Prospect Park station (BMT lines)

Prospect Park
Prospect Park
New York City Subway station (rapid transit)
	Coney Island-bound platform
Station statistics
Address	Empire Boulevard & Flatbush Avenue; Brooklyn, NY 11238
Borough	Brooklyn
Locale	Flatbush, Prospect Lefferts Gardens
Coordinates	40°39′41″N 73°57′45″W / 40.661507°N 73.962461°W
Division	B (BMT)
Line	BMT Brighton Line; BMT Franklin Avenue Line
Services	B (weekday rush hours, middays and early evenings); Q (all times); S (all times)
Transit	NYCT Bus: B16, B41, B43, B48
Structure	Open-cut
Platforms	2 island platforms; cross-platform interchange
Tracks	4 (3 in regular service)
Other information
Opened	July 2, 1878; 145 years ago
Accessible	ADA-accessible
Opposite-; direction; transfer	Yes
Traffic
2023	2,150,487 3.5%
Rank	154 out of 423
Station succession
Next north	Template:NYCS next; Template:NYCS next
Next south	Template:NYCS next; Template:NYCS next; Template:NYCS next
Location
Street map
Station service legend
Symbol	Description
	Stops all times
	Stops weekdays during the day

Prospect Park is an express station on the BMT Brighton Line of the New York City Subway. Located at Empire Boulevard and Flatbush Avenue in Flatbush, Brooklyn, near the border of Crown Heights, Prospect Heights, Park Slope, and Prospect Lefferts Gardens, it is served by the Q train and Franklin Avenue Shuttle at all times and the B train on weekdays.

Station layout

style="color:;background:#Template:NYCS color;Template:Linear-gradient;text-align:center;padding:5px"|

Track layout

Legend

					to Botanic Garden
					to 7th Av






			File:BSicon uextSTRel.svg File:BSicon utSTRem.svg File:BSicon utSTRem.svg File:BSicon utSTRer.svg











					to Parkside Av
					to Church Av

					Track not in revenue service
					Track in revenue service

G

Street Level

Exit/Entrance

M

Mezzanine

Fare control, station agent

Waiting area, to Exits/Entrances

Entrance ramp on Lincoln Road between Flatbush Avenue and Ocean Avenue; elevators after fare control

P
Platforms

Northbound shuttle

←

toward Franklin Avenue (Botanic Garden)

Island platform, doors will open on the right

Separation at north end

Island platform, doors will open on the right

Northbound express

←

toward Bedford Park Boulevard rush hours, 145th Street weekdays (Seventh Avenue)
←

toward Template:NYCS stations (Seventh Avenue)

Southbound express

→

toward Brighton Beach weekdays (Church Avenue) →
→

toward Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue (Parkside Avenue) →

Island platform, doors will open on the right

Separation at north end

Island platform, not in service

Southbound local

→ No regular service

This open cut station has four tracks and two island platforms.^[4] Both platforms have red canopies with green frames and support columns that run for the either length. Alternating columns have the standard black station name plate in white lettering.

At the north end of the station, the two express tracks, used by B and Q trains, ramp down into a tunnel under Flatbush Avenue parallel to the IRT Eastern Parkway Line before merging with the BMT Fourth Avenue Line at DeKalb Avenue while the local tracks curve to the northeast and become an open cut after a short tunnel towards Franklin Avenue.^[4] The platforms are split into two sections at this end separated by a beige concrete wall. The Franklin Avenue Shuttle terminates on the northbound local track while the southbound one is only used for train storage or construction reroutes.

South of the station, there are crossovers and switches as the Brighton Line becomes a four-track corridor to Ocean Parkway. B trains stay on the express track and run to Brighton Beach; Q trains switch to the local track and run to Coney Island – Stillwell Avenue.^[4]

The 1994 artwork here is called Brighton Clay Re-Leaf by Susan Tunick. It features ceramic tiles in both station entrances/exits that depict leaves to symbolize Prospect Park. This artwork is also at Parkside Avenue.^[5]

Exits

The station has two entrances/exits:

