/in/photostream/|title=Route 108 Section 13 Springfield Boulevard Station June 19, 1931|date=June 19, 1931|publisher=New York City Board of Transportation|language=en-us|access-date=August 9, 2018}}
* {{Cite web|url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/127872292@N06/30084210948/in/photostream/|title=Route 108 Section 13 Springfield Boulevard Station June 19, 1931|date=June 19, 1931|publisher=New York City Board of Transportation|language=en-us|access-date=August 9, 2018}}
* {{Cite web|url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/127872292@N06/30084211198/in/photostream/|title=Route 108 Section 13 Springfield Boulevard Station June 19, 1931|date=June 19, 1931|publisher=New York City Board of Transportation|language=en-us|access-date=August 9, 2018}}</ref>
*The center tracks on the IND Sixth Avenue Line dead end at the curve from [[Houston Street]] to [[Essex Street]]; these were planned to continue through a new East River tunnel to Williamsburg and south to the proposed Utica Avenue line towards Sheepshead Bay.
*The tracks that the [[IND 63rd Street Line]] uses to split from the IND Sixth Avenue Line were built for a similar proposed line under 61st Street, connecting to the [[Second Avenue Subway]].
*The [[Lexington Avenue–63rd Street (63rd Street Lines)|Lexington Avenue–63rd Street]] subway station has two island platforms, which were originally built with now-demolished walls on their northern sides. The platforms were designed to provide a [[cross-platform interchange]] to the Second Avenue Subway.
*The upper level relay tracks east of [[Jamaica – 179th Street (IND Queens Boulevard Line)|179th Street]] on the [[IND Queens Boulevard Line]] were intended to continue toward [[Floral Park, Queens|Floral Park]], and the tunnel is designed to allow for such a future extension.<ref name=":6">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SnjVAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Broadway-Lenox+Avenue+Line+Extension%22|title=Report, Including Analysis of Operations of the New York City Transit System: For Five Years Ended June 30, 1945|last1=Transportation|first1=New York (N Y. ) Board of|last2=Spinrad|first2=Isidor|date=1945|publisher=The Board|language=en}}</ref>{{Rp|123}}
*The relay tracks east of [[Euclid Avenue (IND Fulton Street Line)|Euclid Avenue]] on the [[IND Fulton Street Line]] were intended to continue toward [[Cambria Heights, Queens|Cambria Heights]] in Queens.
*The [[Nevins Street (IRT Eastern Parkway Line)|Nevins Street]] station on the [[IRT Eastern Parkway Line]] has an unused center trackway and an unused lower level intended for expansion into northern or southern Brooklyn.
*South of the [[36th Street (BMT Fourth Avenue Line)|36th Street]] station on the [[BMT Fourth Avenue Line]], there are three trackways that diverge from the line at a [[flying junction]]. These trackways end under the eastern curb of Fourth Avenue.
*The BMT Fourth Avenue Line has provisions for two more tracks south of 59th Street, where the line becomes double-tracked:
*#There are four trackways on the BMT Fourth Avenue Line bridge over the LIRR [[Bay Ridge Branch]] despite the fact that only the northernmost two tracks are in use.
*#The [[86th Street (BMT Fourth Avenue Line)|86th Street]] station on the BMT Fourth Avenue Line appears to have "escapes" in the wall bricked over along the Manhattan-bound track, for the never-built fourth tracks.<ref name="nycsubway"/>
*#The northbound [[side platform]]s of [[Bay Ridge Avenue (BMT Fourth Avenue Line)|Bay Ridge Avenue]] and [[77th Street (BMT Fourth Avenue Line)|77th Street]] do not have platform pillars because the platforms were supposed to be temporary; the southbound platforms do have pillars, however.
*[[Bellmouth (railroad terminology)|Bellmouths]] for uncompleted lines are scattered in numerous stations, including [[21st Street–Queensbridge (IND 63rd Street Line)|21st Street–Queensbridge]], [[59th Street (BMT Fourth Avenue Line)|59th Street]], [[63rd Drive–Rego Park (IND Queens Boulevard Line)|63rd Drive–Rego Park]], [[Bowery (BMT Nassau Street Line)|Bowery]], [[Canal Street (IND Eighth Avenue Line)|Canal Street]], and [[Woodhaven Boulevard (IND Queens Boulevard Line)|Woodhaven Boulevard]]:
*#East of [[21st Street–Queensbridge (IND 63rd Street Line)|21st Street–Queensbridge]], before the [[IND 63rd Street Line]] connects to the IND Queens Boulevard Line, the tracks veer left while the tunnel wall goes straight. The bellmouths were part of a proposed super-express bypass running under the LIRR mainline between [[Queens Boulevard]] and [[Forest Hills, Queens|Forest Hills]]. This plan was not in the original Second System plan, but rather, as part of the Program for Action plan that had the tracks from 21st Street–Queensbridge go straight to Forest Hills.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://nycsubway.org.s3.amazonaws.com/images/logo/63rdconn.jpg|title=63rd Street Connector Contracts Map|website=nycsubway.org|publisher=Metropolitan Transportation Authority|access-date=October 28, 2016}}</ref>
*#There are bellmouths and space for two additional trackways (for a total of six) on the BMT Fourth Avenue Line south of [[59th Street (BMT Fourth Avenue Line)|59th Street]]. These provisions were for the [[Staten Island Tunnel]], which would have intersected with the line south of 59th Street.<ref name="nycsubway"/>
*#East of [[63rd Drive–Rego Park (IND Queens Boulevard Line)|63rd Drive–Rego Park]] on the [[IND Queens Boulevard Line]], bellmouths were built for a proposed connection to the LIRR's [[Rockaway Beach Branch]]. They may be used if the Rockaway Beach Branch were ever reused for subway service.
*#A line to the Rockaways would have split from the [[IND Eighth Avenue Line]] (under [[Church Street (Manhattan)|Church Street]] at this point), east under [[Worth Street]]. The junction was built and is used by the local tracks to [[World Trade Center (IND Eighth Avenue Line)|World Trade Center]]. The branch to the Rockaways was completed and connected to the [[IND Fulton Street Line]] in 1956.
*Two bellmouths have since been completed, but were previously unused.
*#The completed [[IND 63rd Street Line]], which the {{NYCS trains|63rd IND}} uses to cross the [[East River]], was designed and built with bellmouths to allow for the construction of connections to the planned Second Avenue Subway for service to/from the north and south along Second Avenue. These bellmouths were completed and opened in 2017.
*#A junction was built on the IND Queens Boulevard Line for the line under Van Wyck Boulevard. The junction was completed and has been connected to the [[Archer Avenue Line|IND Archer Avenue Line]].

====Shells built====
The South Fourth Street shell, if complete, was supposed to handle service as follows:
{{hidden begin|border=1px #aaa solid|title={{center|South Fourth Street shell (plan 1)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thejoekorner.com/scripted-s-4-display.shtm?http://www.thejoekorner.com/indsecondsystem/s4th5.gif |title=Display Document |work=thejoekorner.com |access-date=February 17, 2015}}</ref>}}}}
{|cellspacing=0 cellpadding=3
|style="border-bottom:solid 0px gray;border-top:solid 1px gray;" rowspan=3 width=50 valign=top|'''Level 1'''
|style="border-bottom:solid 0px gray;border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=100|<span style="color:#{{rcr|NYCS}}">'''Northbound'''</span>
|style="border-bottom:solid 0px gray;border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=390|← Broadway line westbound
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|<small>[[Island platform]]</small>
|-
|style="border-bottom:solid 0px gray;"|<span style="color:#{{rcr|NYCS}}">'''Southbound'''</span>
|style="border-bottom:solid 0px gray;"|<span style="color:white">←</span> Broadway line eastbound →
|-
|style="border-bottom:solid 0px gray;border-top:solid 1px gray;" rowspan=10 width=50 valign=top|'''Level 2'''
|style="border-bottom:solid 0px gray;border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=100|<span style="color:#{{rcr|NYCS}}">'''Northbound'''</span>
|style="border-bottom:solid 0px gray;border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=390|← Utica Avenue express to Sixth Avenue
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|<small>[[Island platform]]</small>
|-
|<span style="color:#{{rcr|NYCS}}">'''Northbound'''</span>
|← Flushing/Utica Avenues local (termination platform)
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|<small>[[Island platform]]</small>
|-
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|<span style="color:#{{rcr|NYCS}}">'''Northbound'''</span>
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|← Flushing Avenue express to Eighth Avenue
|-
|<span style="color:#{{rcr|NYCS}}">'''Southbound'''</span>
|<span style="color:white">←</span> Flushing Avenue express from Eighth Avenue →
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|<small>[[Island platform]]</small>
|-
|<span style="color:#{{rcr|NYCS}}">'''Southbound'''</span>
|<span style="color:white">←</span> Flushing/Utica Avenues local →
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|<small>[[Island platform]]</small>
|-
|style="border-bottom:solid 0px gray;"|<span style="color:#{{rcr|NYCS}}">'''Southbound'''</span>
|style="border-bottom:solid 0px gray;"|<span style="color:white">←</span> Utica Avenue express from Sixth Avenue →
|-
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;border-top:solid 1px gray;" rowspan=4 width=50 valign=top|'''Level 3'''
|style="border-bottom:solid 0px gray;border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=100|<span style="color:#{{rcr|NYCS}}">'''Southbound'''</span>
|style="border-bottom:solid 0px gray;border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=390|<span style="color:white">←</span> Utica Avenue local →
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 1px gray;text-align:center;" colspan=2|<small>[[Island platform]]</small>
|-
|style="border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|<small>[[Island platform]]</small>
|-
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|<span style="color:#{{rcr|NYCS}}">'''Southbound'''</span>
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|<span style="color:white">←</span> Utica Avenue local →
|-
|}
'''Note''': The locals would have short-turned here. There would have been two tunnels under the East River: East Houston Street and Grand Street.
{{hidden end}}
Another plan for the South Fourth Street shell was simpler (and was the plan that was partially completed):
{{hidden begin|border=solid 1px #aaa|title={{center|South Fourth Street shell (plan 2)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thejoekorner.com/scripted-s-4-display.shtm?http://www.thejoekorner.com/indsecondsystem/s4th1.gif |title=Display Document |work=thejoekorner.com |access-date=February 17, 2015}}</ref>}}}}
{|cellspacing=0 cellpadding=3
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;border-top:solid 1px gray;" rowspan=10 width=50 valign=top|'''Level 1'''
|style="border-bottom:solid 0px gray;border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=100|<span style="color:#{{rcr|NYCS}}">'''Northbound'''</span>
|style="border-bottom:solid 0px gray;border-top:solid 1px gray;" width=390|← Flushing Avenue express to Eighth Avenue
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|<small>[[Island platform]]</small>
|-
|<span style="color:#{{rcr|NYCS}}">'''Northbound'''</span>
|← Utica Avenue express to Sixth Avenue via East Houston Street
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|<small>[[Island platform]]</small>
|-
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|<span style="color:#{{rcr|NYCS}}">'''Northbound'''</span>
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|← Utica Avenue local to Sixth Avenue via Stanton Street
|-
|<span style="color:#{{rcr|NYCS}}">'''Southbound'''</span>
|<span style="color:white">←</span> Utica Avenue local from Sixth Avenue via Stanton Street →
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|<small>[[Island platform]]</small>
|-
|<span style="color:#{{rcr|NYCS}}">'''Southbound'''</span>
|<span style="color:white">←</span> Utica Avenue express from Sixth Avenue via East Houston Street →
|-
|style="border-top:solid 2px black;border-right:solid 2px black;border-left:solid 2px black;border-bottom:solid 2px black;text-align:center;" colspan=2|<small>[[Island platform]]</small>
|-
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|<span style="color:#{{rcr|NYCS}}">'''Southbound'''</span>
|style="border-bottom:solid 1px gray;"|<span style="color:white">←</span> Flushing Avenue express from Eighth Avenue →
|}
'''Note''': The Flushing Avenue local would have diverged off to the [[IND Crosstown Line]]. There would have been three tunnels under the East River: East Houston Street, Stanton Street, and Grand Street.
{{hidden end}}
The Utica Avenue station shell, if complete, would be in the standard local-express-express-local platform configuration.

The [[Roosevelt Avenue/74th Street (New York City Subway)|Jackson Heights–Roosevelt Avenue]] shell, a two-trackbed island-platformed station, would have been for local trains terminating at the station. Express trains would have stopped at the lower level ([[IND Queens Boulevard Line]]) platforms.

==1940–1999 plans==

After [[World War II]] and up until the late 1990s, the New York City Subway did not expand much. Only 28 stations opened in that time, compared to the remaining 393 stations, which opened from the 1880s to before World War II. As such, there have been many plans to expand the system during this time period.

{{Anchor|1940}}

===1938–1940===
[[File:StatenIslandTunnel.jpg|thumb|right|300px|The [[Staten Island Tunnel]], started in 1912, was to be complete as per the 1940 plan.]]
[[File:Down Culver Ramp jeh.JPG|thumb|right|300px|The [[IND_Culver_Line#Culver_Ramp|Culver Ramp]] was the only completed Brooklyn proposal put forth in 1940. It opened in 1955.]]
The [[New York City Board of Transportation]] revised its plans for subway expansion, and released them in 1938 and 1940.

