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Proposed expansion of the New York City Subway

January 01, 1970

Since the opening of the original New York City Subway line in 1904, and throughout the 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 IRT and the 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.

A 1929 plan
A 1939 plan
A 1969 plan
Current services

Even with this expansion, there was a pressing need for growth. In 1922, Mayor 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 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 construction of the Second Avenue Subway. The 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 the Rockaways. In the late 1940s and 1950s, a Queens Bypass line via the Long Island Rail Road's 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 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 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 edit

See also: Dual Contracts
 
A 1910 plan for an 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.[1][2]

The route of the new subway ... 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.

In 1911, William Gibbs McAdoo, who operated a competing subway company called the Hudson & Manhattan Railroad, proposed building a line under Broadway between Hudson Terminal and Herald Square.[3] He later proposed that the Broadway line be tied into the IRT's 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, 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.[4]

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).[5]

Some lines proposed under the Contracts were not built, most notably an IRT line to 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.[6]

Mayor Hylan's plan edit

 
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 100 miles (160 km) of new lines and taking over nearly 100 miles (160 km) 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.[7][8]

Hylan's plan contained the following lines:[9]

  • A line running along Manhattan's West Side, stretching from the edge of the city at 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 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 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 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 (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 to Bedford Avenue. The line would narrow to three tracks to Broadway. Then the line would have continued underneath the BMT Jamaica Line to 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.[10]: 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 BMT Culver Line trains.
  • Extension of the BMT Fourth Avenue Line in Brooklyn, south to 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.[10]: 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 via 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:[9][11][12]

  • An extension of the Fourth Avenue Line to 95th Street.
  • Two major trunk lines in midtown Manhattan, with one running under Eighth Avenue and one under 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 179th Street, where bus service would converge.
  • A subway under the Grand Concourse in the Bronx, diverging from the Eighth Avenue Line in Manhattan at 145th Street and Saint Nicholas Avenue.

Major Phillip Mathews disagreed with the 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.[9]

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 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.[9]

To round out expansion in Manhattan, he proposed that an extension of the BMT Canarsie Line to 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.[9]

Subways to New Jersey edit

In 1926, a loop subway service was planned to be built to New Jersey. The rationale given was:[13]

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 82.6 miles [132.9 km] of route, and the electrification of 399 route-miles [642 km] of railroad now operated by steam. As the first step it is proposed to construct an interstate loop line 17.3 miles [27.8 km] 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.[13]

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 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 near the Palisades, while the Flushing Line was to be extended to Franklin Street between Boulevard and Bergenline Avenues in Union City. Ultimately, the cost was too great, and with the Great Depression, these ideas were quickly shot down.[13]

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.[14]

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.[15]

In 1986, the Regional Plan Association suggested extending the IRT Flushing Line to New Jersey's Meadowlands Sports Complex.[16]

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 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 below).[17]

In April 2012, citing budget considerations, the director of the 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.[18] 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."[19][20]

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.[21] An alternative would include a new terminal at Secaucus Junction in conjunction with the 7 extension.[22] 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.[23] If the New Jersey subway extension were to be constructed, it could complement the Gateway Project, which might become overcrowded by 2040.[24][25]

1929–1939 plans edit

IND Second System plan: route miles by borough
Borough Number of route miles
Queens
52.37
The Bronx
19.04
Brooklyn
16.84
Manhattan
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.[26]

The core Manhattan lines of the expansion were the 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 52 miles (84 km) of track be built in Queens alone.[26]

Details edit

The first plan was made on September 15, 1929 (before the IND even opened), and is detailed in the table below.[26] Cost is only for construction, and does not include land acquisition or other items.[27]

Line Streets From To Tracks Route miles Track miles Cost Notes
Manhattan
East Manhattan trunk line (Second Avenue Line) Water Street – New Bowery – Chrystie Street Pine Street Houston Street 2 from Pine Street to Chambers Street
4 to Houston Street		 1.34 4.68 $11,300,000 subway
Second Avenue Houston Street Harlem River 4 to 61st Street
6 to 125th Street
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) Worth Street – East Broadway – Grand Street Church Street East River 2 1.95 3.9 $13,300,000 subway
(Utica Avenue Line) Houston Street Essex Street East River 2 .93 1.86 $7,900,000 subway
Manhattan subtotal 11.87 45.48 $126,800,000
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 Concourse Line
White Plains Road Line   180th Street 241st Street   4.40 13.2 $2,100,000 owned by IRT, to be taken over ("recaptured") by IND
Bronx subtotal 19.04 51.32 $77,000,000
Brooklyn
Broadway Branch Line (Rockaway Line) Broadway East River Havemeyer Street at South Fourth Street 2 3.16 13.5 $34,800,000 subway
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
4 to Union Avenue
8 to Bushwick Avenue
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 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 Fulton Street Line) at Grant Avenue
Nostrand Avenue Extension   Flatbush Avenue Avenue S 2 2.25 4.5 $7,400,000 Extension of Nostrand Avenue Line as subway to Kings Highway, then elevated
Brooklyn subtotal 16.84 61.52 $114,500,000
Queens
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 Station 4 to Howard Beach
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
(Rockaway Line Extension)		 Newport Avenue Beach 116th Street Beach 149th Street 2 1.6 3.2 $2,400,000 along the surface or elevated
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;
terminal station partially-built as part of Roosevelt Avenue-Jackson Heights station, with short trackways leading to the spur.
Brinckerhoff - Hollis Avenue Line
(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 Fulton Street Line)
includes branch connection to BMT Jamaica Line (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
(now Linden Boulevard)		 4 to Van Wyck Boulevard
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
2 to 221st Street		 3.6 7.78 $9,600,000 extends the BMT/IRT 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
4 to Parsons Boulevard
2 to Cross Island Boulevard		 8.1 26.71 $17,700,000 extends the BMT/IRT Astoria Line as an elevated, except that part of it may be depressed near Nassau Boulevard (Long Island Expressway)
Liberty Avenue Line   Grant Avenue Lefferts Boulevard 3 2.3 6.9 $1,600,000 owned by BMT, to be taken over ("recaptured") by IND
now part of the Fulton Street Line
Queens subtotal 52.37 136.49 $119,100,000
Total 100.12 294.81 $438,400,000

Other plans during the same time edit

Revised 1932 plan edit

1932 plan: Route miles by borough
Borough Number of route miles
Queens
23.21
Brooklyn
13.14
Manhattan
12.49
The Bronx
12.09

The IND expansion plan was revised in 1932. It differs from the 1929 plan, but there are 60.93 route‑miles (98.06 km), of which 12.49 miles (20.10 km) are in Manhattan, 12.09 miles (19.46 km) in the Bronx, 13.14 miles (21.15 km) in Brooklyn, and 23.21 miles (37.35 km) in Queens. It would include a new 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 and the Roosevelt Avenue corridor.[28]

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.[28]

The table of route miles is as follows:[28]

