50th Street station (IND lines)

For other uses, see 50th Street.

The 50th Street station is a bi-level station on the IND Eighth Avenue and Queens Boulevard Lines of the New York City Subway, located at 50th Street and Eighth Avenue in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan. The lower level, on the Queens Boulevard Line, is served by the E train at all times, and the upper level, on the Eighth Avenue Line, is served by the C at all times except late nights and the A during late nights.

50 Street  ​​
New York City Subway station (rapid transit)
Southbound platform on the upper level
Station statistics
Address	West 50th Street & Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10019
Borough	Manhattan
Locale	Hell's Kitchen, Midtown Manhattan
Coordinates	40°45′44″N 73°59′10″W / 40.762276°N 73.986139°W / 40.762276; -73.986139
Division	B (IND)^[1]
Line	IND Eighth Avenue Line IND Queens Boulevard Line
Services	A  (late nights) ​   C  (all except late nights) ​   E  (all times)
Transit	NYCT Bus: M20, M50, M104
Structure	Underground
Levels	2
Platforms	4 side platforms (2 on each level)
Tracks	6 (4 on upper level, 2 on lower level)
Other information
Opened	September 10, 1932; 91 years ago (1932-09-10)^[2] (upper level) August 19, 1933; 90 years ago (1933-08-19) (lower level)
Accessible	Partially ADA-accessible (southbound only)
Opposite- direction transfer	No
Traffic
2022	4,126,925^[4]  52%
Rank	57 out of 423^[4]
Services Preceding station New York City Subway Following station 59th Street–Columbus Circle A  ​C  toward 168th Street Local 42nd Street–Port Authority Bus Terminal A  ​C  ​E  via Canal Street Seventh Avenue E  toward Jamaica Center–Parsons/Archer
Location Show map of New York City Subway Show map of New York City Show map of New York
Track layout Legend to 59th Street–Columbus Circle to Seventh Avenue Superimposed tunnels Outer platforms over inner platforms (Platform levels are staggered) to 42nd Street–PABT Upper level Lower level
Street map
Station service legend Symbol Description Stops all times except late nights Stops all times Stops late nights only

History

On December 9, 1924, the New York City Board of Transportation (BOT) gave preliminary approval to the construction of a subway line along Eighth Avenue, running from 207th Street.^[5] The BOT announced a list of stations on the new line in February 1928, with a local station at 50th Street.^[6] Originally, the BOT did not plan for a 50th Street station on the Queens Boulevard Line. This station was to have only been served by Eighth Avenue trains heading north toward 168th Street in Washington Heights. The Eighth Avenue Association petitioned the BOT for an additional stop at 50th Street. On November 21, 1926, it was announced that the BOT had agreed to construct a stop at this location for the Queens Boulevard Line.^[7]

In October 1928, the BOT awarded a $444,000 contract to Charles Mead & Co. for the completion of the 50th Street, 59th Street, and 72nd Street stations on the Eighth Avenue Line.^[8] The finishes at the three stations were 20 percent completed by May 1930.^[9] By that August, the BOT reported that the Eighth Avenue Line was nearly completed and that the three stations from 50th to 72nd Street were 99.9 percent completed.^[10] The entire line was completed by September 1931, except for the installation of turnstiles.^[11]

The upper level opened on September 10, 1932, as part of the city-operated Independent Subway System (IND)'s initial segment, the Eighth Avenue Line between Chambers Street and 207th Street. Construction of the whole line cost $191.2 million.^[12] The lower level opened on August 19, 1933 with the opening of the IND Queens Boulevard Line to Roosevelt Avenue in Queens.^[13]