*The remnant of the [[IRT Ninth Avenue Line]] at [[155th Street (IRT Ninth Avenue Line)|155th Street]] would connect with the [[IRT Lenox Avenue Line]], giving riders of the Jerome Avenue Line service to Manhattan's West Side.<ref name=":6" />{{Rp|123}} This project was never undertaken because of the high cost of modifying the third rail in the [[Sedgwick Avenue (IRT Ninth Avenue Line)|Sedgwick Avenue]] and [[Anderson–Jerome Avenues (IRT Ninth Avenue Line)|Anderson–Jerome Avenues]] tunnel section to accommodate new subway cars.<ref name="nycsubway"/>
*The [[New York, Westchester and Boston Railway]]'s abandoned right-of-way would have been rehabilitated and connected to the [[IRT Pelham Line]].<ref name="nycsubway"/>
*The [[IND Concourse Line]] would have been extended eastward to [[Gun Hill Road (IRT White Plains Road Line)|Gun Hill Road]] from 205th Street.<ref name="nycsubway"/>
*The [[Second Avenue Subway]] would originate at Harding Avenue in the Bronx, and connect into the [[Court Street (IND Fulton Street Line)|Court Street]] station in Brooklyn as a two-track and four-track line.<ref name="nycsubway"/> A yard would have been constructed to store the line's equipment.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RHEcAQAAMAAJ&q=%22Sixth+Avenue+Extension%22+%22+:+Construction+and+equipment,+2+track+subway+and+river+tunnel,+53rd+Street,+Manhattan,+to+Steinway+Street+and+Broadway,+Queens+30,740,000.00+Houston+Street+and+Utica+Avenue+Line+%22|title=Proceedings|date=1939|publisher=New York (N Y. ) Board of Transportation|language=en}}</ref>{{Rp|703}} The first phase would end the line at East 139th Street. The Main Line and its connections to other subway lines was to have cost $213.95 million, while the future Bronx extension would have cost $130.16 million.<ref name=":5">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NZLVAAAAMAAJ&q=Rockaway+Pensinsula|title=Proceedings|last=Transportation|first=New York (N Y. ) Board of|date=1945|language=en}}</ref>{{Rp|212}}
*An extension of the [[IRT Lenox Avenue Line]] would have been built so it could connect with the [[IRT Ninth Avenue Line]].<ref name=":7">{{Cite news|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1939/08/10/94709678.pdf|title=CENTRAL PARK TUBE URGED BY BOARD; Delaney Proposes Extension of B.M. T.'s 7th Ave. Line to 145th Street HINGES ON UNIFICATION Project Is Last in List of 20 Given in Capital Budget of $860,080,200 for 6 Years|date=August 10, 1939|work=The New York Times|access-date=January 16, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}{{dead link|date=April 2018|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>
*Two express tracks would be built on the [[IND Sixth Avenue Line]] between West 9th Street and West 31st Street for $19.27 million. This was viewed as a requirement for a Second Avenue Line.<ref name=":4">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ci8xAAAAMAAJ&q=%22212th+street%22+%22hillside+avenue%22|title=Proceedings|last=Transportation|first=New York (N Y. ) Board of|date=1943|publisher=The Board.|language=en}}</ref>{{Rp|371}}
*The Seventh Avenue Line Extension would extend the Broadway Line north from 59th Street via a tunnel under Central Park to 72nd Street, before turning east into Queens via Northern Boulevard to Jackson Heights. It was to have been built as a two-track and four-track line, and it would have cost $89 million. The second phase would extend the line as a two-track line along Corona Avenue and Horace Harding Boulevard from Jackson Heights to Marathon Parkway. A storage yard would be built. This phase would have cost $51.82 million. A connection between the new line and the Crosstown Line was to have been built at 23rd Street (Ely Avenue) for $10.95 million.<ref name=":7" /><ref name=":4" />{{Rp|371}}
*A connection between the Seventh Avenue Extension and the Rockaway Line would be built at 99th Street, costing $9.2 million.<ref name=":4" />{{Rp|371}}The [[Rockaway Beach Branch]] of the LIRR would be purchased and converted for subway operation. Service to the Rockaway would be provided through a connection to the IND Queens Boulevard Line. The extension would have cost $42.38 million. In addition, $2.55 million would be spent on a two-track subway an open-cut connection between the Rockaway Line and the Fulton Street Line.<ref name=":5" />{{Rp|213}} Only the portion south of [[Liberty Avenue (New York City)|Liberty Avenue]] was completed.<ref name="nycsubway" />
*An extension of the [[BMT Broadway Line]], from [[57th Street–Seventh Avenue (BMT Broadway Line)|57th Street–Seventh Avenue]] to 145th Street, would run via [[Central Park]] and [[Morningside Drive (Manhattan)|Morningside Drive]].<ref name="nycsubway" />
*A crosstown line via [[Worth Street]] would serve as a branch of the [[IND Eighth Avenue Line]]'s local tracks. The line would have branched off at Church Street, from where it would run via Worth Street and East Broadway to Lewis Street. This two-tracks segment would have cost $15.2 million.<ref name=":4" />{{Rp|371}} The line would then tunnel under the East River between Lewis Street to Driggs Avenue. This section would have cost $18.5 million.<ref name=":4" />{{Rp|372}} The South Fourth Street junction would be completed.<ref name="nycsubway"/>
*The IND Queens Boulevard Line and BMT Broadway Line would be connected through the construction of a [[60th Street Tunnel Connection|connection]] at 11th Street. The connection would be between the Queens Boulevard Line's local tracks at [[Queens Plaza (IND Queens Boulevard Line)|Queens Plaza]] and the BMT [[60th Street Tunnel]].<ref name="nycsubway"/>
*The IND Queens Boulevard Line would be extended from [[Jamaica–179th Street (IND Queens Boulevard Line)|178th]] to 184th Streets.<ref name=":7" />
*The [[IRT Flushing Line]] would be extended from Main Street to Bell Boulevard, as a two-track and a four-track line, along Roosevelt Avenue. The line would be constructed in a tunnel, embankment, and an open cut, costing $12.07 million. An additional extension would be constructed to [[College Point, Queens|College Point]], running along 149th Street and 11th Avenue as an elevated line from Roosevelt Avenue to 122nd Street, costing $14.1 million.<ref name="nycsubway" /><ref name=":4" />{{Rp|371}}
*Subway service would be extended eastward along Hillside Avenue to [[Little Neck Parkway]]. The line would be an extension of the [[IND Queens Boulevard Line]] as a four-track line to 212th Street, and then as a 2-track line to its terminus at Little Neck Parkway.<ref name="nycsubway" /><ref name=":4" />{{Rp|371}} The segment to 184th Street was to have cost $3.455 million, while the segment to 212th Street was to have cost $16.355 million.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=l28qAQAAMAAJ&q=%22HILLSIDE+AVENUE+EXTENSION%22|title=Bulletin|date=1939|publisher=General Contractors Association of New York|pages=169–170|language=en}}</ref>
*The provision at [[Briarwood (IND Queens Boulevard Line)|Van Wyck Boulevard]] for a future line would be completed, and a new two-track line would be built to [[Rockaway Boulevard]].<ref name="nycsubway"/>
*The [[IND Fulton Street Line]] would get an eastward extension; it would first be extended to 106th Street as a four-track line,<ref name=":7" /><ref name=":4" />{{Rp|371}} where it would connect to the [[IND Rockaway Line]]. Afterwards, the line would stretch along Linden Boulevard to 229th Street in Eastern Queens. The line was to go to a two-track terminal at 105th or 106th Streets, with intermediate stops at [[Euclid Avenue station (IND Fulton Street Line)#East of the station|75th or 76th Streets]] and at 84th or 85th Streets (both proposed local stops), as well as at Cross Bay Boulevard (a proposed express stop).<ref name=raskin/>{{rp|137, 142}}<ref>{{cite book |first1=Roger P. |last1=Roess |first2=Gene |last2=Sansone |title=The Wheels That Drove New York: A History of the New York City Transit System |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qfZ0VxuLoc0C&pg=PA416 |year=2012 |publisher=Springer Science & Business Media |isbn=978-3-642-30484-2 |pages=416–417}}</ref> In 1951, these relay tracks east of Euclid Avenue were still planned to go as far as 105th Street, with a connection to the [[IND Rockaway Line]] east of [[Cross Bay Boulevard]].<ref name="track map fulton st"/> In May 2004, this idea resurfaced, with an attached track map drawn up.<ref>[http://issuu.com/erausa/docs/2004-05-bulletin/ Electric Railroaders' Association May 2004 bulletin], pp. 5-6.</ref> If the line were ever built, Pitkin Avenue would have been routed to the east rather than to the southeast at 80th Street, and [[Linden Boulevard]] between Conduit and Rockaway Boulevards would have been built to facilitate the line.
*A new IND line would run from the Lower East Side to [[Avenue U]] in Brooklyn, with a possible extension to [[Floyd Bennett Field]].<ref name=":7" /> The new line would run via [[Houston Street]] and [[Essex Street]] in Manhattan, and via [[Utica Avenue]] and [[Flatbush Avenue]].<ref name="nycsubway"/>
*Service on the [[IRT Nostrand Avenue Line]] would be extended down Nostrand Avenue to Voorhies Avenue in [[Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn|Sheepshead Bay]] as a two-track line. The extension would be constructed as a subway until Avenue T, where it would emerge as an elevated line to Voorhies Avenue.<ref name="nycsubway"/> It would have cost $22.7 million.<ref name=":4" />{{Rp|372}}
*The IND would be extended to South Brooklyn with a connection at Cortelyou Road between its [[IND Brooklyn Line|South Brooklyn Line]] and the BMT's [[BMT Culver Line|Culver Line]]. This was the only completed Brooklyn proposal.<ref name="nycsubway"/>
*Dyker Heights would get service with the construction of a branch of the [[BMT Culver Line]] via 37th Street, Fort Hamilton Parkway and 10th Avenue to 86th Street. In the vicinity of Fort Hamilton Parkway, a connection would be constructed between the BMT West End Line and the IND South Brooklyn Line.<ref name="nycsubway"/> Extension work was approved sometime before 1940, and plans were drawn up.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1940/05/19/archives/urge-bay-ridge-subway-work.html|title=Urge Bay Ridge Subway Work|date=May 19, 1940|newspaper=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=August 15, 2016}}</ref>
*A connection between the [[BMT Franklin Avenue Line]] and the [[IND Crosstown Line]] would be built through the construction of a line under Lafayette Avenue.<ref name="nycsubway"/>
*Subway service would be provided to [[Staten Island]] for the first time, with the construction of a tunnel under [[the Narrows]] connecting at 68th Street to the BMT Fourth Avenue Line and with the [[Staten Island Railway]] at [[New Brighton (Staten Island Railway station)|New Brighton]] and [[Tompkinsville (Staten Island Railway station)|Tompkinsville]].<ref name="nycsubway"/>

The IND Concourse Line got funding to be extended eastward past [[Norwood – 205th Street (IND Concourse Line)|205th Street]], but Bronx residents wanted to rehabilitate the [[New York, Westchester and Boston Railway]] right-of way. This funding was reallocated, and the old NYW&B line became the [[IRT Dyre Avenue Line]] in December 1941, and the IND Concourse Line extension was not brought up again until 1968.<ref name="nycsubway"/>

===1940s: Smaller plans===
In 1942, Mayor Benjamin F. Barnes of Yonkers proposed that the Getty Square Branch of the New York Central's Putnam Division be acquired for an extension of the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line from Van Cortlandt Park. This service would replace the service operated by the New York Central, which was slated to be discontinued by the New York Central.<ref>{{cite news |title=Wants Subway Extended: Yonkers Mayor to Ask City to Take Over N.Y.C. Branch |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1942/06/27/87716031.pdf |access-date=August 17, 2015 |work=The New York Times |date=June 27, 1942}}</ref>

A rail link to [[LaGuardia Airport]] was proposed in 1943, when the city Board of Transportation proposed an extension of the [[BMT Astoria Line]] (currently served by the {{NYCS trains|Astoria}}) from its terminus at [[Astoria – Ditmars Boulevard (BMT Astoria Line)|Ditmars Boulevard]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Post-War Plans List 2 Subway Links for Boro |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/52647686/?terms= |work=Brooklyn Daily Eagle |publisher=Newspapers.com |access-date=July 19, 2015 |date=August 8, 1943}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Outlay of Billion for Transit Line Proposed for City |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1945/11/17/88312883.pdf |work=The New York Times |access-date=July 5, 2015 |date=November 17, 1945}}</ref> The line would have run along Ditmars Boulevard, and would have cost $10.5 million.<ref name=":4" />{{Rp|371}}

In 1946, the Board of Transportation issued a $1{{nbsp}}billion plan that would extend the subway to the farthest reaches of the outer boroughs.<ref>{{cite news |title=Borough Subway Relief Still 2 to 3 Years Off |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/3881852/1946_subway_proposal/ |access-date=January 22, 2016 |work=Brooklyn Daily Eagle |publisher=Newspapers.com |date=December 6, 1946 |page=5}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Borough Subway Relief Still 2 to 3 Years Off |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/3881860/1946_subway_proposal/ |access-date=January 22, 2016 |work=Brooklyn Daily Eagle |publisher=Newspapers.com |date=December 6, 1946 |page=1}}</ref>
* A branch of the [[BMT Fourth Avenue Line]] at 59th Street under the Narrows to Saint Nicholas Street and Grent Street in [[Staten Island]].
* A branch of the [[IND Fulton Street Line]] running via Utica Avenue to Avenue U.
* An extension of the [[IRT Nostrand Avenue Line]] from Flatbush Avenue to Voohries Avenue.
* A line branching off of the [[IND Crosstown Line]] running via Franklin Avenue connecting with the [[BMT Brighton Line]]. This would have replaced the [[BMT Franklin Avenue Line]].
* The extension of the IND Fulton Street Line to Euclid Avenue would continue to be built, and would be extended to 229th Street and Linden Boulevard.
* The completion of the Culver Ramp, connecting the [[IND Culver Line]] with the BMT Culver Line.
* A branch of the IND Culver Line running via Tenth Avenue and Fort Hamilton Parkway to 86th Street, with a connection to the [[BMT West End Line]]. West End service would run via the Culver Line and would alleviate congestion at DeKalb Avenue Junction. In order to provide access to the BMT Fourth Avenue Line, the Culver Shuttle would be extended to 36th Street.
Even though the Board of Transportation did not approve these ideas, they were still proposed.
* A line branching off of the [[IND Eighth Avenue Line]] running via Worth Street and East Broadway and running under the [[East River]] to Driggs Avenue.
* A new trunk line built along [[Second Avenue Subway|Second Avenue]] with a connection at [[Court Street (IND Fulton Street Line station)|Court Street]] to the [[IND Fulton Street Line]].
* Lines in Queens to the Rockaways, LaGuardia Airport, Idlewild Airport (now called JFK Airport), College Point, Bayside, Little Neck, Douglaston, Saint Albans and Bellerose.