Line Streets From To Route miles Notes
Manhattan
Second Avenue Line Water Street, Bowery, Chrystie Street, 2nd Avenue Water Street Alexander Avenue (Bronx) 8.64
34th Street Line 34th Street 2nd Avenue 10th Avenue 1.39
Worth Street, East Broadway and Grand Street Line Worth Street, East Broadway, and Grand Street Church Street Lewis Street 1.53
Houston Street Line Houston Street Essex Street East River 0.89
Manhattan subtotal 12.49
The Bronx
Alexander Avenue, Third Avenue, Boston Road, Melrose Road and East 172nd Street Line Alexander Avenue, Third Avenue, 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
Bronx subtotal 12.09
Brooklyn
Stuyvesant Avenue–Utica Avenue Line Stuyvesant Avenue, Utica Avenue East River Sheepshead Bay 10.71
Fulton Street and Rockaway Boulevard Line Fulton Street Rockaway Avenue Borough line with Queens 2.43
Brooklyn subtotal 13.14
Queens
Rockaway Peninsula Line Rockaway Beach Branch Queens Boulevard The Rockaways (Rockaway Park and Far Rockaway) 14.92 Was actually built south of Liberty Avenue
Van Wyck Boulevard Line Van Wyck Boulevard Hillside Avenue Rockaway Boulevard 2.30 Eventually partially-built (~0.4 mi) and connects to the IND Archer Avenue Line
Hillside Avenue Line Hillside Avenue 178th Street Springfield Boulevard 2.48
Fulton Street and Rockaway Boulevard Line Rockaway Boulevard, 120th Avenue Borough line with Brooklyn Springfield Boulevard 3.51
Queens subtotal 23.21
Total 60.93

Smaller plans edit

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 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.[29]
  • (1939 plan) A line splitting from the South Brooklyn (Culver) Line at 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 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.[30][31] The Staten Island Tunnel commenced construction in 1923 to serve the BMT Fourth Avenue Line, but was not completed.[32][33]
  • (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.[34]
  • (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 (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.[35]

Provisions for new lines edit

 
At 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.
 
The 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 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 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, with a small unused section blocked by a door.
  • At 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 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.[36][37]
  • At 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 widens out considerably between 218th Street and 229th Street in Queens Village, and gains a very wide 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 (Braddock Avenue) and to accommodate an underpass for Hillside Avenue underneath Springfield Boulevard and Braddock Avenue.[38][39][40] 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.[41]
  • 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 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 179th Street on the IND Queens Boulevard Line were intended to continue toward Floral Park, and the tunnel is designed to allow for such a future extension.[42]: 123 
  • The relay tracks east of Euclid Avenue on the IND Fulton Street Line were intended to continue toward Cambria Heights in Queens.
  • The 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 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:
    1. 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.
    2. The 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.[9]
    3. The northbound side platforms of Bay Ridge Avenue and 77th Street do not have platform pillars because the platforms were supposed to be temporary; the southbound platforms do have pillars, however.
  • Bellmouths for uncompleted lines are scattered in numerous stations, including 21st Street–Queensbridge, 59th Street, 63rd Drive–Rego Park, Bowery, Canal Street, and Woodhaven Boulevard:
    1. East of 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. 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.[43]
    2. There are bellmouths and space for two additional trackways (for a total of six) on the BMT Fourth Avenue Line south of 59th Street. These provisions were for the Staten Island Tunnel, which would have intersected with the line south of 59th Street.[9]
    3. East of 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.
    4. A line to the Rockaways would have split from the IND Eighth Avenue Line (under Church Street at this point), east under Worth Street. The junction was built and is used by the local tracks to 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.
    1. The completed IND 63rd Street Line, which the F and <F> train 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.
    2. 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 IND Archer Avenue Line.

Shells built edit

The South Fourth Street shell, if complete, was supposed to handle service as follows:

South Fourth Street shell (plan 1)[44]
Level 1 Northbound ← Broadway line westbound
Island platform
Southbound ← Broadway line eastbound →
Level 2 Northbound ← Utica Avenue express to Sixth Avenue
Island platform
Northbound ← Flushing/Utica Avenues local (termination platform)
Island platform
Northbound ← Flushing Avenue express to Eighth Avenue
Southbound ← Flushing Avenue express from Eighth Avenue →
Island platform
Southbound ← Flushing/Utica Avenues local →
Island platform
Southbound ← Utica Avenue express from Sixth Avenue →
Level 3 Southbound ← Utica Avenue local →
Island platform
Island platform
Southbound ← 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.

Another plan for the South Fourth Street shell was simpler (and was the plan that was partially completed):

South Fourth Street shell (plan 2)[45]
Level 1 Northbound ← Flushing Avenue express to Eighth Avenue
Island platform
Northbound ← Utica Avenue express to Sixth Avenue via East Houston Street
Island platform
Northbound ← Utica Avenue local to Sixth Avenue via Stanton Street
Southbound ← Utica Avenue local from Sixth Avenue via Stanton Street →
Island platform
Southbound ← Utica Avenue express from Sixth Avenue via East Houston Street →
Island platform
Southbound ← 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.

The Utica Avenue station shell, if complete, would be in the standard local-express-express-local platform configuration.

The 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 edit

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.

1938–1940 edit

 
The Staten Island Tunnel, started in 1912, was to be complete as per the 1940 plan.
 
The 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 would connect with the IRT Lenox Avenue Line, giving riders of the Jerome Avenue Line service to Manhattan's West Side.[42]: 123  This project was never undertaken because of the high cost of modifying the third rail in the Sedgwick Avenue and Anderson–Jerome Avenues tunnel section to accommodate new subway cars.[9]
  • The New York, Westchester and Boston Railway's abandoned right-of-way would have been rehabilitated and connected to the IRT Pelham Line.[9]
  • The IND Concourse Line would have been extended eastward to Gun Hill Road from 205th Street.[9]
  • The Second Avenue Subway would originate at Harding Avenue in the Bronx, and connect into the Court Street station in Brooklyn as a two-track and four-track line.[9] A yard would have been constructed to store the line's equipment.[46]: 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.[47]: 212 
  • An extension of the IRT Lenox Avenue Line would have been built so it could connect with the IRT Ninth Avenue Line.[48]
  • 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.[49]: 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.[48][49]: 371 
  • A connection between the Seventh Avenue Extension and the Rockaway Line would be built at 99th Street, costing $9.2 million.[49]: 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.[47]: 213  Only the portion south of Liberty Avenue was completed.[9]
  • An extension of the BMT Broadway Line, from 57th Street–Seventh Avenue to 145th Street, would run via Central Park and Morningside Drive.[9]
  • 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.[49]: 371  The line would then tunnel under the East River between Lewis Street to Driggs Avenue. This section would have cost $18.5 million.[49]: 372  The South Fourth Street junction would be completed.[9]
  • The IND Queens Boulevard Line and BMT Broadway Line would be connected through the construction of a connection at 11th Street. The connection would be between the Queens Boulevard Line's local tracks at Queens Plaza and the BMT 60th Street Tunnel.[9]
  • The IND Queens Boulevard Line would be extended from 178th to 184th Streets.[48]
  • 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, running along 149th Street and 11th Avenue as an elevated line from Roosevelt Avenue to 122nd Street, costing $14.1 million.[9][49]: 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.[9][49]: 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.[50]
  • The provision at Van Wyck Boulevard for a future line would be completed, and a new two-track line would be built to Rockaway Boulevard.[9]
  • The IND Fulton Street Line would get an eastward extension; it would first be extended to 106th Street as a four-track line,[48][49]: 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 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).[10]: 137, 142 [51] 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.[34] In May 2004, this idea resurfaced, with an attached track map drawn up.[52] 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.[48] The new line would run via Houston Street and Essex Street in Manhattan, and via Utica Avenue and Flatbush Avenue.[9]
  • Service on the IRT Nostrand Avenue Line would be extended down Nostrand Avenue to Voorhies Avenue in 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.[9] It would have cost $22.7 million.[49]: 372 
  • The IND would be extended to South Brooklyn with a connection at Cortelyou Road between its South Brooklyn Line and the BMT's Culver Line. This was the only completed Brooklyn proposal.[9]
  • 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.[9] Extension work was approved sometime before 1940, and plans were drawn up.[53]
  • 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.[9]
  • 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 and Tompkinsville.[9]