The full-time one is at the extreme south end. A single double-wide staircase and ADA-accessible elevators go up from each platform to a beige ground level station house that is on the north side of the Lincoln Road overpass above the platforms between Ocean and Flatbush Avenues. Each platform elevator is connected to the station house by a glass-enclosed passageway above their respective platforms.^[6] There is a bank of turnstiles, a waiting area that allows a free transfer between directions and a token booth inside the station house.^[7] Additionally, there is a private preschool immediately adjacent to the station house entrance.
The station's other entrance/exit at the north end is un-staffed. Two staircases from each platform at the tunnel portal go up to a waiting area, where a bank of turnstiles and one exit-only turnstile lead to a mezzanine that had its part-time token booth removed in 2010. Outside fare control, a single staircase goes up to a small plaza with an ornate fence between two buildings on the west side of Flatbush Avenue between Ocean and Lefferts Avenues. ^[7]

History

This station opened on July 2, 1878 when the Brooklyn, Flatbush and Coney Island Railway established it as the Brighton Line's temporary northern terminus on what was then known as the Willink Entrance to Prospect Park. On August 18, 1878, the line was completed north to Bedford Terminal with a connection to the Long Island Rail Road.

In 1918, the station began a rebuilding in order to accommodate the new subway connection to the Manhattan Bridge and Montague Street Tunnel. This rebuilding contributed to the Malbone Street Wreck on November 1 when a train of elevated cars was wrecked on the then-new curve on what is now the unused southbound (O1) local track. At least 93 individuals died, making it one of the U.S.'s deadliest train crashes.^[8]^[9]^[10]

The connection to the bridge and lines in Manhattan was completed on August 1, 1920, with four-track express service beginning south of this station.^[10]

Prospect Park was the closest station to Ebbets Field, home of the Brooklyn Dodgers until the team moved to Los Angeles after the 1957 season. The stadium was located at Bedford Avenue and Sullivan Place three blocks to the east and one block to the north. That area is now occupied by the Ebbets Field Apartments.

This station was the site of an October 15, 2008 NYPD arrest in which it was alleged that the suspect had been sodomized, leading to both criminal action and a lawsuit against the NYPD. All of the officers involved were acquitted and the lawsuit thrown out.^[11]

References

^ "Glossary". Second Avenue Subway Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement (SDEIS) (PDF). Vol. 1. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. March 4, 2003. pp. 1–2. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 26, 2021. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
^ ^a ^b "Annual Subway Ridership (2018–2023)". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2023. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
^ "Facts and Figures: Annual Subway Ridership". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved 2016-04-19.
^ ^a ^b ^c Dougherty, Peter (2006) [2002]. Tracks of the New York City Subway 2006 (3rd ed.). Dougherty. OCLC 49777633 – via Google Books.
^ Artwork: Brighton Clay Re-Leaf (Susan Tunick)
^ "MTA Guide to Accessible Transit". MTA.info. Retrieved June 1, 2011.
^ ^a ^b "MTA Neighborhood Maps: Park Slope/Prospect Park" (PDF). mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2015. Retrieved 2 August 2015.
^ Cudahy, Brian (1999). The Malbone Street Wreck, New York: Fordham University Press. p. 81.
^ Brooklyn Daily Eagle October 27, 1919 p10.
^ ^a ^b "The lore of the FRANKLIN AVENUE SHUTTLE - Forgotten New York". forgotten-ny.com. Retrieved 2016-07-21.
^ "Michael Mineo sodomy trial verdict: Jury finds all cops not guilty on all counts". Daily News. New York. 22 February 2010. Archived from the original on 23 October 2012.

External links

nycsubway.org – BMT Brighton Line: Prospect Park
nycsubway.org — Brighton Clay Re-Leaf Artwork by Susan Tunick (1994)
Station Reporter — B Train
Station Reporter — Q Train
Station Reporter — Franklin Shuttle
The Subway Nut — Prospect Park Pictures
MTA's Arts For Transit — Prospect Park (BMT Brighton Line)
Lincoln Road entrance from Google Maps Street View
Flatbush Avenue entrance from Google Maps Street View

[SASDEIS-DIVISION-1] "Glossary". Second Avenue Subway Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement (SDEIS) (PDF). Vol. 1. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. March 4, 2003. pp. 1–2. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 26, 2021. Retrieved January 1, 2021.

[riderref-2] "Annual Subway Ridership (2018–2023)". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2023. Retrieved April 20, 2024.