In 1949, the Board of Transportation issued a $504 million plan to increase capacity on several subway lines through the construction of a new trunk line under Second Avenue.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book|title=Report for the three and one-half years ending June 30, 1949.|publisher=New York City Board of Transportation|date=1949|hdl = 2027/mdp.39015023094926}}</ref>
* The rebuilding of [[DeKalb Avenue (BMT Fourth Avenue Line)|DeKalb Avenue]] that would remove the bottleneck and increase capacity by 18 tph.<ref name=":3" />
*[[IND Sixth Avenue Line]] express tracks between West Fourth Street and 34th Street.<ref name=":3" />
*A new subway line under 57th Street connecting the IND Sixth Avenue Line and the proposed Second Avenue trunk line.<ref name=":3" />
*A four-track [[Second Avenue Subway]] would originate from a connection to the [[IRT Pelham Line]] at 138th Street, the Bronx, to Grand Street, Manhattan. The connection to the Pelham Line would allow for eight additional trains per hour operating between Manhattan and the Pelham Line. It would then be possible to operate 10-car trains via the line and it would also be possible to operate full express service via the line's center express track. The trains operating via [[BMT Nassau Street Line|Nassau Street]] would go to Brooklyn via the Montague Tunnel. During non-rush hours trains would terminate at [[Broad Street (BMT Nassau Street Line)|Broad Street]]. There would be a passageway built from Grand Central via 43rd Street to Second Avenue to permit transfers.<ref name=":3" />
*The IRT Pelham Line would be rebuilt to accommodate the wider BMT-IND cars to operate via the Second Avenue Line. The connection would provide the Pelham Line with direct service to Sixth Avenue, Second Avenue and Brooklyn.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mTMxAAAAMAAJ&q=centre+street|title=Proceedings|last=Transportation|first=New York (N Y. ) Board of|date=1948|language=en}}</ref>{{Rp|1200}} The station platforms, and third rail would have had to be adjusted as they were put in place for the narrower IRT trains. The line was built with this conversion in mind, however. [[Westchester Yard]] would have been expanded to accommodate the additional trains added to the line. Since trains to the Pelham Line would no longer use the [[IRT Lexington Avenue Line|Lexington Avenue Line]], there would be additional capacity for trains to run via the [[IRT White Plains Road Line]] and the [[IRT Jerome Avenue Line]]. Improved service on the Pelham Line was projected to stimulate growth in the areas of the East Bronx served by the line. The East Bronx was seen to have great potential for industrial growth and other areas suitable for development as residential and recreational areas.<ref name=":3" />
*An improved connection between the IRT Lexington Avenue Line and the IRT White Plains Road Line would be built using the tunnel under the Harlem River used by the IRT Pelham Line, and would allow for the full use of the capacity on the White Plains Road Line and the Jerome Avenue Line. Eight additional trains per hour would be added to the White Plains Road Line and fourteen additional trains per hour would be added to the Jerome Avenue Line. The additional service on the Jerome Avenue Line would make use of the third track for express service.<ref name=":3" />
*The Second Avenue Line trunk would be extended to 149th Street to allow for a transfer to the Third Avenue Elevated. This would permit the demolition of the Third Avenue Elevated south of 149th Street, which was seen as uneconomical to operate, ugly and a hindrance of the avenue below it.<ref name=":3" />
*Connection of the [[IRT Dyre Avenue Line]] to the IRT White Plains Road Line. The direct service was predicted to stimulate growth along its route.<ref name=":3" />
*Connections would be made to the [[BMT Nassau Street Line]], the [[Williamsburg Bridge]], and the [[Manhattan Bridge]]. The Sixth Avenue Line would also be connected to the Williamsburg and Manhattan Bridges. The connection between the Nassau Street Line and the Manhattan Bridge south tracks would be eliminated. This would allow for thirty additional trains to operate between Midtown Manhattan and Brooklyn.<ref name=":3" />
*The lengthening of platforms on the BMT lines in Brooklyn would increase capacity and would allow 10-car trains from Second Avenue to run over any section of the BMT and IND.<ref name=":3" />
*Increase in capacity on the [[BMT Brighton Line]], [[BMT Sea Beach Line]], [[BMT West End Line]], and the [[BMT Fourth Avenue Line]] by 8 tph in total by adding a connection from the BMT Culver Line to the [[IND Culver Line]] at [[Ditmas Avenue (IND Culver Line)|Ditmas Avenue]]. The additional capacity would result from the fact that trains operating via the former BMT Culver Line would not run through DeKalb Avenue Junction.<ref name=":3" />
* A [[60th Street Tunnel Connection|connection]] between the [[IND Queens Boulevard Line]] at [[Queens Plaza (IND Queens Boulevard Line)|Queens Plaza]] to the [[60th Street Tunnel|BMT 60th Street Tunnel]] that would increase capacity between Queens and Manhattan by 20 tph. This connection would permit the full use of the capacity of the Queens Boulevard local tracks.<ref name=":3" />
* The construction of a ramp connecting the [[IND Fulton Street Line]] with the [[Fulton Street Line (elevated)|Fulton Street Elevated]] on Liberty Avenue. Six stations on the elevated would have their platforms extended to accommodate 10-car trains. This would make possible the demolition of the BMT Fulton Street Line between Grant Avenue and Rockaway Avenue and the demolition of the [[BMT Lexington Avenue Line]].<ref name=":3" />

===1950–1951===
On June 21, 1950, a plan was created by the Board of Transportation and sent to Mayor O'Dwyer concerning rapid transit expansions in Queens. The total cost of the plan would have been $134.5 million. Many things were planned:<ref>{{cite news |title=$134,500,00 Asked For Queens Transit: Bingham Proposal to Mayor Includes Buying Rockaway Line, Linking it to 2d Ave. |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1950/06/22/84660056.pdf |access-date=January 26, 2016 |work=The New York Times |date=June 22, 1950}}</ref>
*The rebuilding of [[DeKalb Avenue (BMT Fourth Avenue Line)|DeKalb Avenue]] that would increase capacity by 18 tph.
*[[IND Sixth Avenue Line]] express tracks
*A four-track [[Second Avenue Subway]] between 149th Street, the Bronx, to Grand Street, Manhattan.
*Connections would be made to the [[BMT Nassau Street Line]], the [[Williamsburg Bridge]], and the [[Manhattan Bridge]]. The Sixth Avenue Line would also be connected to the Williamsburg and Manhattan Bridges.
*The Rockaway Beach Branch of the [[Long Island Rail Road]] (LIRR) would be acquired by the City and an embankment would be created with two bridges for the right-of-way over [[Jamaica Bay]]. To provide a connection to the rest of the subway system, a track connection would be built to the [[IND Fulton Street Line]].
*The Rockaway Beach Branch would run alongside the LIRR main line tracks as a super-express bypass. Once in Woodside, the line would go underground running under [[Sunnyside Yards]] and [[Long Island City]] to the [[East River]]. It would then go under the East River and 76th Street in Manhattan to the Second Avenue Line.
*The bypass would also have a connection to the LIRR's [[Port Washington Branch]] with subway service running to [[Bayside, Queens|Bayside]].
**Connections to the [[IRT Pelham Line]] at [[Third Avenue–138th Street (IRT Pelham Line)|Third Avenue–138th Street]] and to the [[IRT White Plains Road Line]] at [[Third Avenue–149th Street (IRT White Plains Road Line)|Third Avenue–149th Street]].

On September 13, 1951, the Board of Estimate approved a plan put forth by the New York Board of Transportation that would cost $500 million.<ref name="joekorner 1951">{{cite web |url=http://www.thejoekorner.com/bdtrans-51/bd-trans-51-plan-indx.html |title=Board of Transportation - 1951 |publisher=Thejoekorner.com |access-date=March 25, 2014 |archive-date=February 24, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210224152538/http://www.thejoekorner.com/bdtrans-51/bd-trans-51-plan-indx.html |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1951/09/14/84866131.pdf |title=$500,000,000 Voted For 2d Ave. Subway By Estimate Board: Program Including Connections to Existing Lines Depends on Public's Exemption of Bonds: Offer to L.I.R.R. Backed: Authorization Comes After Quill Admits That He Cannot Support 'Steal' Charge |last=Crowell |first=Paul |date=September 14, 1951 |access-date = January 25, 2016 |work=The New York Times}}</ref> Many things were planned:
*A six-track [[Second Avenue Subway]] between 149th Street, the Bronx, to Grand Street, Manhattan. This line would handle 68 trains per hour (tph) (34 tph on the express tracks and 34 tph on the local tracks).<ref name="joekorner 1951"/>
**The line would have a track connection to the [[IRT Pelham Line]] at [[Third Avenue–138th Street (IRT Pelham Line)|Third Avenue–138th Street]] and there would be a branch terminating at [[Third Avenue–149th Street (IRT White Plains Road Line)|Third Avenue–149th Street]] to permit a transfer to the Third Avenue Elevated in the Bronx. This would allow for the elimination of the Third Avenue Elevated south of 149th Street.
**A tunnel to the [[IND Sixth Avenue Line]] via [[57th Street (IND Sixth Avenue Line)|57th Street]].
**A super-express bypass line to the LIRR [[Rockaway Beach Branch]] with a new tunnel under the [[East River]].
*** A connection from the [[IND Queens Boulevard Line]] to the Rockaway Beach Branch and [[IND Rockaway Line]].
*Various Bronx IRT projects:<ref name="joekorner 1951"/>
**Increase in capacity on the IRT Pelham Line.
**Connection of the IRT Dyre Avenue Line to the IRT White Plains Road Line.
**Increase in capacity on the IRT White Plains Road Line north of [[Gun Hill Road (IRT White Plains Road Line)|Gun Hill Road]] by 8 trains per hour. (At the time, the [[IRT Third Avenue Line]] still connected to the IRT White Plains Road Line at Gun Hill Road.)
**Increase in capacity on the [[IRT Jerome Avenue Line]] by 9 trains per hour.
*The [[Chrystie Street Connection]]:<ref name="joekorner 1951"/>
**[[IND Sixth Avenue Line]] express tracks.
**[[DeKalb Avenue (BMT Fourth Avenue Line)|DeKalb Avenue]] rebuilding, including closure of the [[Myrtle Avenue (BMT Fourth Avenue Line)|Myrtle Avenue]] station. This would increase capacity by 18 tph.
***Increase in capacity on the [[BMT Fourth Avenue Line]]'s local tracks by 4 tph.
***Increase in capacity on the [[BMT Sea Beach Line]] by 9 tph.
***Increase in capacity on the [[BMT West End Line]] by 5 tph.
**Connection of the IND Second Avenue and IND Sixth Avenue Lines to the [[BMT Jamaica Line]] and to the [[Manhattan Bridge]].
*Increase in capacity on the [[BMT Brighton Line]] by 8 tph by adding a connection from the BMT Culver Line to the [[IND Culver Line]] at [[Ditmas Avenue (IND Culver Line)|Ditmas Avenue]].<ref name="joekorner 1951"/>
*[[60th Street Tunnel Connection]].<ref name="joekorner 1951"/>
*Extension of the [[IRT Nostrand Avenue Line]] to Voorhies Avenue.<ref name="joekorner 1951"/>
*Construction of the IRT Utica Avenue Line from [[Crown Heights–Utica Avenue (IRT Eastern Parkway Line)|Crown Heights–Utica Avenue]] to [[Kings Plaza]].<ref name="joekorner 1951"/>
The Board of Estimate requested that the Board of Transportation evaluate a spur of the [[IRT Pelham Line]] to [[Throggs Neck]] in the Bronx.

===1954===
The Board of Estimate accepted the following items into its 1954 budget from the New York City Transit Authority:
* The elimination of the [[DeKalb Avenue (BMT Fourth Avenue Line)|DeKalb Avenue]] bottleneck on the BMT.<ref name="BDE">{{cite news |title=Assurance of Nostrand Avenue Spur Is a Great VIctory for Brooklyn |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/53935125/?terms=subway+extension |access-date=August 19, 2015 |work=Brooklyn Daily Eagle |publisher=Newspapers.com |date=January 17, 1954}}</ref>
* The construction of the [[IRT Nostrand Avenue Line|Nostrand Avenue]] extension to Avenue U. It would have cost $51.7 million.<ref name=BDE />
* The extension of the IND Fulton Street Line to the [[BMT Liberty Avenue Line|BMT Liberty Avenue Elevated]].<ref name=BDE />
* A start on the [[Second Avenue Subway]] in Chrystie Street.<ref name=BDE />
* Adding express tracks to the [[IND Sixth Avenue Line]].<ref name=BDE />

In March 1954, the Transit Authority issued a $658 million construction program including the following projects:<ref name=":2">{{Cite news |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1954/03/24/92822044.pdf |title=Improvements That Are Planned for Subways |date=March 24, 1954 |access-date = February 8, 2016 |work=The New York Times}}</ref>
* A Second Avenue trunk line, which would have allowed 34 more trains to midtown per hour.<ref name=":2" />
* A tunnel at 76th Street that would connect to the Second Avenue Line that would run under the [[East River]] and connect with the existing [[Long Island Rail Road]] main line.<ref name=":2" />
* An increase of service on the IRT White Plains Road Line by eight trains per hour due to the construction of the Second Avenue Line.<ref name=":2" />
* The connection of the [[IRT White Plains Road Line]] and the [[IRT Dyre Avenue Line]] was nearing completion and would provide direct service to Manhattan and Brooklyn.<ref name=":2" />
* Fourteen additional trains per hour would be able to operate on the [[IRT Jerome Avenue Line]] if the [[IRT Pelham Line]] was connected to the Second Avenue Subway. Service would have been tripled on the Pelham Line.<ref name=":2" />
* The completion of the [[60th Street Tunnel Connection]], which was under construction, would increase service to Jamaica by fifteen trains per hour.<ref name=":2" />
* The addition of two tracks to the IND Sixth Avenue Line would allow express service.<ref name=":2" />
* The elimination of the DeKalb Avenue bottleneck on the BMT, which would allow eighteen more trains to be operated per hour.<ref name=":2" />
* The construction of the Nostrand Avenue extension to Avenue U.<ref name=":2" />
* The construction of the Chrystie Street Connection.<ref name=":2" />
* The connection of the [[IND South Brooklyn Line]] and the [[BMT Culver Line]] at [[Ditmas Avenue (IND Culver Line)|Ditmas Avenue]] would be opened in the spring, and would have allowed eight more trains to run per hour on the [[BMT Brighton Line]].<ref name=":2" />
* Bottlenecks would be removed at [[Grand Central–42nd Street (New York City Subway)|Grand Central]] on the [[IRT East Side Line]] and at [[96th Street (IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line)|96th Street]] on the [[IRT West Side Line]].<ref name=":2" />
In 1954, Regional Plan Association advocated for an extension of the [[BMT Canarsie Line]] from [[14th Street – Eighth Avenue (New York City Subway)|Eighth Avenue]] to [[Jersey City, New Jersey|Jersey City]] under the [[Hudson River]]. The tunnel under the Hudson would have cost $40 million. The extension would have provided access to commuter railroads in New Jersey as most lines converged there, and the lines that didn't would be rerouted to stop there. The RPA also suggested having a parking lot there for access from the [[Pulaski Skyway]] and the [[New Jersey Turnpike]]. It was suggested that either the New York City Transit Authority, the [[Port Authority of New York and New Jersey]] or the Bi-State Metropolitan Rapid Transit Commission would do the construction.<ref name="NYT1954"/>