The IND Concourse Line got funding to be extended eastward past 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.[9]

1940s: Smaller plans edit

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.[54]

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 N and ​W trains) from its terminus at Ditmars Boulevard.[55][56] The line would have run along Ditmars Boulevard, and would have cost $10.5 million.[49]: 371 

In 1946, the Board of Transportation issued a $1 billion plan that would extend the subway to the farthest reaches of the outer boroughs.[57][58]

  • 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 with a connection at 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.[59]

  • The rebuilding of DeKalb Avenue that would remove the bottleneck and increase capacity by 18 tph.[59]
  • IND Sixth Avenue Line express tracks between West Fourth Street and 34th Street.[59]
  • A new subway line under 57th Street connecting the IND Sixth Avenue Line and the proposed Second Avenue trunk line.[59]
  • 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 Nassau Street would go to Brooklyn via the Montague Tunnel. During non-rush hours trains would terminate at Broad Street. There would be a passageway built from Grand Central via 43rd Street to Second Avenue to permit transfers.[59]
  • 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.[60]: 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 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.[59]
  • 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.[59]
  • 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.[59]
  • 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.[59]
  • 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.[59]
  • 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.[59]
  • 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. The additional capacity would result from the fact that trains operating via the former BMT Culver Line would not run through DeKalb Avenue Junction.[59]
  • A connection between the IND Queens Boulevard Line at Queens Plaza to the 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.[59]
  • The construction of a ramp connecting the IND Fulton Street Line with the 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.[59]

1950–1951 edit

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:[61]

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.[62][63] Many things were planned:

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 edit

The Board of Estimate accepted the following items into its 1954 budget from the New York City Transit Authority:

In March 1954, the Transit Authority issued a $658 million construction program including the following projects:[65]

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.[14]

1961 edit

John T. Clancy, a Democratic incumbent running for Queens Borough President in 1961 proposed third tracking the BMT Jamaica Elevated Line to provide express service, and reactivating the Rockaway Beach Branch from Rego Park to Liberty Avenue.[66]

1962–1963 edit

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.[67]

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 and IRT Jerome Avenue Line trains.[68]

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 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.[69]

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.[70]

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.[70]

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 4.5 miles (7.2 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.[70]

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 10.3 miles (16.6 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.[70]

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 6.6 miles (10.6 km) long and would have cost $116 million while the elevated/subway option would have been 4.5 miles (7.2 km) and would have cost $80.8 million.[70]

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.[70]

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 subway cars, and a branch continuing up the Grand Concourse and then connecting to the IND Concourse Line.[71][72]

In May 1963, the New York City Planning Commission proposed the following in response to the NYCTA's proposal:[71]

Rail Transit Services Present Population Served 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
* 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.[71][72]
  • 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.[71][72] 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).[71][72]
CPC Proposal TA Proposal
Route Miles Cost
$ Million 		Route Miles Cost
$ 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 edit

Proposed lines edit

 
The IND Concourse Line would have been extended to White Plains Road.
Main article: Program for Action

Similar plans were made by the New York City Transit Authority in 1968.[73][74] They included:

Completed lines edit

The Archer Avenue Lines are two lines, split between the BMT and IND, mostly running under Archer Avenue in the Jamaica neighborhood of Queens. Conceived as part of these 1968 expansion plans, they opened on December 11, 1988.[77] There are stub-end tunnels east of the line's northern terminus, Jamaica Center–Parsons/Archer, on both levels, which extend past the station for possible future extensions.[78]

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 to 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 in Manhattan east under 63rd Street and the East River through the 63rd Street Tunnel to the IND Queens Boulevard Line in Queens.[79] There is a stub-end tunnel at the northern terminus of the IND line that is intended for the Queens super-express bypass.[80]

1970s edit

In Lower Manhattan, plans were made for the following:[81]: 7 

  • A new terminal for IRT Seventh Avenue locals to South Ferry
  • A track connection between the Hudson Terminal (now World Trade Center) on the IND Eighth Avenue Line and Cortlandt Street on the BMT Broadway Line, both in Manhattan.
    • RR trains would be discontinued south of 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 would be replaced by two other services.
    • B Sixth Avenue express trains would be rerouted to the Eighth Avenue Lines, replacing the AA and 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 in Brooklyn.
    • 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 and Y would run the entire length of the Second Avenue line from New Jersey, then run toward Queens and the Bronx respectively.
    • 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 edit

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.[16]

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 Lines (7 and <7>​ and L, respectively).[82]

1990 edit

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 and Jamaica. The system was proposed to cost $2 billion. The MTA estimated that the rail link would take 30 minutes from Kennedy to LaGuardia, and the frequency of service would initially be every 15 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 minutes using the Long Island Rail Road, including transfers. To LaGuardia, the average travel time from the Grand Central station using the IRT Flushing Line would be 47 minutes.[83]

1998–99 edit

 
The AirTrain viaduct over 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.[84][85]

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:[86]

  • 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 to east of Forest Hills–71st Avenue
  • a new interlocking at 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 (31 km) (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:[86]

  1. The Co-op City–Second Avenue–Broadway–Whitehall Street service
  2. The 125th Street–Second Avenue–Atlantic Terminal Bypass–Jamaica Center service
  3. The Grand Central–Second Avenue–Atlantic Terminal Bypass–JFK Airport service
  4. The Grand Central–Second Avenue–Fourth Avenue–West End Line to Coney Island service
  5. 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):[86]
    • Lexington Avenue at 125th Street (transfer with 4, ​5, ​6, and <6> trains)
    • Grand Central Terminal (transfer with 4, ​5, ​6, <6>​, 7, <7>​​, and S trains)
    • Second Avenue at 116th, 106th, 96th, 86th, 72nd, 55th (transfer with 4, ​6, <6>​, E, and ​M trains), 44th, 34th, 23rd, 14th (transfer with L train), and Houston Streets
    • Bowery/Canal Street
    • Water Street at Wall/Fulton Streets and at Whitehall/Broad Streets
  • New Lower East Side Line (4 stations):[86]
    • First Avenue at 14th Street (transfer with L train)
    • Avenue C at 8th Street and at Houston Street
    • East Broadway at Pitt Street
  • New Co-op City Line (9 stations):[86]
    • Co-op City North, Central, and South stations
    • Bronx Municipal Hospital Center
    • East Tremont Avenue at White Plains Road and at West Farms Square (transfer with 2 and ​5 trains at the latter)
    • Boston Road at 169th Street
    • Third Avenue at 161st and 149th Street (transfer with 2 train at the latter)
  • Atlantic Branch (5 stations):[86]

The AirTrain JFK, Atlantic Branch, Main Line ROW, and Northeast Corridor would all be "recycled" to accommodate subway service under this plan. The Nostrand Avenue and East New York LIRR stations would also have been closed under MetroLink.[86]

21st-century expansion edit

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 edit

7 Subway Extension edit

 
The 34th Street station on the IRT Flushing Line, which opened in September 2015, was toured by then-Mayor Michael Bloomberg in 2013.
Main article: 7 Subway Extension