Station layout

G	Street level	Exit/entrance   Elevator on north side of 49th Street west of Eighth Avenue for southbound trains only
B1 Eighth Avenue Line platforms	Side platform
	Northbound local	←   toward 168th Street (59th Street–Columbus Circle) ←   toward Inwood–207th Street late nights (59th Street–Columbus Circle)
	Northbound express	←   does not stop here
	Southbound express	→   does not stop here →
	Southbound local	→   toward Euclid Avenue (42nd Street–Port Authority Bus Terminal) → →   toward Far Rockaway–Mott Avenue late nights (42nd Street–Port Authority Bus Terminal) →
	Side platform
B2 Queens Boulevard Line platforms	Side platform
	Northbound	←   toward Jamaica Center–Parsons/Archer (Seventh Avenue)
	Wall
	Southbound	→   toward World Trade Center (42nd Street–Port Authority Bus Terminal) →
	Side platform

 

Escalator from the lower level southbound platform

 

Street stair

This bi-level station has six tracks and four side platforms in total. The upper level served by the C is located along the Eighth Avenue Line and is fed by Eighth Avenue local trains from Central Park West and has four tracks and two side platforms. The express tracks in the center are used by the A during daytime hours.^[14] Fare control is at platform level.

The lower level served by the E is located at the southern end of the Queens Boulevard Line and has two tracks and two side platforms, separated by a curtain wall for the majority of the station. At the northern end of the station, the curtain wall is not present and the two side platforms are in full view of each other. The northbound track of the lower level is fed by the northbound local and express tracks at 42nd Street. In the southbound direction, lower level trains may access either the Eighth Avenue local or express tracks; until 2003, they also had the option of running to the abandoned lower level of 42nd Street. The two levels are offset, with the upper level running from 50th to 52nd Streets and the lower from 49th to 51st Streets.^[14] Neither level has crossover or crossunder between directions, although level-to-level transfer in the same direction is possible.

The platform walls on both levels have no trim line, but there are mosaic name tablets reading "50TH ST." in white sans-serif lettering on an Ultra Violet background with black border. Small tile captions reading "50" in white lettering on black run in regular intervals between the name tablets, and are also present on the lower level's curtain wall. Blueberry I-beam columns run along all the platforms at regular intervals, alternating ones having the standard black station name plate with white lettering.

An untitled etched-granite piece of artwork by Matt Mulligan was installed on the downtown upper-level platform in 1989 and features neighborhood life.^[15]

The station is being renovated as part of the 2010–2014 MTA Capital Program. As of an MTA study conducted in 2015, at least 37% of components were out of date.^[16]

Exits

The southbound side of 50th Street has an expanded mezzanine area, with exits to 49th and 50th Streets. It also has two ADA-accessible elevators (one from the street to the mezzanine, the other from the mezzanine to the lower-level platform). A ramp leads from the mezzanine to the upper-level platform; it was constructed during the development of the Worldwide Plaza complex. The downtown side has an escalator to the lower level. The mezzanine contains stairs and escalators to One Worldwide Plaza's facade at the northwest corner of Eighth Avenue and 49th Street.^[17] There are also two street stairs to the southwest corner of that intersection, as well as one street stair to either western corner of Eighth Avenue and 50th Street.^[18]

 

A closed entrance to the uptown platforms at 52nd Street

In contrast to the downtown platforms, the uptown platforms lack elevators and are not ADA-accessible. Renovation, including addition of an elevator on the uptown side of the station, was planned for the 2005–2009 MTA Capital Program and was to reopen many closed stairways to the lower level; however, these were not funded and some were eventually repurposed into lighting rooms.^[19] There is one street stair from this platform to either eastern corner of Eighth Avenue and 50th Street; the southeast stair is located inside a building. An additional stair is located at the northeast corner of Eighth Avenue and 51st Street.^[18]

There are several closed exits from the station to the street, primarily at the north end of the station. These include stairs from all four corners of Eighth Avenue and 52nd Streets. A closed exit goes from the downtown platforms to the southwest corner of 51st Street and Eighth Avenue; this mirrors the exit to the same street from the uptown platforms. An additional closed exit from the uptown platforms is located at the southeast corner of 49th Street and Eighth Avenue; this mirrors the exit to the same street from the downtown platforms.^[16]