===1961===
[[John T. Clancy]], a [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] incumbent running for [[Queens Borough President]] in 1961 proposed third tracking the [[BMT Jamaica Line|BMT Jamaica Elevated Line]] to provide express service, and reactivating the [[Rockaway Beach Branch]] from Rego Park to Liberty Avenue.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1961/11/01/101481398.pdf |title=3 Candidates Vie Again in Queens – Borough President Clancy Faces Tougher Battle |date=November 1, 1961 |access-date = February 8, 2016 |work=The New York Times}}</ref>

===1962–1963===
In July 1962, the NYCTA announced that it had asked the city for money to build a $190 million high-speed, non-stop subway line from Midtown to the Bronx. The line would have only operated during rush hours. It was estimated that if the funds were given to the project, it would be completed in 1970. The line would be a two-track line running from 59th Street between Fifth and Seventh Avenues to the Bronx, running under Central Park. Running non-stop for 6.5 miles, it would have been the longest continuous run in the subway system. The line, on its southern end, would connect to the BMT Broadway Line at Seventh Avenue near 59th Street and to the IND Sixth Avenue Line near 58th Street and Sixth Avenue.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1962/07/18/archives/new-subway-line-to-bronx-asked-for-rush-hours-authority-seeks-197.html |title=New Subway Line to Bronx Asked for Rush Hours – Authority Seeks 197 Million for Non-Stop Service to 59th Street District|last=Perlmutter|first=Emanuel|date=July 18, 1962|newspaper=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=January 8, 2017|via=New York Times Archive}}</ref>

The line would then run through a deep tunnel under Central Park until 110th Street. There would be provisions for a future crosstown line under 76th Street to Queens. The line would then turn east and run along Madison Avenue to 138th Street. One branch would connect to the express track of the IRT Pelham Line, which would be converted to accommodate larger B Division trains. In the morning rush hour, trains from Pelham Park would only make express stops. A new stop would be built at 138th Street and Grand Concourse where transfers would have been available to the [[IRT White Plains Road Line|IRT White Plains Road]] and [[IRT Jerome Avenue Line]] trains.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1962/07/18/archives/new-subway-line-to-bronx-asked-for-rush-hours-authority-seeks-197.html |title=New Subway Line to Bronx Asked for Rush Hours – Authority Seeks 197 Million for Non-Stop Service to 59th Street District|last=Perlmutter|first=Emanuel|date=July 18, 1962|newspaper=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=January 8, 2017|via=New York Times Archive}}</ref>

The second branch would continue under the Grand Concourse until 161st Street where it would connect to the [[IND Concourse Line]] at 161st Street. This connection would allow for the diversion of Concourse Line express trains onto the new line, allowing for the addition of an equal number of trains to the [[IND Eighth Avenue Line|IND Central Park West]] express service and provide relief to that line. The construction of this line was viewed as necessary to relieve the IRT Lexington Avenue Line.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1962/07/18/archives/new-subway-line-to-bronx-asked-for-rush-hours-authority-seeks-197.html |title=New Subway Line to Bronx Asked for Rush Hours – Authority Seeks 197 Million for Non-Stop Service to 59th Street District|last=Perlmutter|first=Emanuel|date=July 18, 1962|newspaper=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=January 8, 2017|via=New York Times Archive}}</ref>

In February 1963, the New York City Transit Authority issued a preliminary proposal for rapid transit expansion in the borough of Queens. The plan was designed to relieve congestion on the IRT Flushing Line and IND Queens Boulevard, to deal with expected population growth, and to provide service to areas of the borough without transit service. To expand service to other areas of the borough a new trunk line would be built to provide the necessary capacity. The planned extensions were expected to relieve crowding on the IRT Flushing Line by 22 percent and on the IND Queens Boulevard Line by 19 percent.<ref name="1963Plan">* {{Cite news|url=http://fultonhistory.com/highlighter/highlight-for-xml?altUrl=http%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2FNewspaper%252014%2FLong%2520Island%2520City%2520NY%2520Star%2520Journal%2FLong%2520Island%2520City%2520NY%2520Star%2520Journal%25201963%2FLong%2520Island%2520City%2520NY%2520Star%2520Journal%25201963%2520-%25200070.pdf%23xml%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2FdtSearch%2Fdtisapi6.dll%3Fcmd%3Dgetpdfhits%26u%3Dffffffffb75d4f9d%26DocId%3D4237968%26Index%3DZ%253a%255cIndex%2520U%252dF%252dP%26HitCount%3D19%26hits%3D10%2B2f6%2B363%2B38e%2B3a5%2B508%2B56d%2B56e%2B845%2B885%2B8f5%2B925%2B95a%2B979%2Bb48%2Be30%2Be54%2Be60%2Be8e%2B%26SearchForm%3D%252fFulton%255fform%252ehtml%26.pdf&uri=http%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2FNewspaper%252014%2FLong%2520Island%2520City%2520NY%2520Star%2520Journal%2FLong%2520Island%2520City%2520NY%2520Star%2520Journal%25201963%2FLong%2520Island%2520City%2520NY%2520Star%2520Journal%25201963%2520-%25200070.pdf&xml=http%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2FdtSearch%2Fdtisapi6.dll%3Fcmd%3Dgetpdfhits%26u%3Dffffffffb75d4f9d%26DocId%3D4237968%26Index%3DZ%253a%255cIndex%2520U%252dF%252dP%26HitCount%3D19%26hits%3D10%2B2f6%2B363%2B38e%2B3a5%2B508%2B56d%2B56e%2B845%2B885%2B8f5%2B925%2B95a%2B979%2Bb48%2Be30%2Be54%2Be60%2Be8e%2B%26SearchForm%3D%252fFulton%255fform%252ehtml%26.pdf&openFirstHlPage=false|title=Complete Text of TA's Queens Subway Plan|date=April 1, 1963|work=Long Island Star–Journal|access-date=April 24, 2018}}
* {{cite web|url=http://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/1963-nycta-queens-expansion-proposal-442048472|title=Preliminary Proposal For Rapid Transit Expansion Borough of Queens February 1963|work=Worthpoint|access-date=April 24, 2018}}
* {{cite web |url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/127872292@N06/21685812198/in/dateposted/ |title=1_d81871b68bbe111193165e90b4971a6c-1 |work=Flickr – Photo Sharing!}}
* {{cite web |url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/127872292@N06/21847486256/in/photostream/ |title=1_d81871b68bbe111193165e90b4971a6c |work=Flickr – Photo Sharing!}}</ref>

The first phase of the transit expansion would build a trunk line connecting the IND Queens Boulevard Line's local tracks at Steinway Street and Broadway using existing provisions with the IND Sixth Avenue Line and BMT Broadway Line in Manhattan. The new line would have run under 34th Avenue, a new tunnel under the East River, and 76th Street before turning south under Central Park. Connections would be made to the IND Sixth Avenue Line at 58th Street and to the BMT Broadway Line's stub tracks at 59th Street and Seventh Avenue. In Manhattan, there would have been a transfer connection to the 77th Street station on the IRT Lexington Avenue Line and a station in Central Park at 70th Street.<ref name="1963Plan" />

Provisions would be built for a planned extension to the Bronx. At Steinway Street, switches would be constructed to all GG trains from Brooklyn to terminate there. The new {{Convert|4.5|miles|km}} line would have provided an additional 30 trains per hour between Queens and Manhattan with a future northern extension. Initially, the line would be used for 15 trains per hour running to the IND Sixth Avenue Line from the IND Queens Boulevard Line. The construction of the trunk line was expected to cost $138.6 million, of which $37.4 million would be spent for the section south of 76th Street. The earliest possible date for the completion of the line would have been 1970.<ref name="1963Plan" />

To provide service to unserved areas of Queens, three additional routes were considered. The first route would have served northern and northeastern Queens, running along 34th Avenue, Northern Bouelvard, Main Street, Kissena Boulevard, Parsons Boulevard, and one of the Horace Harding Expressway service roads to Springfield Boulevard. The {{Convert|10.3|miles|km}}-line would have consisted of two tracks and would have cost $219.4 million. The second route would be a branch of the IND Fulton Street Line heading under Linden Boulevard and Merrick Boulevard to Springield Boulevard.<ref name="1963Plan" />

Two options were considered for this line. The first option would have branched off of the Fulton Street Line near Pitkin Avenue and Euclid Avenue using existing provisions in the tunnel. The second option would have extended the Liberty Avenue Elevated from Lefferts Boulevard. This option would have required the acquisition of private property to widen Liberty Avenue so that the line could transition from an elevated line to a subway line and to make the turn from Liberty Avenue and Linden Boulevard. The subway option would have been {{Convert|6.6|miles|km}} long and would have cost $116 million while the elevated/subway option would have been {{Convert|4.5|miles|km}} and would have cost $80.8 million.<ref name="1963Plan" />

The third route would have connected the IND Rockaway Line to the IND Queens Boulevard Line using the Rockaway Beach Branch and an existing provision in the tunnel east of 63rd Drive. The Rockaway Beach Line had been abandoned by the Long Island Rail Road on June 8, 1962. A new stop would be built at Linden Boulevard to connect with a new subway line. This line was expected to cost $39.9 million.<ref name="1963Plan" />

In addition to expanding service to Queens, service to the Bronx would have been expanded as well. The new trunk line connecting the BMT Broadway Line and IND Sixth Avenue Line to Queens south of 76th Street would have been used for the new line to the Bronx. This line would have run under the center of Central Park and then running via Fifth Avenue once out of the park at 110th Street, and would continue under the East River with a branch connecting to the [[IRT Pelham Line]], which would have been modified in order to fit [[B Division (New York City Subway)|B Division]] subway cars, and a branch continuing up the Grand Concourse and then connecting to the [[IND Concourse Line]].<ref name="BetterRapid">{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/stream/betterrapidtrans00newy#page/n53/mode/2up|title=Better Rapid Transit for New York City – A Report and Program by the New York City Planning Commission, map insert between pages 18 and 19|date=May 1, 1963|access-date=May 27, 2017}}</ref><ref name="BetterRapidTransit">{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/betterrapidtrans00newy|title=Better Rapid Transit for New York City – A Report and Program by the New York City Planning Commission|date=May 1, 1963|access-date=May 27, 2017}}</ref>

In May 1963, the [[New York City Planning Commission]] proposed the following in response to the NYCTA's proposal:<ref name="BetterRapid" />
* An implementation of skip-stop service on the [[BMT Jamaica Line]].<ref name="BetterRapid" />
* An extension of a proposed Madison Avenue Line and the [[IND Sixth Avenue Line]] operating via 59th Street, with two branches.<ref name="BetterRapid" /><ref name="BetterRapidTransit" /> One branch would have operated along Second Avenue with a branch connecting to the [[IRT Pelham Line]], which would have had to be modified to fit [[B Division (New York City Subway)|B Division]] subway cars, and a branch connecting to the [[IND Concourse Line]].<ref name="BetterRapid" /><ref name="BetterRapidTransit" /> The other branch would have continued under the East River, and would have been connected to the [[Long Island Rail Road]] main line in the [[Sunnyside, Queens|Sunnyside]] area.<ref name="BetterRapid" /><ref name="BetterRapidTransit" /> Subway trains would have continued via the [[Port Washington Branch]] to [[Little Neck (LIRR station)|Little Neck]], and via the LIRR Main Line to Rego Park, where it would have turned via the former [[Rockaway Beach Branch]] and then would have turned onto the [[LIRR Montauk Branch|Lower Montauk Branch]], and would have continued on the branch through [[Jamaica (LIRR station)|Jamaica]], where it would continue via the [[Atlantic Branch]] until Rosedale, staying within city limits.<ref name="BetterRapid" /><ref name="BetterRapidTransit" /> The report claims that its proposed routes would serve up to twice as many people as the NYCTA's proposed routes.<ref name="BetterRapid" /><ref name="BetterRapidTransit" />
{| class=wikitable
|-
  |rowspan="2"|Rail Transit Services
  |colspan="2"|Present Population Served
  |colspan="2"| 1985 Projected Population Served
|-
  | Number
  | Percent
  | Number
  | Percent
|-
  | Existing Line
  | 900,000
  | 50
  | 985,000
  | 49
|-
  | Long Island Lines
  | 305,000
  | 17
  | 360,000
  | 18
|-
  | Transit Authority Proposal
  | 140,000
  | 8
  | 185,000
  | 9
|-
  | Total Queens Population
  | 1,810,000*
  | 100
  | 2,000,000
  | 100
|-
  |colspan="5"|* Based on 1960 Census
|}
* A two-track Madison Avenue Line would have run from the proposed 59th Street tunnel via Madison Avenue and would have tied into the then-underutilized [[BMT Broadway Line]] in the vicinity of Madison Square.<ref name="BetterRapid" /><ref name="BetterRapidTransit" />
* In the vicinity of City Hall Park in Lower Manhattan, a connection between the BMT Nassau Street and Broadway Lines would have carried the Madison Avenue service through the financial district at Wall Street and Broad Street.<ref name="BetterRapid" /><ref name="BetterRapidTransit" /> Another connection in Lower Manhattan would have been built connecting the IND Eighth Avenue Line and the BMT Broadway Line in the area of the former Hudson Terminal (today's World Trade Center).<ref name="BetterRapid" /><ref name="BetterRapidTransit" />

{| class=wikitable
|-
  |rowspan="2"|
  |colspan="2"|CPC Proposal
  |colspan="2"|TA Proposal
|-
  | Route Miles
  | Cost<br />$ Million
  | Route Miles
  | Cost<br />$ Million
|-
  | Queens Tunnel and Connections
  | 2.3
  | $75
  | 4.5
  | $139
|-
  | Madison Avenue Line
  | 1.9
  |  86
  | –
  | –
|-
  | Downtown Improvements
  | 2.7
  | 23
  | –
  | –
|-
  | Queens Extension
  | 25.0
  | 114
  | 20.7
  | 375
|-
  | Bronx Tunnel
  | 6.6
  | 179
  | 6.0
  | 163
|-
  | Total
  | 38.5
  | $477
  | 31.2
  | $677
|}