The 7 Subway Extension was devised in the late 1990s to extend the IRT Flushing Line, which carries the 7 local and <7> express services, further westward into Manhattan.[87] The extension stretches a total of 1 mile (1.6 km) from its former terminus at Times Square to a new western terminus at 34th Street and 11th Avenue.[87] The tunnels are actually 1.5 miles (2.4 km) long.[88] A second station at 10th Avenue–41st Street was dropped from the plans in October 2007, but could be restored if funding can be found.[89] 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.[90]

Michael Horodniceanu, chief of MTA Construction Company, told The New York Times that complications in the installation of the 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.[91] Further complications in February 2014 brought the projected date of the opening to November 2014,[92] then to February 2015,[93] then spring 2015,[94] and to summer 2015.[95] The station opened in September 2015.[96]

As proposed under the RPA's Fourth Regional Plan,[97] a second 7 Subway Extension would be built, serving 23rd Street before connecting with the existing 14th Street/Eighth Avenue station.[98]

Second Avenue Subway edit

 
72nd Street station cavern on the IND Second Avenue Line in January 2012.
Main articles: Second Avenue Subway and Construction of the Second Avenue Subway

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 tunnelling contract was awarded to the consortium of Schiavone/Shea/Skanska (S3) by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) on March 20, 2007.[99] This followed preliminary engineering and a final tunnel design completed by a joint venture between AECOM and Arup.[100][101] 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 and Second Avenue.[102] The total cost of the 8.5-mile (13.7 km) line is expected to top $17 billion.[103]

A ceremonial ground-breaking for the Second Avenue Subway was held in April 2007.[104] The tunnel boring machine (TBM) began digging the tunnels for Phase I in May 2010[105][106][107] and completed its excavations in September 2011.[108] Phase I, consisting of two miles (3.2 km) of tunnel and three stations, was opened in January 2017.[109][110][111] It cost $4.45 billion.[112] A 1.5-mile (2.4 km), $6 billion second phase is in planning;[113] land acquisition for Phase 2 started in April 2022.[114] As of October 2023, Phase 2 was set to open in early 2032.[115][116]

The RPA's Fourth Regional Plan proposed two northward extensions. Phase 2B would be an extension of Phase 2 under 125th Street from Lexington Avenue to Broadway. Phase 2C would be a spur to Third Avenue–149th Street, connecting with the IND Concourse Line.[98]

Proposals edit

Triboro RX edit

See also: New York Connecting Railroad and Bay Ridge Branch
 
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 train) and the Bronx via the Hell Gate Bridge. Based on Paris's RER commuter rail system, the Triboro RX proposal would create a partial loop around the city.[117] In 1996, the Regional Plan Association conducted a study to determine the feasibility of the rail link.[118] The original proposal would have terminated at Yankee Stadium.[119] The proposed line, discussion of which was revived in 2012, would connect to all non-shuttle subway services at 12 stations.[119][120]

The line in this proposal would have terminated at Hunts Point.[117] The line was brought back in the 2015 report "The Overlooked Boroughs" by the Regional Plan Association. The line would be 24 miles (39 km) long and would consist of 22 stations, would cost $1 billion and is projected to have more than 100,000 daily riders.[121][122] Plans for the line date back to 1995.[123]

Obstacles for the proposal include the proposed Cross-Harbor Rail Tunnel, the lack of electrification on the line, as well as the 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.[124] 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.[119] 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.[125]

Interborough Express edit

Main article: 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.[126] 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 14-mile (23 km) corridor using the existing Bay Ridge Branch and Fremont Secondary from Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, to Jackson Heights, Queens.[127] End-to-end travel times are expected to be less than 40 minutes, and weekday ridership is projected to be 115,000.[128] The route would connect up to 17 subway lines and the Long Island Rail Road.[129][130][131] The MTA indicated in September 2022 that it wanted to construct the IBX as a light rail line,[132] and Hochul announced in January 2023 that the project would proceed as a light rail corridor.[133][134]

Rockaway Line edit

 
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, 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.[135] A second group would use the right-of-way as a linear park, known as the 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.[136]

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 the Rockaways, 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.[137] 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.[138]

The line would cost $1 billion, if build in its full length with a connection to the IND Queens Boulevard Line, and would stretch across 3.5 miles (5.6 km), providing connections to several subway services as well as the LIRR.[139][140] 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.[141] The line would serve upwards of 250,000 passengers per day and would provide access to JFK Airport from Midtown Manhattan.[142] In February 2015, the Regional Plan Association suggested having some 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 and Glendale and then meeting up with the Rockaway Beach Branch in Rego Park.[125]

LaGuardia Airport extension edit

See also: LaGuardia Airport subway extension and 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.[143] 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 from LaGuardia to Willets Point.[144]

Utica Avenue and Nostrand Avenue Lines edit

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 (2, ​3, ​4, and ​5 trains) at 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, however, it is unclear how the line would be funded or built.[145][146]

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.[147] 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, which would allow trains to serve Kings Plaza.[148] Both the Utica Avenue and Nostrand Avenue proposals for extensions to Kings Plaza have been proposed since the 1910s.[6] Planning on the Utica Avenue Line stalled[149][150] because it was no longer viewed as a priority by the MTA.[151] 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.[152] Since the study occurred concurrently with the 2020 redesign of Brooklyn bus routes, the MTA decided to prioritize the Utica Avenue transit study.[153]

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.[98]

RPA plans edit

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.[154] Under the RPA's plan, the Second Avenue Subway would be completed to its full length within Manhattan and then extended to the Bronx. The 7 Subway Extension would expand in scope, with the IRT Flushing Line being extended to 14th Street and Eighth Avenue.[98]

Both the 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 or 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.[98] Ultimately, the plan included eight extensions with at least 40 stations in total.[98]

Subway station in Red Hook edit

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 in Lower Manhattan with a station at Governors Island possible, but unlikely due to cost and benefit.[155][156]

As of 2022, a potential extension of the BMT Broadway Line to Red Hook (to be served by the W train) is being evaluated as part of the MTA's 2025–2044 20-Year Needs Assessment.[157]

Other proposals edit

As of 2022, a potential extension of the IRT New Lots Line (to be served by the 3 train) to Spring Creek, Brooklyn, is being evaluated as part of the 2025–2044 20-Year Needs Assessment.[157]

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 following the completion of Phase 2. The line might be extended westward to Broadway and 125th Street, connecting with the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line's 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 and 137th Street; or to St. Nicholas Avenue and 135th Street, merging with the IND Eighth Avenue Line.[157]

Discontinued plans edit

PATH-Lexington Avenue connection edit

After the PATH's 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 loops 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 3,000 feet (910 m) to the Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall station on the New York City Subway's IRT Lexington Avenue Line.[81]: 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.[81]: 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.[158][159]

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External links edit

KML file (edit • help)
Template:Attached KML/Proposed New York City Subway expansion (1929–40)
KML is from Wikidata
  • NYCsubway.org – IND Second System
  • Abandoned Stations (A thorough treatment of the history of the abandoned subway stations)
    • IND Second System unfinished stations
  • (including a plan for a line to Staten Island)
  • The Future NYC Subway November 29, 2013, at the Wayback Machine (a thorough treatment of subway extensions that have been discussed, but never built)
  • The Lost Subways of New York interactive map (WNYC)