[3] "Facts and Figures: Annual Subway Ridership". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved 2016-04-19.

[tracks-4] Dougherty, Peter (2006) [2002]. Tracks of the New York City Subway 2006 (3rd ed.). Dougherty. OCLC 49777633 – via Google Books.

[5] Artwork: Brighton Clay Re-Leaf (Susan Tunick)

[6] "MTA Guide to Accessible Transit". MTA.info. Retrieved June 1, 2011.

[mtamap-7] "MTA Neighborhood Maps: Park Slope/Prospect Park" (PDF). mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2015. Retrieved 2 August 2015.

[Cudahy-8] Cudahy, Brian (1999). The Malbone Street Wreck, New York: Fordham University Press. p. 81.

[9] Brooklyn Daily Eagle October 27, 1919 p10.

[:023-10] "The lore of the FRANKLIN AVENUE SHUTTLE - Forgotten New York". forgotten-ny.com. Retrieved 2016-07-21.

[11] "Michael Mineo sodomy trial verdict: Jury finds all cops not guilty on all counts". Daily News. New York. 22 February 2010. Archived from the original on 23 October 2012.

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v t e Stations of the New York City Subway, by service
Sixth Avenue Express	Bedford Park Boulevard Kingsbridge Road Fordham Road 182nd–183rd Streets Tremont Avenue 174th–175th Streets 170th Street 167th Street 161st Street–Yankee Stadium 155th Street 145th Street 135th Street 125th Street 116th Street Cathedral Parkway–110th Street 103rd Street 96th Street 86th Street 81st Street–Museum of Natural History 72nd Street 59th Street–Columbus Circle Seventh Avenue 47th–50th Streets–Rockefeller Center 42nd Street–Bryant Park 34th Street–Herald Square West Fourth Street–Washington Square Broadway–Lafayette Street Grand Street DeKalb Avenue Atlantic Avenue–Barclays Center Seventh Avenue Prospect Park Church Avenue Newkirk Plaza Kings Highway Sheepshead Bay Brighton Beach
Second Avenue/ Broadway Express/ Brighton Local	96th Street 86th Street 72nd Street Lexington Avenue–63rd Street 57th Street–Seventh Avenue 49th Street* Times Square–42nd Street 34th Street–Herald Square 28th Street* 23rd Street* 14th Street–Union Square Eighth Street–New York University* Prince Street* Canal Street DeKalb Avenue Atlantic Avenue–Barclays Center Seventh Avenue Prospect Park Parkside Avenue Church Avenue Beverley Road Cortelyou Road Newkirk Plaza Avenue H Avenue J Avenue M Kings Highway Avenue U Neck Road Sheepshead Bay Brighton Beach Ocean Parkway West Eighth Street–New York Aquarium Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue
Franklin Avenue Shuttle	Franklin Avenue Park Place Botanic Garden Prospect Park
See also Lists by borough (The Bronx Brooklyn Manhattan Queens) Accessible Closed Terminals Transfer Commons category Note: Service variations, station closures, and reroutes are not reflected here. Stations with asterisks have no regular peak, reverse peak, or midday service on that route. See linked articles for more information.

v t e Stations of the New York City Subway, by line (physical trackage)
Brighton Line	[← to Canal Street, Broadway Line via Manhattan Bridge / ← to Grand Street, Sixth Ave. Line via Manhattan Bridge and Chrystie Street Connection / ~~← to Jay Street–MetroTech, Fourth Ave. Line~~] DeKalb Avenue Atlantic Avenue–Barclays Center Seventh Avenue Prospect Park Parkside Avenue Church Avenue Beverley Road Cortelyou Road Newkirk Plaza Avenue H Avenue J Avenue M Kings Highway Avenue U Neck Road Sheepshead Bay Brighton Beach Ocean Parkway Culver Depot West Eighth Street–New York Aquarium Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue
Franklin Ave. Line	Franklin Avenue Dean Street Park Place Botanic Garden Prospect Park
See also Lists by borough (The Bronx Brooklyn Manhattan Queens) Accessible Closed Terminals Transfer Commons category Stations and line segments in italics are closed, demolished, or planned (temporary closures are marked with asterisks). Track connections to other lines' terminals are displayed in brackets. ~~Struck through~~ passenger track connections are closed or unused in regular service.