===1968===

====Proposed lines====
[[File:NYCS IRT ThirdAve GunHillRd.jpg|thumb|right|300px|The [[IND Concourse Line]] would have been extended to [[Gun Hill Road (IRT White Plains Road Line)|White Plains Road]].]]
{{Main|Program for Action}}
Similar plans were made by the [[New York City Transit Authority]] in 1968.<ref name="sas 1968">{{cite web |url=http://secondavenuesagas.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/1968expansionlarge.jpg |title=1968 NYCTA Expansion Plans (Picture) |publisher=Second Avenue Sagas |access-date=December 1, 2013}}</ref><ref name="joekorner 1968">[http://www.thejoekorner.com/lines/progforaction.htm Program for Action maps] from thejoekorner.com</ref> They included:
* The [[IND Second Avenue Line]] with connections to [[IRT Dyre Avenue Line]] at East 180th Street, and the [[IRT Pelham Line]] at Whitlock Avenue<ref name="railfanwindow.com">{{Cite web |url=http://www.railfanwindow.com/gallery2/d/137519-2/06_NYCTA69_newroutes_map.jpg |title=Archived copy |access-date=August 19, 2015 |archive-date=December 8, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131208171645/http://www.railfanwindow.com/gallery2/d/137519-2/06_NYCTA69_newroutes_map.jpg |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* A crosstown line under [[34th Street (Manhattan)|34th Street]] from 12th Avenue to 1st Avenue<ref name="railfanwindow.com"/>
* IND/BMT [[63rd Street Line]]
* A new line running along Park Avenue in the Bronx to replace the Third Avenue Elevated<ref name="railfanwindow.com"/>
* {{Anchor|Super-express bypass}}Super-express bypass of [[IND Queens Boulevard Line]]<ref name="railfanwindow.com"/>
* {{Anchor|Long Island Expressway line}}New line splitting from the IND Queens Boulevard Line under the [[Long Island Expressway]] to [[Kissena Boulevard]] in Phase I and to [[Springfield Boulevard]] in Phase II<ref>{{cite web |last1=Kihss |first1=Peter |title=3 Routes Proposed to Aid Growing Queens Areas |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1967/04/13/90323611.pdf |work=The New York Times |access-date=June 27, 2015 |date=April 13, 1967}}</ref>
* [[Archer Avenue Line]] to [[Springfield Boulevard]] branching off of the BMT Jamaica Line at 127th Street and off of the Queens Boulevard Line at bellmouths railroad north of the Van Wyck Boulevard station.<ref name="railfanwindow.com"/>
* [[IRT Nostrand Avenue Line]] extension to Avenue W in [[Sheepshead Bay]].<ref name="railfanwindow.com"/> This was by then the fifth time that the Nostrand Avenue extension was proposed.
* A new line branching off of the IRT Eastern Parkway Line and running under [[Utica Avenue]] to [[Avenue U]]<ref name="railfanwindow.com"/>
* Extension of the [[BMT Canarsie Line]] to [[Nostrand Avenue]] or [[Howard Beach – JFK Airport (IND Rockaway Line)|JFK Airport]]
* Extension of the [[IRT New Lots Line]] to Linwood Street and [[Flatlands Avenue]]
* Extension of the [[IND Concourse Line]] to [[Gun Hill Road (IRT White Plains Road Line)|White Plains Road]]

====Completed lines====
The [[Archer Avenue Lines]] are two lines, split between the BMT and IND, mostly running under Archer Avenue in the [[Jamaica, Queens|Jamaica]] neighborhood of [[Queens]]. Conceived as part of these 1968 expansion plans, they opened on December 11, 1988.<ref>{{cite news |last=Johnson |first=Kirk |title=Big Changes For Subways Are to Begin |work=The New York Times |date=December 9, 1988 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/12/09/nyregion/big-changes-for-subways-are-to-begin.html |access-date=July 5, 2009}}</ref> There are stub-end tunnels east of the line's northern terminus, [[Jamaica Center–Parsons/Archer (Archer Avenue Lines)|Jamaica Center–Parsons/Archer]], on both levels, which extend past the station for possible future extensions.<ref name="MTA-ArcherAvDEIS-19732">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Wd43AQAAMAAJ|title=Archer Ave Route (proposed) Construction, Queens: Environmental Impact Statement|date=August 1973|publisher=[[Urban Mass Transit Administration]], [[United States Department of Transportation]]|access-date=August 6, 2016|archive-date=August 20, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200820010335/https://books.google.com/books?id=Wd43AQAAMAAJ|url-status=live}}</ref>

The [[63rd Street Lines]] are two lines also split between the BMT and IND. The short BMT line connects the express tracks of the [[BMT Broadway Line]] from [[57th Street–Seventh Avenue (BMT Broadway Line)|57th Street–Seventh Avenue]] to [[Lexington Avenue–63rd Street (63rd Street Lines)|Lexington Avenue–63rd Street]], where it now runs through to the Second Avenue subway. The IND line runs from the [[IND Sixth Avenue Line]] at [[57th Street (IND Sixth Avenue Line)|57th Street]] in [[Manhattan]] east under 63rd Street and the [[East River]] through the [[63rd Street Tunnel]] to the [[IND Queens Boulevard Line]] in [[Queens]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://nycsubway.org/lines/6thave.html |title=IND 6th Ave./63rd St. Line |work=www.nycsubway.org |first=Peggy |last=Darlington |access-date=October 20, 2011}}</ref>  There is a stub-end tunnel at the northern terminus of the IND line that is intended for the Queens super-express bypass.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aHFItRehRA |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/6aHFItRehRA| archive-date=2021-12-12 |url-status=live|title=Railfan Window Of An R32 F Train From 57th Street to 36th Street, Queens Part Two (''The bellmouth for the intended super-express bypass can be seen toward the right, at the 3:09 mark into the video.'') |author=Caitsith810 |publisher=Youtube |date=December 17, 2008 |access-date=September 1, 2013}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

===1970s===
In Lower Manhattan, plans were made for the following:<ref name="rrwg">{{cite web|url=http://www.rrwg.org/path-lexa.pdf|title=PATH-Lex Connection|website=rrwg.org|date=April 14, 2004|access-date=April 24, 2018}}</ref>{{rp|7}}

*A new terminal for [[1 (New York City Subway service)|IRT Seventh Avenue locals]] to [[South Ferry/Whitehall Street (New York City Subway)|South Ferry]]
*A track connection between the [[World Trade Center (IND Eighth Avenue Line)|Hudson Terminal (now World Trade Center)]] on the [[IND Eighth Avenue Line]] and [[Cortlandt Street (BMT Broadway Line)|Cortlandt Street]] on the [[BMT Broadway Line]], both in Manhattan.
**[[R (New York City Subway service)|RR]] trains would be discontinued south of [[City Hall (BMT Broadway Line)|City Hall]], as the station would permanently become a terminal. The City Hall station is located one block east of Hudson Terminal. The segment between City Hall in Manhattan and [[Bay Ridge–95th Street (BMT Fourth Avenue Line)|Bay Ridge–95th Street]] would be replaced by two other services.
**[[B (New York City Subway service)|B]] Sixth Avenue express trains would be rerouted to the Eighth Avenue Lines, replacing the [[A (New York City Subway service)|AA]] and [[C (New York City Subway service)|CC]] Eighth Avenue locals. B trains would run south through the connection and continue through the [[Montague Street Tunnel]] and [[BMT Fourth Avenue Line]], thereby replacing the RR between Cortlandt Street in Manhattan and [[59th Street (BMT Fourth Avenue Line)|59th Street]] in Brooklyn.
**[[J (New York City Subway service)|JJ]] trains would operate via the Montague Street Tunnel and Fourth Avenue line, with an extension to Bay Ridge–95th Street.
*A [[Second Avenue Subway]] would operate along Second Avenue in Manhattan, connecting New Jersey with both Queens and the Bronx.
**[[T (New York City Subway service)|T]] and Y would run the entire length of the Second Avenue line from New Jersey, then run toward Queens and the Bronx respectively.
**[[R (New York City Subway service)|EE]] trains would be rerouted onto the southernmost section of the subway into New Jersey via the BMT Broadway express tracks, which turn eastward toward the [[Manhattan Bridge]]. The EE would then diverge southward, merging with the Second Avenue main line.

===1986===
In 1986, the [[Regional Plan Association]] suggested extending the [[IRT Flushing Line]] across the [[Hudson River]] to the [[Meadowlands Sports Complex]] in [[East Rutherford, New Jersey]].<ref name="nyt19860321">{{cite news |title=Study Suggests IRT Extension to New Jersey |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/03/21/nyregion/study-suggests-irt-extension-to-new-jersey.html |access-date=August 17, 2015 |work=The New York Times |date=March 21, 1986}}</ref>

In 1986, the MTA issued a study on expanding transit options on the west side of Manhattan. It was proposed to use the [[West Side Line]] viaduct (today's [[High Line]]), and various means of transportation were proposed, including monorail, passenger rail trains, or subway trains. It also proposed to extend the IRT Flushing or [[BMT Canarsie Line]]s ({{NYCS Flushing}} and {{NYCS Canarsie}}, respectively).<ref>{{cite news |title=West Side Transit: Officials Take A Look Ahead |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/01/18/nyregion/west-side-transit-officials-take-a-look-ahead.html |access-date=August 17, 2015 |work=The New York Times |date=January 18, 1986}}</ref>

===1990===
In 1990, the MTA proposed a rail line connecting [[LaGuardia Airport]] and [[John F. Kennedy International Airport]]. The line would have operated over the [[Grand Central Parkway]] and the [[Van Wyck Expressway]]. There would be stations at [[Shea Stadium (LIRR station)|Shea Stadium]] and [[Jamaica (LIRR station)|Jamaica]]. The system was proposed to cost $2{{nbsp}}billion. The MTA estimated that the rail link would take 30{{nbsp}}minutes from Kennedy to LaGuardia, and the frequency of service would initially be every 15{{nbsp}}minutes. There would be a two-track alignment with one track for each direction, as well as at least two trains heading in each direction at all times. If the link were built, the average travel time from Manhattan to Kennedy would have been about 45{{nbsp}}minutes using the [[Long Island Rail Road]], including transfers. To LaGuardia, the average travel time from the [[Grand Central (IRT Flushing Line)|Grand Central]] station using the [[IRT Flushing Line]] would be 47{{nbsp}}minutes.<ref>{{cite news |title=M.T.A. Proposes Rail Line to Link Major Airports |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/03/18/nyregion/mta-proposes-rail-line-to-link-major-airports.html |access-date=August 17, 2015 |work=The New York Times |date=March 18, 1990}}</ref>

===1998–99===
[[File:Air Train JFK Van Wyck jeh.jpg|thumb|right|300px|The AirTrain viaduct over [[Interstate 678|Van Wyck Expressway]] would have been used by the subway under the "MetroLink" plan.]]
In 1998, an extension of the [[BMT Astoria Line]] to LaGuardia Airport was planned, but the plan was canceled in 2003 following community opposition.<ref>{{cite news |last=Toscano |first=John |title=N Train Extension To LaG Scrapped |newspaper=Queens Gazette |date=July 16, 2003 |url=http://www.qgazette.com/news/2003/0716/Front_Page/002.html |access-date=July 26, 2009 |archive-date=May 25, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090525091226/http://www.qgazette.com/news/2003/0716/Front_Page/002.html |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.qgazette.com/news/2007-06-27/Features/Flashback_To_1999_001.html |title=Flashback To 1999 &#124; www.qgazette.com &#124; Queens Gazette |publisher=www.qgazette.com |date=June 27, 2007 |access-date=March 25, 2014 |archive-date=March 22, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160322134801/http://www.qgazette.com/news/2007-06-27/features/flashback_to_1999_001.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 1999, the [[Regional Plan Association]] considered a full-length Second Avenue Subway from Broad Street to 125th Street, along with the LIRR [[East Side Access]]. It also planned the following extensions:<ref name="metrolink">[http://www.rpa.org/pdf/metrolink.pdf Metrolink] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100802231532/http://www.rpa.org/pdf/metrolink.pdf |date=August 2, 2010 }}</ref>

*a Co-op City extension of the Second Avenue Subway via the Amtrak right-of-way through the northeast Bronx
*a Grand Central Terminal spur of the Second Avenue Subway
*a super-express bypass from the [[Atlantic Terminal]] via the LIRR [[Atlantic Branch]]
*an extension to JFK Airport via the Van Wyck Expressway
*an extension to Laurelton via the LIRR Atlantic Branch
*a branch off the Second Avenue Subway at 14th Street to Avenue C, to merge with the [[IND Sixth Avenue Line]] at Essex Street
*a connection to the [[BMT Nassau Street Line]] near Delancey Street
*a super-express bypass of the Queens Boulevard Line from east of [[21st Street–Queensbridge (IND 63rd Street Line)|21st Street–Queensbridge]] to east of [[Forest Hills–71st Avenue (IND Queens Boulevard Line)|Forest Hills–71st Avenue]]
*a new interlocking at [[Prince Street (BMT Broadway Line)|Prince Street]] to allow easy switching of trains between local and express tracks

The new set of extensions proposed by the RPA, dubbed "MetroLink", would make use of existing commuter rail infrastructure, so as to make it interoperable with the New York City Subway. Nine hundred fifty "Rx" hybrid railcars would be ordered, with yard expansions and new yards being built. MetroLink, consisting of 31 new metro stations (not counting three recycled commuter rail stations) and 19 new route‑miles of track ({{convert|19|mi|disp=out}}) (not including existing commuter rail and then-under construction [[AirTrain JFK]] route miles) would have reduced the load on the [[IRT Lexington Avenue Line]], the [[IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line]], and the [[IND Queens Boulevard Line]]. Two of these stations would be in Brooklyn, three in Queens, nine in the Bronx, and twenty in Manhattan. Five services would be run:<ref name="metrolink"/>

#The Co-op City–Second Avenue–Broadway–Whitehall Street service
#The 125th Street–Second Avenue–Atlantic Terminal Bypass–Jamaica Center service
#The Grand Central–Second Avenue–Atlantic Terminal Bypass–JFK Airport service
#The Grand Central–Second Avenue–Fourth Avenue–West End Line to Coney Island service
#The Laurelton–Jamaica Center–Queens Bypass–Second Avenue–Lower East Side–Culver Express to Avenue X service