January 01, 1970
proposed, expansion, york, city, subway, since, opening, original, york, city, subway, line, 1904, throughout, subway, history, various, official, planning, agencies, have, proposed, numerous, extensions, subway, system, first, major, expansion, subway, system. Since the opening of the original New York City Subway line in 1904 and throughout the 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 IRT and the 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 A 1929 plan A 1939 plan A 1969 plan Current services Even with this expansion there was a pressing need for growth In 1922 Mayor 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 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 construction of the Second Avenue Subway The 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 the Rockaways In the late 1940s and 1950s a Queens Bypass line via the Long Island Rail Road s 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 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 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 Contents 1 Triborough System 2 Mayor Hylan s plan 3 Subways to New Jersey 4 1929 1939 plans 4 1 Details 4 2 Other plans during the same time 4 2 1 Revised 1932 plan 4 2 2 Smaller plans 4 3 Provisions for new lines 4 3 1 Shells built 5 1940 1999 plans 5 1 1938 1940 5 2 1940s Smaller plans 5 3 1950 1951 5 4 1954 5 5 1961 5 6 1962 1963 5 7 1968 5 7 1 Proposed lines 5 7 2 Completed lines 5 8 1970s 5 9 1986 5 10 1990 5 11 1998 99 6 21st century expansion 6 1 Current or completed plans 6 1 1 7 Subway Extension 6 1 2 Second Avenue Subway 6 2 Proposals 6 2 1 Triboro RX 6 2 2 Interborough Express 6 2 3 Rockaway Line 6 2 4 LaGuardia Airport extension 6 2 5 Utica Avenue and Nostrand Avenue Lines 6 2 6 RPA plans 6 2 7 Subway station in Red Hook 6 2 8 Other proposals 6 3 Discontinued plans 6 3 1 PATH Lexington Avenue connection 7 References 8 External linksTriborough System editSee also Dual Contracts nbsp A 1910 plan for an 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 1 2 The route of the new subway 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 In 1911 William Gibbs McAdoo who operated a competing subway company called the Hudson amp Manhattan Railroad proposed building a line under Broadway between Hudson Terminal and Herald Square 3 He later proposed that the Broadway line be tied into the IRT s 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 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 4 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 5 Some lines proposed under the Contracts were not built most notably an IRT line to 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 6 Mayor Hylan s plan edit nbsp 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 100 miles 160 km of new lines and taking over nearly 100 miles 160 km 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 7 8 Hylan s plan contained the following lines 9 A line running along Manhattan s West Side stretching from the edge of the city at 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 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 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 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 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 to Bedford Avenue The line would narrow to three tracks to Broadway Then the line would have continued underneath the BMT Jamaica Line to 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 10 120 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 BMT Culver Line trains Extension of the BMT Fourth Avenue Line in Brooklyn south to 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 10 120 125 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 via 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 9 11 12 An extension of the Fourth Avenue Line to 95th Street Two major trunk lines in midtown Manhattan with one running under Eighth Avenue and one under 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 179th Street where bus service would converge A subway under the Grand Concourse in the Bronx diverging from the Eighth Avenue Line in Manhattan at 145th Street and Saint Nicholas Avenue Major Phillip Mathews disagreed with the 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 9 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 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 9 To round out expansion in Manhattan he proposed that an extension of the BMT Canarsie Line to 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 9 Subways to New Jersey editIn 1926 a loop subway service was planned to be built to New Jersey The rationale given was 13 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 82 6 miles 132 9 km of route and the electrification of 399 route miles 642 km of railroad now operated by steam As the first step it is proposed to construct an interstate loop line 17 3 miles 27 8 km 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 13 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 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 near the Palisades while the Flushing Line was to be extended to Franklin Street between Boulevard and Bergenline Avenues in Union City Ultimately the cost was too great and with the Great Depression these ideas were quickly shot down 13 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 14 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 15 In 1986 the Regional Plan Association suggested extending the IRT Flushing Line to New Jersey s Meadowlands Sports Complex 16 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 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 below 17 In April 2012 citing budget considerations the director of the 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 18 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 19 20 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 21 An alternative would include a new terminal at Secaucus Junction in conjunction with the 7 extension 22 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 23 If the New Jersey subway extension were to be constructed it could complement the Gateway Project which might become overcrowded by 2040 24 25 1929 1939 plans editIND Second System plan route miles by borough Borough Number of route miles Queens 52 37 The Bronx 19 04 Brooklyn 16 84 Manhattan 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 26 The core Manhattan lines of the expansion were the 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 52 miles 84 km of track be built in Queens alone 26 Details edit The first plan was made on September 15 1929 before the IND even opened and is detailed in the table below 26 Cost is only for construction and does not include land acquisition or other items 27 Line Streets From To Tracks Route miles Track miles Cost Notes Manhattan East Manhattan trunk line Second Avenue Line Water Street New Bowery Chrystie Street Pine Street Houston Street 2 from Pine Street to Chambers Street4 to Houston Street 1 34 4 68 11 300 000 subway Second Avenue Houston Street Harlem River 4 to 61st Street6 to 125th Street4 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 Worth Street East Broadway Grand Street Church Street East River 2 1 95 3 9 13 300 000 subway Utica Avenue Line Houston Street Essex Street East River 2 93 1 86 7 900 000 subway Manhattan subtotal 11 87 45 48 126 800 000 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 Concourse Line White Plains Road Line 180th Street 241st Street 4 40 13 2 2 100 000 owned by IRT to be taken over recaptured by IND Bronx subtotal 19 04 51 32 77 000 000 Brooklyn Broadway Branch Line Rockaway Line Broadway East River Havemeyer Street at South Fourth Street 2 3 16 13 5 34 800 000 subway 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 Avenue4 to Union Avenue8 to Bushwick Avenue4 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 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 Fulton Street Line at Grant Avenue Nostrand Avenue Extension Flatbush Avenue Avenue S 2 2 25 4 5 7 400 000 Extension of Nostrand Avenue Line as subway to Kings Highway then elevated Brooklyn subtotal 16 84 61 52 114 500 000 Queens 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 Station 4 to Howard Beach2 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 Rockaway Line Extension Newport Avenue Beach 116th Street Beach 149th Street 2 1 6 3 2 2 400 000 along the surface or elevated 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 terminal station partially built as part of Roosevelt Avenue Jackson Heights station with short trackways leading to the spur Brinckerhoff Hollis Avenue Line 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 Fulton Street Line includes branch connection to BMT Jamaica Line 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 now Linden Boulevard 4 to Van Wyck Boulevard2 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 Street2 to 221st Street 3 6 7 78 9 600 000 extends the BMT IRT 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 Boulevard4 to Parsons Boulevard2 to Cross Island Boulevard 8 1 26 71 17 700 000 extends the BMT IRT Astoria Line as an elevated except that part of it may be depressed near Nassau Boulevard Long Island Expressway Liberty Avenue Line Grant Avenue Lefferts Boulevard 3 2 3 6 9 1 600 000 owned by BMT to be taken over recaptured by INDnow part of the Fulton Street Line Queens subtotal 52 37 136 49 119 100 000 Total 100 12 294 81 438 400 000 Other plans during the same time edit Revised 1932 plan edit 1932 plan Route miles by borough Borough Number of route miles Queens 23 21 Brooklyn 13 14 Manhattan 12 49 The Bronx 12 09 The IND expansion plan was revised in 1932 It differs from the 1929 plan but there are 60 93 route miles 98 06 km of which 12 49 miles 20 10 km are in Manhattan 12 09 miles 19 46 km in the Bronx 13 14 miles 21 15 km in Brooklyn and 23 21 miles 37 35 km in Queens It would include a new 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 and the Roosevelt Avenue corridor 28 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 