References

1. "Glossary". (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.
2. "List of the 28 Stations on the New 8th Av. Line". The New York Times. September 10, 1932. p. 6. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 21, 2020.
3. "Annual Subway Ridership (2017–2022)". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2022. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
4. "Annual Subway Ridership (2017–2022)". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2022. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
5. "Hylan Subway Plan Links Four Boroughs at $450,000,000 Cost". The New York Times. December 10, 1924. p. 1. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 29, 2018.
6. "Express and Local Stations For New Eighth Avenue Line". New York Herald Tribune. February 5, 1928. p. B1. ISSN 1941-0646. ProQuest 1113431477.
7. "NEW SUBWAY STOP PLANNED; In 8th Av., Between 49th and 51st Streets on Queens Line". The New York Times. November 22, 1926. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 21, 2018.
8. "Subway Awards Made; Contracts Let for Brooklyn and Bronx and for 8th Av. Stations". The New York Times. October 31, 1928. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 21, 2022.
9. "Progress is Rapid on 8th Av. Subway; Board's Engineers Report Spurt in Building Is Likely to Open the Line in July, 1930". The New York Times. May 26, 1930. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
10. "Eighth Av. Subway Nearly Completed; Basic Construction Work From Chambers to 207th St. Done Except on Few Short Stretches". The New York Times. August 24, 1930. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 15, 2023.
11. O'Brien, John C. (September 9, 1931). "8th Ave. Line Being Rushed For Use Jan. 1: Turnstile Installation on Subway Begins Monday; Other Equipment Ready for Start of Train Service City Has Yet to Find Operating Company Transit Official on Trip, 207th to Canal Street, Inspects Finished Tube". New York Herald Tribune. p. 1. ISSN 1941-0646. ProQuest 1331181357.
12. Crowell, Paul (September 10, 1932). "Gay Midnight Crowd Rides First Trains In The New Subway: Throngs at Station an Hour Before Time, Rush Turnstiles When Chains are Dropped" (PDF). The New York Times. Retrieved November 8, 2015.
13. * "TWO SUBWAY UNITS OPEN AT MIDNIGHT; Links in City-Owned System in Queens and Brooklyn to Have 15 Stations" (PDF). The New York Times. August 18, 1933. Retrieved November 7, 2015.
    • "New Queens Subway Service Will Be Launched Tonight; Tunnel From Manhattan Open to Jackson Heights; Service Will Eventually Be Extended Through To Jamaica" (PDF). Long Island Daily Press. Fultonhistory.com. August 18, 1933. p. 20. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
    • "New Queens Tube To Open Saturday: Brooklyn-Long Island City Link of City Line Also to Be Put in Operation" (PDF). New York Evening Post. Fultonhistory.com. August 17, 1933. p. 18. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
14. Dougherty, Peter (2006) [2002]. Tracks of the New York City Subway 2006 (3rd ed.). Dougherty. OCLC 49777633 – via Google Books.
15. "Arts & Design - NYCT Permanent Art". MTA. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
16. (PDF) (Report). Metropolitan Transportation Authority. December 11, 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 3, 2020. Retrieved January 19, 2016.
17. Polsky, Carol (March 9, 1987). "Builders' Bonus Draws New Fire; Critics Say Developer 'Abused' City Policy". Newsday. p. 9. ProQuest 285356126.
18. "MTA Neighborhood Maps: Midtown West" (PDF). mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2015. Retrieved December 11, 2015.
19. Project Overview mta.info

External links

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to 50th Street (IND Eighth Avenue Line).

• nycsubway.org – IND 8th Avenue: 50th Street
• nycsubway.org — Untitled Artwork by Matt Mullican (1989)
• Station Reporter —
• Station Reporter —
• MTA's Arts For Transit —
• 50th Street entrance from Google Maps Street View
• 51st Street entrance from Google Maps Street View
• 49th Street entrance from Google Maps Street View
• Platform from Google Maps Street View