Stations would have been located at:
* New [[Second Avenue Subway]] (15 stations):<ref name="metrolink"/>
** Lexington Avenue at [[125th Street (IRT Lexington Avenue Line)|125th Street]] (transfer with {{NYCS trains|Lexington}})
** [[Grand Central – 42nd Street (New York City Subway)|Grand Central Terminal]] (transfer with {{NYCS trains|Grand Central}})
** Second Avenue at 116th, 106th, [[96th Street (IND Second Avenue Line)|96th]], [[86th Street (IND Second Avenue Line)|86th]], [[72nd Street (IND Second Avenue Line)|72nd]], 55th (transfer with {{NYCS trains|Lexington Avenue - 51st Street}}), 44th, 34th, 23rd, 14th (transfer with {{NYCS trains|Canarsie}}), and [[Second Avenue (IND Sixth Avenue Line)|Houston]] Streets
** Bowery/Canal Street
** Water Street at Wall/Fulton Streets and at Whitehall/Broad Streets
* New Lower East Side Line (4 stations):<ref name="metrolink"/>
** [[First Avenue (BMT Canarsie Line)|First Avenue]] at 14th Street (transfer with {{NYCS trains|Canarsie}})
** Avenue C at 8th Street and at Houston Street
** East Broadway at Pitt Street
* New Co-op City Line (9 stations):<ref name="metrolink"/>
** Co-op City North, Central, and South stations
** Bronx Municipal Hospital Center
** East Tremont Avenue at White Plains Road and at [[West Farms Square – East Tremont Avenue (IRT White Plains Road Line)|West Farms Square]] (transfer with {{NYCS trains|White Plains local}} at the latter)
** Boston Road at 169th Street
** Third Avenue at 161st and 149th Street (transfer with {{NYCS trains|White Plains south}} at the latter)
* [[Atlantic Branch]] (5 stations):<ref name="metrolink"/>
** [[Jay Street–MetroTech (New York City Subway)|Jay Street–MetroTech]] (transfer with {{NYCS trains|MetroTech}})
** [[Atlantic Terminal]] (transfer with {{NYCS trains|Atlantic-Pacific}})
** Linden Boulevard
** [[Locust Manor (LIRR station)|Locust Manor]]
** [[Laurelton (LIRR station)|Laurelton]]

The AirTrain JFK, [[Atlantic Branch]], [[Main Line (Long Island Rail Road)|Main Line ROW]], and [[Northeast Corridor]] would all be "recycled" to accommodate subway service under this plan. The [[Nostrand Avenue (LIRR station)|Nostrand Avenue]] and [[East New York (LIRR station)|East New York]] LIRR stations would also have been closed under MetroLink.<ref name="metrolink"/>

==21st-century expansion==

The New York City Subway has opened five subway stations since 2009, and up to 15 more subway stations are planned. However, the 21st-century expansion plans pale in comparison to some of the subway system's other previous plans.

===Current or completed plans===

====7 Subway Extension====
{{Main|7 Subway Extension}}
[[File:7 Line Extension Ceremonia Ride vc.jpg|thumb|250px|right|The [[34th Street (IRT Flushing Line)|34th Street]] station on the [[IRT Flushing Line]], which opened in September 2015, was toured by then-Mayor [[Michael Bloomberg]] in 2013.]]

The [[7 Subway Extension]] was devised in the late 1990s to extend the [[IRT Flushing Line]], which carries the {{NYCS|7}} local and {{NYCS|7d|&lt;7&gt;}} express services, further westward into [[Manhattan]].<ref name="MTA work to begin"/> The extension stretches a total of {{convert|1|mi}} from its former terminus at [[Times Square (IRT Flushing Line)|Times Square]] to a [[34th Street–Hudson Yards (IRT Flushing Line)|new western terminus]] at 34th Street and 11th Avenue.<ref name="MTA work to begin">{{cite news |url=http://mta.info/news/stories/?story=380 |title=Work to Begin Under Last Major Contract Needed to Extend the 7 |work=MTA.info |date=September 14, 2011 |access-date=September 16, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120817135653/http://www.mta.info/news/stories/?story=380 |archive-date=August 17, 2012}}</ref> The tunnels are actually {{convert|1.5|mi|km}} long.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://web.mta.info/capital/future/extension.php |work=MTA.info |access-date=November 10, 2013 |title=7 Line Extension}}</ref> A second station at [[10th Avenue (IRT Flushing Line)|10th Avenue–41st Street]] was dropped from the plans in October 2007, but could be restored if funding can be found.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://gothamist.com/2007/10/20/the_shrinking_7.php|title=The Shrinking 7 Line Extension|last=Hogarty|first=Dave|date=October 20, 2007|work=Gothamist|access-date=February 26, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090606082015/http://gothamist.com/2007/10/20/the_shrinking_7.php|archive-date=June 6, 2009|url-status=dead|language=en-US}}</ref> The extension's opening had been delayed to June 2014, with the rest of the 34th Street station to open at the end of 2015.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.ny1.com/content/news_beats/trans/162481/mta-s-7-line-extension-project-pushed-back-six-months |title=MTA's 7 Line Extension Project Pushed Back Six Months |work=[[NY1]] |date=June 5, 2012 |access-date=June 5, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120711160459/http://www.ny1.com/content/news_beats/transit/162481/mta-s-7-line-extension-project-pushed-back-six-months |archive-date=July 11, 2012}}</ref>

Michael Horodniceanu, chief of MTA Construction Company, told ''[[The New York Times]]'' that complications in the installation of the [[Incline elevator|inclined elevator]] would likely cause a further delay of about three months, bringing the opening date to very late summer or early fall of 2014.<ref>{{cite news |title=More Delays and Rising Cost for Project Connecting L.I.R.R. to Grand Central Terminal |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/28/nyregion/more-delays-and-rising-cost-for-project-connecting-lirr-to-grand-central-terminal.html |work=The New York Times |date=January 27, 2014}}</ref> Further complications in February 2014 brought the projected date of the opening to November 2014,<ref name="sas november">{{cite web |url=http://secondavenuesagas.com/2014/02/26/7-line-extension-opening-now-projected-for-november/ |title=7 line extension opening now projected for November |publisher=Second Avenue Sagas |date=February 27, 2014 |access-date=March 5, 2014 |last=Kabak |first=Benjamin}}</ref> then to February 2015,<ref>{{cite web |author=Mueller, Benjamin |title=Transit Hub and Work on No. 7 Line Face Delays |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/24/nyregion/mta-says-transit-plans-are-facing-new-delays.html |work=The New York Times |date=June 23, 2014}}</ref> then spring 2015,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/opening-no-7-subway-extension-delayed-spring-article-1.2046161 |title=New York will have to wait till spring for No. 7 subway extension |newspaper=NY Daily News |date=December 15, 2014 |access-date=December 15, 2014}}</ref> and to summer 2015.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/24/nyregion/more-delays-for-no-7-subway-line-extension.html |title=More Delays for No. 7 Subway Line Extension |work=The New York Times |date=March 24, 2015 |access-date=March 29, 2015 |author=Emma G. Fitzsimmons}}</ref> The station opened in September 2015.<ref>{{cite web |last=Fitzsimmons |first=Emma G. |title=Subway Station to Open This Weekend, Bringing 7 Line to Far West Side |work=The New York Times |date=September 12, 2015 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/12/nyregion/no-7-subway-station-to-open-on-far-west-side-after-series-of-delays.html |access-date=September 13, 2015}}</ref>

As proposed under the RPA's Fourth Regional Plan,<ref>See also {{section link||RPA plans}})</ref> a second 7 Subway Extension would be built, serving [[23rd Street (Manhattan)|23rd Street]] before connecting with the existing [[14th Street/Eighth Avenue (New York City Subway)|14th Street/Eighth Avenue]] station.<ref name=rpa-4th-plan/>

====Second Avenue Subway====
{{Main|Second Avenue Subway|Construction of the Second Avenue Subway}}
[[File:SAS72ndStreet201201.jpg|thumb|250px|right|[[72nd Street station (Second Avenue Subway)|72nd Street station]] cavern on the [[IND Second Avenue Line]] in January 2012.]]

The [[Second Avenue Subway]] was repeatedly delayed and shaved back from a six-track combined local/express line to a two-track superexpress line since 1919 (with occasional construction between 1972 and 1976). [[Construction of the Second Avenue Subway]] began in 2007. A [[tunnel]]ling contract was awarded to the consortium of Schiavone/Shea/[[Skanska]] (S3) by the [[Metropolitan Transportation Authority]] (MTA) on March 20, 2007.<ref>MTA Press Release March 20, 2007</ref> This followed preliminary engineering and a final tunnel design completed by a [[joint venture]] between [[AECOM]] and [[Arup Group Limited|Arup]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.arup.com/americas/newsitem.cfm?pageid=873 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090205053106/http://www.arup.com/americas/newsitem.cfm?pageid=873 |title=Arup to design new Second Avenue Subway, New York |publisher=Arup |date=November 20, 2001 |access-date=June 9, 2013 |archive-date=February 5, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.arup.com/transportconsulting/project.cfm?pageid=7267 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090202234311/http://www.arup.com/transportconsulting/project.cfm?pageid=7267 |title=Second Avenue Subway – Transport Consulting |publisher=Arup |access-date=June 9, 2013 |archive-date=February 2, 2009}}</ref> [[Parsons Brinckerhoff]] is the Construction Manager of the project. This contract, and the full funding grant agreement with the [[Federal Transit Administration]], which was received in November 2007, is for Phase I of the project, a new line between the existing [[63rd Street Line]] and [[96th Street (Manhattan)|96th Street]] and [[Second Avenue (Manhattan)|Second Avenue]].<ref name="arema1">{{cite web |url=http://www.arema.org/eseries/scriptcontent/custom/e_arema/library/2008_Conference_Proceedings/Second_Avenue_Subway-A_Status_Report_2008.pdf |title=Second Avenue Subway – A Status Report |access-date=August 2, 2009}}</ref> The total cost of the {{convert|8.5|mi|km|adj=on}} line is expected to top $17{{nbsp}}billion.<ref name="nymag-Sargent">{{cite journal |last=Sargent |first=Greg |url=http://nymag.com/nymetro/news/features/n_10109/ |title=The Line That Time Forgot – Second Avenue Subway |publisher=Nymag.com |date=March 29, 2004 |access-date=August 2, 2009}}</ref>

A ceremonial ground-breaking for the Second Avenue Subway was held in April 2007.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Neuman |first=William |date=April 13, 2007 |title=Was There a Ghost? No, Just a Tunnel at the Latest Subway Groundbreaking |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/13/nyregion/13tunnel.html |access-date=June 12, 2017 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The [[tunnel boring machine]] (TBM) began digging the tunnels for Phase I in May 2010<ref>{{cite web |url=http://thelaunchbox.blogspot.com/2010/03/march-19-20-2010-blasting-on-second.html" |title=Blasting on Second Avenue |publisher=thelaunchbox.blogspot.com |date=March 22, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=2nd Ave. Subway Tunnel Dig Begins |first=Andrew |last=Siff |url=http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local-beat/2nd-Ave-Subway-Tunnel-Dig-Begins-93787364.html |publisher=[[WNBC]] |date=May 14, 2010 |access-date=May 14, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Tunneling Begins Under Second Avenue |url=http://www.mta.info/news/stories/?story=63 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120817181120/http://www.mta.info/news/stories/?story=63 |work=MTA |date=May 14, 2010 |access-date=May 17, 2010 |archive-date=August 17, 2012}}</ref> and completed its excavations in September 2011.<ref>{{cite web |author=Various |url=http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/politics/2011/09/3473217/second-avenue-subway-has-breakthrough-moment-several-billion-more-a?page=all |title=Second Avenue Subway has a breakthrough moment; several billion more are all the M.T.A. wants |publisher=Capital New York |date=September 23, 2011 |access-date=March 31, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140331174958/http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/politics/2011/09/3473217/second-avenue-subway-has-breakthrough-moment-several-billion-more-a?page=all |archive-date=March 31, 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Phase I, consisting of {{convert|2|mi|km|spell=in}} of tunnel and three stations, was opened in January 2017.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/01/nyregion/second-avenue-subway-opening-upper-east-side-manhattan.html|title=Opening of Second Avenue Subway: Updates|last1=Slotnik|first1=Daniel E.|date=January 1, 2017| last2=Wolfe| first2=Jonathan|newspaper=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|last3=Fitzsimmons|first3=Emma G.|last4=Palmer|first4=Emily| last5=Remnick| first5=Noah|access-date=January 1, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/new-yorkers-ride-ave-subway-making-history-article-1.2930822|title=New Yorkers take historic first ride on Second Ave. subway|last1=Rivoli|first1=Dan|date=January 1, 2017| last2=Sandoval| first2=Edgar| newspaper=New York Daily News|last3=Brown|first3=Stephen Rex|access-date=January 1, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news| url=http://www.wnyc.org/story/see-new-years-eve-party-and-2nd-ave-subway|title=See Inside: The 2nd Avenue Subway Opens to All|last=Nessen|first=Stephen| date=January 1, 2017|newspaper=WNYC|access-date=January 1, 2017}}</ref> It cost $4.45 billion.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cbsnews.com/news/drones-exclusive-look-at-new-york-city-second-avenue-subway-line/|title=Drone takes tour of NYC's 2nd Avenue subway line|date=September 16, 2015|website=CBS News|access-date=October 27, 2016}}</ref> A {{convert|1.5|mi|km|adj=on}}, $6 billion second phase is in planning;<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.transit.dot.gov/sites/fta.dot.gov/files/docs/New_York_City_2nd_Ave_Subway_Phase_2_Profile.pdf|title=New York City 2nd Ave Subway Phase 2 Profile|date=December 27, 2016|newspaper=FTA|access-date=January 4, 2017|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170105000123/https://www.transit.dot.gov/sites/fta.dot.gov/files/docs/New_York_City_2nd_Ave_Subway_Phase_2_Profile.pdf|archive-date=January 5, 2017}}</ref> land acquisition for Phase 2 started in April 2022.<ref name="Garber 2022">{{cite web |last=Garber |first=Nick |date=April 19, 2022 |title=125th Street Building Seized By MTA For Second Avenue Subway |url=https://patch.com/new-york/harlem/125th-street-building-seized-mta-second-avenue-subway |access-date=April 19, 2022 |website=Harlem, NY Patch}}</ref> {{As of|October 2023}}, Phase 2 was set to open in early 2032.<ref name="Stallone 2023 p348">{{cite web |last=Stallone |first=Michael |date=October 31, 2023 |title=2nd Avenue subway Harlem extension due to open in 2032: What to know |url=https://www.fox5ny.com/news/second-avenue-subway-harlem-extension |access-date=November 1, 2023 |publisher=FOX 5 New York}}</ref><ref name="Simko-Bednarski 2023 t270">{{cite web |last=Simko-Bednarski |first=Evan |date=October 30, 2023 |title=Second Ave. subway's Harlem extension due in 2032: documents |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/2023/10/30/second-ave-subways-harlem-extension-due-in-2032-documents/ |access-date=November 1, 2023 |website=New York Daily News}}</ref>

The RPA's Fourth Regional Plan proposed two northward extensions. Phase 2B would be an extension of Phase 2 under [[125th Street (Manhattan)|125th Street]] from [[125th Street (IRT Lexington Avenue Line)|Lexington Avenue]] to [[125th Street (IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line)|Broadway]]. Phase 2C would be a spur to [[Third Avenue–149th Street (IRT White Plains Road Line)|Third Avenue–149th Street]], connecting with the [[IND Concourse Line]].<ref name=rpa-4th-plan/>

===Proposals===
====Triboro RX====
{{see also|New York Connecting Railroad|Bay Ridge Branch}}
[[File:SotyBrooklynRailway0918.jpg|right|thumb|250x250px|The Triboro RX, if built, would need to share a right-of-way with the [[Bay Ridge Branch]].]]