28 The table of route miles is as follows 28 Line Streets From To Route miles Notes Manhattan Second Avenue Line Water Street Bowery Chrystie Street 2nd Avenue Water Street Alexander Avenue Bronx 8 64 34th Street Line 34th Street 2nd Avenue 10th Avenue 1 39 Worth Street East Broadway and Grand Street Line Worth Street East Broadway and Grand Street Church Street Lewis Street 1 53 Houston Street Line Houston Street Essex Street East River 0 89 Manhattan subtotal 12 49 The Bronx Alexander Avenue Third Avenue Boston Road Melrose Road and East 172nd Street Line Alexander Avenue Third Avenue 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 Bronx subtotal 12 09 Brooklyn Stuyvesant Avenue Utica Avenue Line Stuyvesant Avenue Utica Avenue East River Sheepshead Bay 10 71 Fulton Street and Rockaway Boulevard Line Fulton Street Rockaway Avenue Borough line with Queens 2 43 Brooklyn subtotal 13 14 Queens Rockaway Peninsula Line Rockaway Beach Branch Queens Boulevard The Rockaways Rockaway Park and Far Rockaway 14 92 Was actually built south of Liberty Avenue Van Wyck Boulevard Line Van Wyck Boulevard Hillside Avenue Rockaway Boulevard 2 30 Eventually partially built 0 4 mi and connects to the IND Archer Avenue Line Hillside Avenue Line Hillside Avenue 178th Street Springfield Boulevard 2 48 Fulton Street and Rockaway Boulevard Line Rockaway Boulevard 120th Avenue Borough line with Brooklyn Springfield Boulevard 3 51 Queens subtotal 23 21 Total 60 93 Smaller plans edit 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 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 29 1939 plan A line splitting from the South Brooklyn Culver Line at 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 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 30 31 The Staten Island Tunnel commenced construction in 1923 to serve the BMT Fourth Avenue Line but was not completed 32 33 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 34 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 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 35 Provisions for new lines edit nbsp At 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 nbsp The 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 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 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 with a small unused section blocked by a door At 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 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 36 37 At 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 widens out considerably between 218th Street and 229th Street in Queens Village and gains a very wide 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 Braddock Avenue and to accommodate an underpass for Hillside Avenue underneath Springfield Boulevard and Braddock Avenue 38 39 40 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 41 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 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 179th Street on the IND Queens Boulevard Line were intended to continue toward Floral Park and the tunnel is designed to allow for such a future extension 42 123 The relay tracks east of Euclid Avenue on the IND Fulton Street Line were intended to continue toward Cambria Heights in Queens The 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 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 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 9 The northbound side platforms of Bay Ridge Avenue and 77th Street do not have platform pillars because the platforms were supposed to be temporary the southbound platforms do have pillars however Bellmouths for uncompleted lines are scattered in numerous stations including 21st Street Queensbridge 59th Street 63rd Drive Rego Park Bowery Canal Street and Woodhaven Boulevard East of 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 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 43 There are bellmouths and space for two additional trackways for a total of six on the BMT Fourth Avenue Line south of 59th Street These provisions were for the Staten Island Tunnel which would have intersected with the line south of 59th Street 9 East of 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 at this point east under Worth Street The junction was built and is used by the local tracks to 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 F and lt F gt train 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 IND Archer Avenue Line Shells built edit The South Fourth Street shell if complete was supposed to handle service as follows South Fourth Street shell plan 1 44 Level 1 Northbound Broadway line westbound Island platform Southbound Broadway line eastbound Level 2 Northbound Utica Avenue express to Sixth Avenue Island platform Northbound Flushing Utica Avenues local termination platform Island platform Northbound Flushing Avenue express to Eighth Avenue Southbound Flushing Avenue express from Eighth Avenue Island platform Southbound Flushing Utica Avenues local Island platform Southbound Utica Avenue express from Sixth Avenue Level 3 Southbound Utica Avenue local Island platform Island platform Southbound 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 Another plan for the South Fourth Street shell was simpler and was the plan that was partially completed South Fourth Street shell plan 2 45 Level 1 Northbound Flushing Avenue express to Eighth Avenue Island platform Northbound Utica Avenue express to Sixth Avenue via East Houston Street Island platform Northbound Utica Avenue local to Sixth Avenue via Stanton Street Southbound Utica Avenue local from Sixth Avenue via Stanton Street Island platform Southbound Utica Avenue express from Sixth Avenue via East Houston Street Island platform Southbound 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 The Utica Avenue station shell if complete would be in the standard local express express local platform configuration The 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 editAfter 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 1938 1940 edit nbsp The Staten Island Tunnel started in 1912 was to be complete as per the 1940 plan nbsp The 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 would connect with the IRT Lenox Avenue Line giving riders of the Jerome Avenue Line service to Manhattan s West Side 42 123 This project was never undertaken because of the high cost of modifying the third rail in the Sedgwick Avenue and Anderson Jerome Avenues tunnel section to accommodate new subway cars 9 The New York Westchester and Boston Railway s abandoned right of way would have been rehabilitated and connected to the IRT Pelham Line 9 The IND Concourse Line would have been extended eastward to Gun Hill Road from 205th Street 9 The Second Avenue Subway would originate at Harding Avenue in the Bronx and connect into the Court Street station in Brooklyn as a two track and four track line 9 A yard would have been constructed to store the line s equipment 46 703 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 47 212 An extension of the IRT Lenox Avenue Line would have been built so it could connect with the IRT Ninth Avenue Line 48 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 49 371 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 48 49 371 A connection between the Seventh Avenue Extension and the Rockaway Line would be built at 99th Street costing 9 2 million 49 371 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 47 213 Only the portion south of Liberty Avenue was completed 9 An extension of the BMT Broadway Line from 57th Street Seventh Avenue to 145th Street would run via Central Park and Morningside Drive 9 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 49 371 The line would then tunnel under the East River between Lewis Street to Driggs Avenue This section would have cost 18 5 million 49 372 The South Fourth Street junction would be completed 9 The IND Queens Boulevard Line and BMT Broadway Line would be connected through the construction of a connection at 11th Street The connection would be between the Queens Boulevard Line s local tracks at Queens Plaza and the BMT 60th Street Tunnel 9 The IND Queens Boulevard Line would be extended from 178th to 184th Streets 48 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 running along 149th Street and 11th Avenue as an elevated line from Roosevelt Avenue to 122nd Street costing 14 1 million 9 49 371 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 9 49 371 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 50 The provision at Van Wyck Boulevard for a future line would be completed and a new two track line would be built to Rockaway Boulevard 9 The IND Fulton Street Line would get an eastward extension it would first be extended to 106th Street as a four track line 48 49 371 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 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 10 137 142 51 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 34 In May 2004 this idea resurfaced with an attached track map drawn up 52 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 48 The new line would run via Houston Street and Essex Street in Manhattan and via Utica Avenue and Flatbush Avenue 9 Service on the IRT Nostrand Avenue Line would be extended down Nostrand Avenue to Voorhies Avenue in 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 9 It would have cost 22 7 million 49 372 The IND would be extended to South Brooklyn with a connection at Cortelyou Road between its South Brooklyn Line and the BMT s Culver Line This was the only completed Brooklyn proposal 9 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 9 Extension work was approved sometime before 1940 and plans were drawn up 53 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 9 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 and Tompkinsville 9 The IND Concourse Line got funding to be extended eastward past 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 amp B line became the IRT Dyre Avenue Line in December 1941 and the IND Concourse Line extension