A proposal for the LIRR Bay Ridge Branch would have the New York City Subway use the tracks to link [[Brooklyn]], [[Queens]] (both already linked by the [[G (New York City Subway service)|G train]]) and [[the Bronx]] via the [[Hell Gate Bridge]]. Based on Paris's [[Réseau Express Régional|RER]] commuter rail system, the Triboro RX proposal would create a partial loop around the city.<ref name="gothamist">{{cite news |date=August 21, 2013 |title=How About a Subway Linking Brooklyn, Queens & The Bronx WITHOUT Manhattan? |url=http://gothamist.com/2013/08/21/the_dream_subway_line_with_20_conne.php |publisher=[[Gothamist]] |access-date=August 22, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130821182659/http://gothamist.com/2013/08/21/the_dream_subway_line_with_20_conne.php |archive-date=August 21, 2013}}</ref> In 1996, the [[Regional Plan Association]] conducted a study to determine the feasibility of the rail link.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rpa.org/node/2213 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130728011900/http://www.rpa.org/node/2213 |title=Third Regional Plan Summary |archive-date=July 28, 2013 |work=rpa.org |access-date=February 17, 2015}}</ref> The original proposal would have terminated at [[Yankee Stadium]].<ref name="capitalny" /> The proposed line, discussion of which was revived in 2012, would connect to all non-shuttle subway services at 12 stations.<ref name="capitalny">{{cite web |last=Rubinstein |first=Dana |url=http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/politics/2012/04/5772951/surprising-return-three-borough-x-line-subway |title=The surprising return of the three-borough 'X line' subway |publisher=Capital New York |date=April 25, 2012 |access-date=March 25, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=RPA: Growing Outer Boroughs Need New Generation of Transit Investment {{!}} Streetsblog New York City|url = http://www.streetsblog.org/2015/02/11/rpa-growing-outer-boroughs-need-new-generation-of-transit-investment/|access-date = February 9, 2016}}</ref> 

The line in this proposal would have terminated at [[Hunts Point, Bronx|Hunts Point]].<ref name="gothamist" /> The line was brought back in the 2015 report "The Overlooked Boroughs" by the Regional Plan Association. The line would be {{convert|24|mi}} long and would consist of 22{{nbsp}}stations, would cost $1{{nbsp}}billion and is projected to have more than 100,000 daily riders.<ref>{{Cite web |title=R.P.A. calls, again, for outer-borough X line |url=http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/city-hall/2015/02/8561985/rpa-calls-again-outer-borough-x-line |website=www.capitalnewyork.com|access-date = February 8, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=RPA Reiterates Their Triboro Rx Outer Borough Subway Plan in Updated Report |url=https://viewing.nyc/rpa-reiterates-their-triboro-rx-outer-borough-subway-plan-in-updated-report/ |website=Viewing NYC|date=April 16, 2015 |access-date = February 9, 2016}}</ref> Plans for the line date back to 1995.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzKvSWhrQBW4M2hJaVVRX2lkSzA/view|title=The Brooklyn–Queens Rail Link: A Plan to Connect the Boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens By Using the Bay Ridge Freight Line As A New Light Rail Link|date=April 1995|publisher=Committee For Better Transit|access-date=May 29, 2017}}</ref>

Obstacles for the proposal include the proposed [[Cross-Harbor Rail Tunnel]], the lack of [[Electrification (rail)|electrification]] on the line, as well as the [[Single track (rail)|single-tracking]] in some parts of the line. The current iteration of the plan would have its northern terminus be Co-Op City South using the Hell Gate Branch.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Manhattan-Centric Transit System Falls Short in Other Boroughs |url=http://www.rpa.org/article/manhattan-centric-transit-system-falls-short-in-other-boroughs |website=Regional Plan Association|access-date = February 9, 2016}}</ref> The LIRR [[Bay Ridge Branch]] and the [[New York Connecting Railroad]] have freight operating along them, and are regulated by the [[Federal Railroad Administration]] (FRA). FRA rules require a certain distance between freight and passenger trains that share rights-of-way, and as a result it is uncertain whether the right-of-way is wide enough or if more durable train cars are needed to be able to share the same tracks.<ref name="capitalny" /> The RPA's 2015 plan considered having FRA compliant light rail vehicles run over the line. In addition to providing transfer opportunities, the line would provide transit access to areas without it in Glendale and Middle Village in Queens, as well as in Flatlands and Canarsie in Brooklyn.<ref name="RPA2015">{{cite web |url=http://library.rpa.org/pdf/RPA-Overlooked-Boroughs-Technical-Report.pdf |title=Overlooked Boroughs Where New York City's Transit Falls Short and How to Fix It Technical Report |date=February 2015 |access-date=February 8, 2016 |publisher=Regional Plan Association |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304131609/http://library.rpa.org/pdf/RPA-Overlooked-Boroughs-Technical-Report.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>

====Interborough Express====
{{Main|Interborough Express}}
In mid-October 2019, the MTA announced that it would study the feasibility of restoring passenger service on the Bay Ridge Branch portion of the route.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/news/2019/10/16/mta-to-study-train-service-on-freight-line-key-to--triboro--rail-idea|title=Advocates Push to Revive Three Old Rail Lines in City|website=www.ny1.com|language=en|access-date=2019-10-16}}</ref> In early January 2022, as part of her [[State of the State address]] New York governor [[Kathy Hochul]] announced that the state would move forward with the Bay Ridge Branch Line by conducting an environmental study on the [[Interborough Express]] (IBX), a {{convert|14|mi|adj=on}} corridor using the existing Bay Ridge Branch and Fremont Secondary from [[Bay Ridge, Brooklyn]], to [[Jackson Heights, Queens]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=WABC|date=2022-01-05|title=Proposed transit line would connect Brooklyn, Queens to 17 subway lines, LIRR|url=https://abc7ny.com/nyc-transit-interborough-express-brooklyn-queens/11429330/|access-date=2022-01-06|website=ABC7 New York|language=en}}</ref> End-to-end travel times are expected to be less than 40 minutes, and weekday ridership is projected to be 115,000.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://new.mta.info/project/interborough-express | title=Interborough Express }}</ref> The route would connect up to 17 subway lines and the Long Island Rail Road.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Gold|first=Michael|date=2022-01-20|title=Transit Line Connecting Brooklyn and Queens Moves Step Closer to Reality|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/20/nyregion/hochul-interborough-express-brooklyn-queens-transit.html|access-date=2022-01-21|issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | last=Duggan | first=Kevin | title=Hochul unveils more details about Interborough Express in new study | website=amNewYork | date=January 20, 2022 | url=https://www.amny.com/transit/hochul-unveils-details-interborough-express-study/ | access-date=January 21, 2022}}</ref><ref>[https://new.mta.info/document/72081 Interborough Express (IBX)—Feasibility Study and Alternatives Analysis, Interim Report], MTA, January 2022</ref> The MTA indicated in September 2022 that it wanted to construct the IBX as a light rail line,<ref name="Guse 2022">{{cite web | last=Guse | first=Clayton | title=MTA officials see light rail as easiest option for Brooklyn-Queens Interborough Express - final choice months away | website=New York Daily News | date=September 23, 2022 | url=https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/ny-interborough-express-mta-town-hall-light-rail-20220923-urcmzqoq6ffy5ezn3tzgwogzni-story.html | access-date=January 11, 2023}}</ref> and Hochul announced in January 2023 that the project would proceed as a light rail corridor.<ref name="Martinez 2023">{{cite web | last=Martinez | first=Jose | title=Hochul Calls MTA 'Lifeblood' of New York, but Transit Plans Lack Meat | website=The City | date=January 10, 2023 | url=https://www.thecity.nyc/transportation/2023/1/10/23549120/gov-hochul-mta-lifeblood-ny-transit-plans | access-date=January 11, 2023}}</ref><ref name="RRAge2023-1-11">{{cite news|url=https://www.railwayage.com/passenger/light-rail/light-rail-selected-for-new-yorks-interborough-express-project/?RAchannel=news|date=January 11, 2023|title=Light Rail Selected for New York's Interborough Express Project|author=Marybeth Luczak|publisher=Railway Age}}</ref>

====Rockaway Line====
[[File:RBB_above_Metro_Av_jeh.JPG|right|thumb|250x250px|The LIRR [[Rockaway Beach Branch]] would need to be renovated in order to be reused.]]

The [[Long Island Rail Road]] (LIRR) abandoned the [[Rockaway Beach Branch]] in 1962; ever since it has been sought after for reactivation for train service. The line has not been reactivated due to local opposition, specifically the homeowners who live along the right-of-way. One group, [[Rockaway Beach Branch#QueensRail and QueensLink |QueensLink]], wants the line to be reactivated between the [[63rd Drive–Rego Park station]] on the [[IND Queens Boulevard Line]] to the north and the [[IND Rockaway Line]] to the south, providing a north-south connection in Queens.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thecity.nyc/transportation/2019/10/8/21210761/rockaway-branch-rail-reboot-study-finally-lands|title=Rockaway Branch Rail Reboot Study Finally Lands | work=The City | date=October 8, 2019 | author=Jose Martinez | access-date=July 12, 2021}}</ref> A second group would use the right-of-way as a linear park, known as the [[Rockaway Beach Branch#Queensway|Queensway]], a proposal inspired by the success of the [[High Line]] in Manhattan. A third group consists of homeowners who would have nothing done, keeping the line as is.<ref>{{cite news |title=Lawmakers: southern Queens commuters need a new railway more than the Queensway |first=Lisa L. |last=Colangelo |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/queens/reactivating-rockaway-beach-rail-line-spells-relief-stranded-southern-queens-commuters-article-1.1020731?localLinksEnabled=false |newspaper=[[Daily News (New York)|Daily News]] |location=New York |date=February 13, 2012 |access-date=February 14, 2012}}</ref>

Talks of reactivating the line were publicly endorsed in February 2012 by Assemblymen [[Phillip Goldfeder]] and [[Michael G. Miller]]. Goldfeder commented "The commute for people here is only going to go from bad to worse. You can't talk about a convention center without talking about transportation." Goldfeder and Miller said they are not opposed to turning sections of the line into a park, but said people who live in [[Rockaway, Queens|the Rockaways]], [[Ozone Park, Queens|Ozone Park]] and other areas have no quick or easy way to get into Manhattan. The [[Genting Group]], which operates Resorts World casino and have been asked to construct the convention center, are evaluating several plans to increase transportation access. Genting is committed to paying for part of the transportation improvements. Advocates of the Queensway, a proposed public park along the branch's route, are against resumption of rail service, stating that current bus service fills current transportation needs in the area.<ref>{{cite news |title=Lawmakers: southern Queens commuters need a new railway more than the Queensway |first=Lisa L. |last=Colangelo |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/queens/reactivating-rockaway-beach-rail-line-spells-relief-stranded-southern-queens-commuters-article-1.1020731?localLinksEnabled=false |newspaper=[[Daily News (New York)|Daily News]] |location=New York |date=February 13, 2012 |access-date=February 14, 2012}}</ref> U.S. Representatives [[Hakeem Jeffries]] and [[Gregory Meeks]] added their support for the project in March 2013. Both representatives will push to allocate federal transportation subsidies to study a plan for restored passenger service.<ref name="Rafter">{{cite news |title=Rockaway Beach rail plan to be backed by Reps. Jeffries, Meeks |first=Domenick |last=Rafter |url=http://www.qchron.com/editions/south/rockaway-beach-rail-plan-to-be-backed-by-reps-jeffries/article_ea708c39-94d8-5dd5-8741-a2a739a0a621.html |newspaper=Queens Chronicle |date=March 21, 2013 |access-date=March 21, 2013}}</ref>

The line would cost $1&nbsp;billion, if built in its full length with a connection to the [[IND Queens Boulevard Line]], and would stretch across {{convert|3.5|mi}}, providing connections to several subway services as well as the LIRR.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Kabak |first1=Benjamin |title=Samuelsen: Reactivate the Rockaway Beach Branch ROW |url=http://secondavenuesagas.com/2015/03/31/samuelsen-reactivate-the-rockaway-beach-branch-row/ |website=Second Avenue Sagas |date=March 31, 2015 |access-date=February 9, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Kabak |first1=Benjamin |title=Making the case for the Rockaway Beach Branch |url=http://secondavenuesagas.com/2012/05/07/making-the-case-for-the-rockaway-beach-branch/ |website=Second Avenue Sagas |date=May 7, 2012 |access-date=February 9, 2016}}</ref> Another possible option would have Long Island Rail Road service restored with service to seven stations along the right-of-way, with service ending in Howard Beach.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/queens/reactivating-rockaway-beach-rail-line-spells-relief-stranded-southern-queens-commuters-article-1.1020731 |title=Lawmakers: southern Queens commuters need a new railway more than the QueensWay Local legislators don't oppose greenway, but want to see abandoned Rockaway Beach line rehabbed for rail service |last=Colangelo |first=Lisa L. |date=February 13, 2012 |access-date = February 8, 2016 |newspaper=New York Daily News}}</ref> The line would serve upwards of 250,000 passengers per day and would provide access to [[John F. Kennedy International Airport|JFK Airport]] from [[Midtown Manhattan]].<ref>{{Cite web|title = New York State Assembly {{!}} Phillip Goldfeder|url = http://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Phillip-Goldfeder/story/66491/|website = assembly.state.ny.us|access-date = February 9, 2016|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160216051753/http://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Phillip-Goldfeder/story/66491/|archive-date = February 16, 2016|url-status = dead|df = mdy-all}}</ref> In February 2015, the Regional Plan Association suggested having some [[F (New York City Subway service)|F]] trains, after running through the [[63rd Street Tunnel]], be rerouted to operate over the [[Lower Montauk Branch]] of the LIRR running through underserved [[Maspeth, Queens|Maspeth]] and [[Glendale, Queens|Glendale]] and then meeting up with the Rockaway Beach Branch in [[Rego Park, Queens|Rego Park]].<ref name="RPA2015"/>