was not brought up again until 1968 9 1940s Smaller plans edit 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 54 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 N and W trains from its terminus at Ditmars Boulevard 55 56 The line would have run along Ditmars Boulevard and would have cost 10 5 million 49 371 In 1946 the Board of Transportation issued a 1 billion plan that would extend the subway to the farthest reaches of the outer boroughs 57 58 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 with a connection at 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 59 The rebuilding of DeKalb Avenue that would remove the bottleneck and increase capacity by 18 tph 59 IND Sixth Avenue Line express tracks between West Fourth Street and 34th Street 59 A new subway line under 57th Street connecting the IND Sixth Avenue Line and the proposed Second Avenue trunk line 59 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 Nassau Street would go to Brooklyn via the Montague Tunnel During non rush hours trains would terminate at Broad Street There would be a passageway built from Grand Central via 43rd Street to Second Avenue to permit transfers 59 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 60 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 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 59 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 59 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 59 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 59 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 59 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 59 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 The additional capacity would result from the fact that trains operating via the former BMT Culver Line would not run through DeKalb Avenue Junction 59 A connection between the IND Queens Boulevard Line at Queens Plaza to the 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 59 The construction of a ramp connecting the IND Fulton Street Line with the 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 59 1950 1951 edit 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 61 The rebuilding of 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 Connections to the IRT Pelham Line at Third Avenue 138th Street and to the IRT White Plains Road Line at 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 62 63 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 62 The line would have a track connection to the IRT Pelham Line at Third Avenue 138th Street and there would be a branch terminating at 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 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 62 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 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 62 IND Sixth Avenue Line express tracks DeKalb Avenue rebuilding including closure of the 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 62 60th Street Tunnel Connection 62 Extension of the IRT Nostrand Avenue Line to Voorhies Avenue 62 Construction of the IRT Utica Avenue Line from Crown Heights Utica Avenue to Kings Plaza 62 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 edit 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 bottleneck on the BMT 64 The construction of the Nostrand Avenue extension to Avenue U It would have cost 51 7 million 64 The extension of the IND Fulton Street Line to the BMT Liberty Avenue Elevated 64 A start on the Second Avenue Subway in Chrystie Street 64 Adding express tracks to the IND Sixth Avenue Line 64 In March 1954 the Transit Authority issued a 658 million construction program including the following projects 65 A Second Avenue trunk line which would have allowed 34 more trains to midtown per hour 65 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 65 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 65 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 65 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 65 The completion of the 60th Street Tunnel Connection which was under construction would increase service to Jamaica by fifteen trains per hour 65 The addition of two tracks to the IND Sixth Avenue Line would allow express service 65 The elimination of the DeKalb Avenue bottleneck on the BMT which would allow eighteen more trains to be operated per hour 65 The construction of the Nostrand Avenue exension to Avenue U 65 The construction of the Chrystie Street Connection 65 The connection of the IND South Brooklyn Line and the BMT Culver Line at Ditmas Avenue would be opened in the spring and would have allowed eight more trains to run per hour on the BMT Brighton Line 65 Bottlenecks would be removed at Grand Central on the IRT East Side Line and at 96th Street on the IRT West Side Line 65 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 14 1961 edit John T Clancy a Democratic incumbent running for Queens Borough President in 1961 proposed third tracking the BMT Jamaica Elevated Line to provide express service and reactivating the Rockaway Beach Branch from Rego Park to Liberty Avenue 66 1962 1963 edit 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 67 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 and IRT Jerome Avenue Line trains 68 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 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 69 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 70 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 70 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 4 5 miles 7 2 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 70 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 10 3 miles 16 6 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 70 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 6 6 miles 10 6 km long and would have cost 116 million while the elevated subway option would have been 4 5 miles 7 2 km and would have cost 80 8 million 70 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 70 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 subway cars and a branch continuing up the Grand Concourse and then connecting to the IND Concourse Line 71 72 In May 1963 the New York City Planning Commission proposed the following in response to the NYCTA s proposal 71 An implementation of skip stop service on the BMT Jamaica Line 71 An extension of a proposed Madison Avenue Line and the IND Sixth Avenue Line operating via 59th Street with two branches 71 72 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 subway cars and a branch connecting to the IND Concourse Line 71 72 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 area 71 72 Subway trains would have continued via the Port Washington Branch to 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 Lower Montauk Branch and would have continued on the branch through Jamaica where it would continue via the Atlantic Branch until Rosedale staying within city limits 71 72 The report claims that its proposed routes would serve up to twice as many people as the NYCTA s proposed routes 71 72 Rail Transit Services Present Population Served 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 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 71 72 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 71 72 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 71 72 CPC Proposal TA Proposal Route Miles Cost Million Route Miles Cost 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 edit Proposed lines edit nbsp The IND Concourse Line would have been extended to White Plains Road Main article Program for Action Similar plans were made by the New York City Transit Authority in 1968 73 74 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 75 A crosstown line under 34th Street from 12th Avenue to 1st Avenue 75 IND BMT 63rd Street Line A new line running along Park Avenue in the Bronx to replace the Third Avenue Elevated 75 Super express bypass of IND Queens Boulevard Line 75 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 76 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 75 IRT Nostrand Avenue Line extension to Avenue W in Sheepshead Bay 75 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 75 Extension of the BMT Canarsie Line to Nostrand Avenue or JFK Airport Extension of the IRT New Lots Line to Linwood Street and Flatlands Avenue Extension of the IND Concourse Line to White Plains Road Completed lines edit The Archer Avenue Lines are two lines split between the BMT and IND mostly running under Archer Avenue in the Jamaica neighborhood of Queens Conceived as part of these 1968 expansion plans they opened on December 11 1988 77 There are stub end tunnels east of the line s northern terminus Jamaica Center Parsons Archer on both levels which extend past the station for possible future extensions 78 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 to 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 in Manhattan east under 63rd Street and the East River through the 63rd Street Tunnel to the IND Queens Boulevard Line in Queens 79 There is a stub end tunnel at the northern terminus of the IND line that is intended for the Queens super express bypass 80 1970s edit In Lower Manhattan plans were made for the following 81 7 A new terminal for IRT Seventh Avenue locals to South Ferry A track connection between the Hudson Terminal now World Trade Center on the IND Eighth Avenue Line and Cortlandt Street on the BMT Broadway Line both in Manhattan RR trains would be discontinued south of 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 would be replaced by two other services B Sixth Avenue express trains would be rerouted to the Eighth Avenue Lines replacing the AA and 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 in Brooklyn 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 and Y would run the entire length of the Second Avenue line from New Jersey then run toward Queens and the Bronx respectively 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 edit 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 16 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 