====LaGuardia Airport extension====
{{see also|LaGuardia Airport subway extension|AirTrain LaGuardia}}

The [[BMT Astoria Line]] extension to [[LaGuardia Airport]] was suggested as part of LaGuardia's long-range expansion/renovation plan. Currently, no New York City Subway routes service the airport directly, but provisions for a subway connection are part of a 2014 long range rebuilding plan by the MTA.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ny.curbed.com/archives/2014/03/19/a_revamped_la_guardia_airport_could_look_like_this_in_2021.php |title=A Revamped La Guardia Airport Could Look Like This In 2021 |work=Curbed NY |date=March 19, 2014 |access-date=February 17, 2015}}</ref> The ''New York Daily News''{{'}} editorial board came out in support of this extension on February 21, 2017, detailing why this route is superior to Governor [[Andrew Cuomo]]’s plan for an [[AirTrain LaGuardia|AirTrain]] from LaGuardia to [[Mets–Willets Point (IRT Flushing Line)|Willets Point]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/train-plane-article-1.2975912|title=The right train to the plane|date=February 21, 2017|newspaper=NY Daily News|access-date=February 22, 2017|language=en}}</ref> 

===={{anchor|Utica Avenue and Nostrand Avenue lines to Kings Plaza}} Utica Avenue and Nostrand Avenue Lines ====
In April 2015, New York City Mayor [[Bill de Blasio]] announced a new plan for building a subway line under [[Utica Avenue]] in [[Brooklyn]]. Previous plans, most recently the [[Program for Action]], had provisions for such a line. It would branch off from the [[IRT Eastern Parkway Line]] ({{NYCS trains|Eastern center}}) at [[Crown Heights–Utica Avenue (IRT Eastern Parkway Line)|Crown Heights–Utica Avenue]]. The new line being proposed is part of de Blasio's "One New York" plan, which aims to improve transit, reduce emissions, and fight poverty. If built, the line would go to [[Flatbush Avenue]], near [[Kings Plaza]]. Since the [[Metropolitan Transportation Authority]] had budget shortages {{as of|April 2015|lc=yes}}, however, it is unclear how the line would be funded or built.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/23/nyregion/mayor-de-blasio-revives-plan-for-a-utica-avenue-subway-line.html |title=Mayor de Blasio Revives Plan for a Utica Avenue Subway Line |work=The New York Times |date=April 22, 2015 |access-date=April 23, 2015 |author=Emma G. Fitzsimmons}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/de-blasio-shows-new-york-plan-poverty-air-subway-article-1.2195246 |title=De Blasio unveils 'One New York' plan combining efforts to fight poverty, improve environment, add transit |work=New York Daily News |date=April 22, 2015 |access-date=April 23, 2015 |author=Jennifer Fermino}}</ref>

The MTA Board allocated $5 million for a feasibility study, the Utica Avenue Subway Extension Study, for this proposal in the MTA's 2015–2019 Capital Program.<ref name=":22">{{Cite web|url=http://web.mta.info/capital/pdf/WEB2015-2019Program_reduced.pdf|title=MTA Capital Program 2015-2019 Renew. Enhance. Expand.Amendment No. 2 As Proposed to the MTA Board May 2017|date=May 24, 2017|website=mta.info|access-date=May 24, 2017}}</ref> In August 2016, it was reported that the MTA was looking into an extension of the [[IRT Nostrand Avenue Line]] along Flatbush Avenue to [[Marine Park, Brooklyn|Marine Park]], which would allow trains to serve Kings Plaza.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://brooklyn.news12.com/news/mta-looks-into-possible-new-subway-line-to-marine-park-1.12149272|title=MTA looks into possible new subway line to Marine Park|date=August 8, 2016|website=news12.com|publisher=News 12 Brooklyn|access-date=August 9, 2016|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160812153241/http://brooklyn.news12.com/news/mta-looks-into-possible-new-subway-line-to-marine-park-1.12149272|archive-date=August 12, 2016}}</ref> Both the Utica Avenue and Nostrand Avenue proposals for extensions to Kings Plaza have been proposed since the 1910s.<ref name=":0" /> Planning on the Utica Avenue Line stalled<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.metro.us/news/local-news/new-york/utica-avenue-brooklyn-subway-extension|title=Is Mayor Bill de Blasio's Utica Avenue Brooklyn subway extension dead?|date=December 27, 2017|website=Metro US|access-date=January 4, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.gothamgazette.com/city/6767-little-progress-made-on-utica-avenue-subway-expansion-study|title=Little Progress on Utica Avenue Subway Expansion|last=Burger|first=Elena|date=February 21, 2017|work=Gotham Gazette|access-date=January 4, 2018|language=en-gb}}</ref> because it was no longer viewed as a priority by the MTA.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.gothamgazette.com/city/8384-nyc-transportation-commissioner-trottenberg-de-blasio-streets-subway|title=City Transportation Commissioner on Managing the Streets, Expanding the Subway, & More|last=Jacobson|first=Savannah|date=March 25, 2019|website=Gotham Gazette|language=en-gb|access-date=April 7, 2019}}</ref> Planning resumed in April 2019 when New York City Transit joined city agencies in launching the Utica Avenue Transit Improvement Study. The study will look into a subway extension, improved bus rapid transit, and a new light rail line.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/transit/2019/04/06/utica-avenue-subway-extension-mta-to-study-if-it-is-worth-pursuing|title=MTA to Study if a Utica Avenue Subway Extension is Worth Pursuing|last=Rivoli|first=Dan|date=April 5, 2019|website=ny1.com|language=en|access-date=April 7, 2019}}</ref> Since the study occurred concurrently with the 2020 redesign of Brooklyn bus routes, the MTA decided to prioritize the Utica Avenue transit study.<ref>{{cite web | title=Utica Avenue transit study to inform MTA leading into Brooklyn Bus Redesign | website=amNewYork | date=2020-02-13 | url=https://www.amny.com/transit/utica-avenue-transit-study-to-inform-mta-leading-into-brooklyn-bus-redesign/ | access-date=2020-02-14}}</ref>

In November 2017, the RPA suggested building both lines as part of its fourth plan. The Nostrand Line was envisioned as a three-stop extension to Avenue Z, while the Utica Line was planned as a five-stop spur to Kings Plaza.<ref name="rpa-4th-plan" />

====RPA plans====
The [[Regional Plan Association]] (RPA) released its fourth Regional Plan in November 2017, twenty-one years after its previous Regional Plan had been published. The fourth plan included several lists of suggestions on how to improve the city's transit system, of which subway expansion was a major component.<ref>* {{cite web | last1=Siff | first1=Andrew | last2=Price | first2=R. Darren | title=No 24/7 Subways? Move MSG? Radical Transit Proposal Released | website=NBC New York | date=November 30, 2017 | url=http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Fourth-Regional-Plan-New-York-Tri-State-Region-NYC-460942313.html | access-date=December 1, 2017}}
* {{cite web | last=Plitt | first=Amy | title=To save the NYC subway, stop running it 24/7: report | website=Curbed NY | date=November 30, 2017 | url=https://ny.curbed.com/2017/11/30/16718176/regional-plan-association-urban-planning-nyc-subway-report | access-date=December 1, 2017}}
* {{cite web | last=Davidson | first=Justin | title=The Regional Plan Association Would Like to Close the Subways All Night | website=Daily Intelligencer | date=November 30, 2017 | url=http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2017/11/the-rpa-wants-to-close-the-subways-all-night.html | access-date=December 1, 2017}}</ref> Under the RPA's plan, the [[#Second Avenue Subway|Second Avenue Subway]] would be completed to its full length within Manhattan and then extended to the Bronx. The [[#7 Subway Extension|7 Subway Extension]] would expand in scope, with the IRT Flushing Line being extended to [[14th Street/Eighth Avenue (New York City Subway)|14th Street and Eighth Avenue]].<ref name="rpa-4th-plan"/>

Both the [[#Utica Avenue and Nostrand Avenue Lines|Utica Avenue and Nostrand Avenue Lines]] in Brooklyn would be realized. Queens would see three subway expansions, including two new Queens lines: one along [[Northern Boulevard]] to [[Flushing, Queens|Flushing]] or [[College Point, Queens|College Point]] and one along Jewel Avenue to [[Alley Pond Park]]. A one-stop extension of the Astoria Line would be built to serve western Astoria.<ref name="rpa-4th-plan">* {{cite web|title=Fourth Regional Plan: Transportation|url=http://fourthplan.org/action/transportation|publisher=Regional Plan Association|access-date=November 30, 2017}}
* {{cite web | title=New subway lines, extensions key for system's future: Report |last=Barone |first=Vincent | website=am New York | date=November 30, 2017 | url=https://www.amny.com/transit/subway-line-expansion-1.15250814 | access-date=December 1, 2017}}</ref> Ultimately, the plan included eight extensions with at least 40 stations in total.<ref name=rpa-4th-plan/>

====Subway station in Red Hook====
In January 2018, Governor [[Andrew Cuomo]] ordered the MTA to conduct a study on the feasibility of building a subway station in [[Red Hook, Brooklyn]], in order to redevelop the area. If approved, the station would likely be built as part of an extension of the [[IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line]] past [[South Ferry (IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line)|South Ferry]] in Lower Manhattan with a station at [[Governors Island]] possible, but unlikely due to cost and benefit.<ref>{{cite web | last=Barone | first=Vincent | title=Subway extension to Red Hook proposed by Cuomo | website=am New York | date=January 2, 2018 | url=https://www.amny.com/transit/red-hook-subway-1.15756287 | access-date=January 3, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | last=Warerkar | first=Tanay | title=Cuomo proposes subway extension from Lower Manhattan to Red Hook | website=Curbed NY | date=January 2, 2018 | url=https://ny.curbed.com/2018/1/2/16842344/red-hook-subway-lower-manhattan-extension | access-date=January 3, 2018}}</ref>

{{As of|2022}}, a potential extension of the [[BMT Broadway Line]] to Red Hook (to be served by the [[W (New York City Subway service)|W]] train) is being evaluated as part of the MTA's 2025–2044 20-Year Needs Assessment.<ref name="MTA">{{cite web | title=MTA's 2025-2044 20-Year Needs Assessment | website=MTA | url=https://new.mta.info/20YN | access-date=July 27, 2022}}</ref>

====Other proposals====
{{As of|2022}}, a potential extension of the [[IRT New Lots Line]] (to be served by the [[3 (New York City Subway service)|3]] train) to [[Spring Creek, Brooklyn]], is being evaluated as part of the 2025–2044 20-Year Needs Assessment.<ref name="MTA"/>

As part of the 2025–2044 20-Year Needs Assessment, the MTA is also evaluating the possibility of extending the Second Avenue Subway westward under [[125th Street (Manhattan)|125th Street]] following the completion of Phase 2. The line might be extended westward to [[Broadway (Manhattan)|Broadway]] and 125th Street, connecting with the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line's [[125th Street station (IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line)|125th Street station]]; to Broadway and 137th Street, connecting with the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line's [[137th Street–City College station]]; to [[Riverside Drive (Manhattan)|Riverside Drive]] and 137th Street; or to [[St. Nicholas Avenue]] and [[135th Street (Manhattan)|135th Street]], merging with the [[IND Eighth Avenue Line]].<ref name="MTA"/>

===Discontinued plans===

====PATH-Lexington Avenue connection====
After the [[PATH (rail system)|PATH]]'s [[World Trade Center station (PATH)|World Trade Center station]] was destroyed during the [[September 11 attacks]], there was a proposal to connect the PATH and the New York City Subway. Whereas the original World Trade Center station consisted of five north-south [[balloon loop]]s that sent eastward trains back west to New Jersey, the rebuilt PATH station would have been built in an east–west alignment. The tracks would have extended eastward by {{convert|3,000|ft|m}} to the [[Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall (IRT Lexington Avenue Line)|Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall]] station on the New York City Subway's [[IRT Lexington Avenue Line]].<ref name=rrwg/>{{rp|6}} The benefits of this connection, called PATH-Lex by its supporters, would have consisted of a one-seat ride from Newark and Jersey City through Lower Manhattan, the East Side of Manhattan, and the Bronx.<ref name=rrwg/>{{rp|5}} While the [[Metropolitan Transportation Authority]] was interested in the plan, the [[Port Authority of New York and New Jersey]] dismissed the idea altogether, due to the complexity of connecting the two separate systems.<ref>{{cite web | title=The Port Authority's Missed Connection: The PATH-Lex Line That Never Was | website=New York YIMBY | date=September 12, 2014 | url=https://newyorkyimby.com/2014/09/the-port-authoritys-missed-connection-the-path-lex-line-that-never-was.html | access-date=April 24, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RSY3AQAAMAAJ&pg=SL19-PA5|title=Permanent WTC PATH Terminal: Environmental Impact Statement|last=[[Port Authority of New York and New Jersey]]|date=2007|publisher=[[United States Department of Transportation]]; [[Federal Transit Administration]]|language=en|pages=S.8 to S.9}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Attached KML|display=inline,title}}
* [http://nycsubway.org/ind/indsecond.html NYCsubway.org – IND Second System]
* [http://www.columbia.edu/~brennan/abandoned/ Abandoned Stations] (A thorough treatment of the history of the abandoned subway stations)
** [http://www.columbia.edu/~brennan/abandoned/indsecsys.html IND Second System unfinished stations]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20210410202204/http://www.thejoekorner.com/indsecondsystem/index.htm JoeKorNer – IND Second System] (including a plan for a line to Staten Island)
* [http://www.vanshnookenraggen.com/_index/2010/01/the-futurenycsubway-introduction/ The Future NYC Subway] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131129104807/http://www.vanshnookenraggen.com/_index/2010/01/the-futurenycsubway-introduction/ |date=November 29, 2013 }} (a thorough treatment of subway extensions that have been discussed, but never built)
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20130113135702/http://project.wnyc.org:80/news-maps/lost-subways/ Jim O'Grady. Lost Subways: Abandoned Stations & Unbuilt Lines]
* [http://project.wnyc.org/lost-subways/ The Lost Subways of New York interactive map (WNYC)]

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[[Category:Proposed New York City Subway projects]]
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