Lines 7 and lt 7 gt and L respectively 82 1990 edit 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 and Jamaica The system was proposed to cost 2 billion The MTA estimated that the rail link would take 30 minutes from Kennedy to LaGuardia and the frequency of service would initially be every 15 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 minutes using the Long Island Rail Road including transfers To LaGuardia the average travel time from the Grand Central station using the IRT Flushing Line would be 47 minutes 83 1998 99 edit nbsp The AirTrain viaduct over 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 84 85 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 86 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 to east of Forest Hills 71st Avenue a new interlocking at 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 31 km 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 86 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 86 Lexington Avenue at 125th Street transfer with 4 5 6 and lt 6 gt trains Grand Central Terminal transfer with 4 5 6 lt 6 gt 7 lt 7 gt and S trains Second Avenue at 116th 106th 96th 86th 72nd 55th transfer with 4 6 lt 6 gt E and M trains 44th 34th 23rd 14th transfer with L train and Houston Streets Bowery Canal Street Water Street at Wall Fulton Streets and at Whitehall Broad Streets New Lower East Side Line 4 stations 86 First Avenue at 14th Street transfer with L train Avenue C at 8th Street and at Houston Street East Broadway at Pitt Street New Co op City Line 9 stations 86 Co op City North Central and South stations Bronx Municipal Hospital Center East Tremont Avenue at White Plains Road and at West Farms Square transfer with 2 and 5 trains at the latter Boston Road at 169th Street Third Avenue at 161st and 149th Street transfer with 2 train at the latter Atlantic Branch 5 stations 86 Jay Street MetroTech transfer with A C F lt F gt N R and W trains Atlantic Terminal transfer with 2 3 4 5 B D N Q R and W trains Linden Boulevard Locust Manor Laurelton The AirTrain JFK Atlantic Branch Main Line ROW and Northeast Corridor would all be recycled to accommodate subway service under this plan The Nostrand Avenue and East New York LIRR stations would also have been closed under MetroLink 86 21st century expansion editThe 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 edit 7 Subway Extension edit nbsp The 34th Street station on the IRT Flushing Line which opened in September 2015 was toured by then Mayor Michael Bloomberg in 2013 Main article 7 Subway Extension The 7 Subway Extension was devised in the late 1990s to extend the IRT Flushing Line which carries the 7 local and lt 7 gt express services further westward into Manhattan 87 The extension stretches a total of 1 mile 1 6 km from its former terminus at Times Square to a new western terminus at 34th Street and 11th Avenue 87 The tunnels are actually 1 5 miles 2 4 km long 88 A second station at 10th Avenue 41st Street was dropped from the plans in October 2007 but could be restored if funding can be found 89 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 90 Michael Horodniceanu chief of MTA Construction Company told The New York Times that complications in the installation of the 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 91 Further complications in February 2014 brought the projected date of the opening to November 2014 92 then to February 2015 93 then spring 2015 94 and to summer 2015 95 The station opened in September 2015 96 As proposed under the RPA s Fourth Regional Plan 97 a second 7 Subway Extension would be built serving 23rd Street before connecting with the existing 14th Street Eighth Avenue station 98 Second Avenue Subway edit nbsp 72nd Street station cavern on the IND Second Avenue Line in January 2012 Main articles Second Avenue Subway and Construction of the Second Avenue Subway 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 tunnelling contract was awarded to the consortium of Schiavone Shea Skanska S3 by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority MTA on March 20 2007 99 This followed preliminary engineering and a final tunnel design completed by a joint venture between AECOM and Arup 100 101 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 and Second Avenue 102 The total cost of the 8 5 mile 13 7 km line is expected to top 17 billion 103 A ceremonial ground breaking for the Second Avenue Subway was held in April 2007 104 The tunnel boring machine TBM began digging the tunnels for Phase I in May 2010 105 106 107 and completed its excavations in September 2011 108 Phase I consisting of two miles 3 2 km of tunnel and three stations was opened in January 2017 109 110 111 It cost 4 45 billion 112 A 1 5 mile 2 4 km 6 billion second phase is in planning 113 land acquisition for Phase 2 started in April 2022 114 As of October 2023 update Phase 2 was set to open in early 2032 115 116 The RPA s Fourth Regional Plan proposed two northward extensions Phase 2B would be an extension of Phase 2 under 125th Street from Lexington Avenue to Broadway Phase 2C would be a spur to Third Avenue 149th Street connecting with the IND Concourse Line 98 Proposals edit Triboro RX edit See also New York Connecting Railroad and Bay Ridge Branch nbsp 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 train and the Bronx via the Hell Gate Bridge Based on Paris s RER commuter rail system the Triboro RX proposal would create a partial loop around the city 117 In 1996 the Regional Plan Association conducted a study to determine the feasibility of the rail link 118 The original proposal would have terminated at Yankee Stadium 119 The proposed line discussion of which was revived in 2012 would connect to all non shuttle subway services at 12 stations 119 120 The line in this proposal would have terminated at Hunts Point 117 The line was brought back in the 2015 report The Overlooked Boroughs by the Regional Plan Association The line would be 24 miles 39 km long and would consist of 22 stations would cost 1 billion and is projected to have more than 100 000 daily riders 121 122 Plans for the line date back to 1995 123 Obstacles for the proposal include the proposed Cross Harbor Rail Tunnel the lack of electrification on the line as well as the 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 124 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 119 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 125 Interborough Express edit Main article 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 126 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 14 mile 23 km corridor using the existing Bay Ridge Branch and Fremont Secondary from Bay Ridge Brooklyn to Jackson Heights Queens 127 End to end travel times are expected to be less than 40 minutes and weekday ridership is projected to be 115 000 128 The route would connect up to 17 subway lines and the Long Island Rail Road 129 130 131 The MTA indicated in September 2022 that it wanted to construct the IBX as a light rail line 132 and Hochul announced in January 2023 that the project would proceed as a light rail corridor 133 134 Rockaway Line edit nbsp 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 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 135 A second group would use the right of way as a linear park known as the 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 136 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 the Rockaways 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 137 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 138 The line would cost 1 billion if build in its full length with a connection to the IND Queens Boulevard Line and would stretch across 3 5 miles 5 6 km providing connections to several subway services as well as the LIRR 139 140 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 141 The line would serve upwards of 250 000 passengers per day and would provide access to JFK Airport from Midtown Manhattan 142 In February 2015 the Regional Plan Association suggested having some 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 and Glendale and then meeting up with the Rockaway Beach Branch in Rego Park 125 LaGuardia Airport extension edit See also LaGuardia Airport subway extension and 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 143 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 from LaGuardia to Willets Point 144 Utica Avenue and Nostrand Avenue Lines edit 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 2 3 4 and 5 trains at 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 update however it is unclear how the line would be funded or built 145 146 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 147 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 which would allow trains to serve Kings Plaza 148 Both the Utica Avenue and Nostrand Avenue proposals for extensions to Kings Plaza have been proposed since the 1910s 6 Planning on the Utica Avenue Line stalled 149 150 because it was no longer viewed as a priority by the MTA 151 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 152 Since the study occurred concurrently with the 2020 redesign of Brooklyn bus routes the MTA decided to prioritize the Utica Avenue transit study 153 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 98 RPA plans edit 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 154 Under the RPA s plan the Second Avenue Subway would be completed to its full length within Manhattan and then extended to the Bronx The 7 Subway Extension would expand in scope with the IRT Flushing Line being extended to 14th Street and Eighth Avenue 98 Both the 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 or 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 98 Ultimately the plan included eight extensions with at least 40 stations in total 98 Subway station in Red Hook edit 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 in Lower Manhattan with a station at Governors Island possible but unlikely due to cost and benefit 155 156 As of 2022 update a potential extension of the BMT Broadway Line to Red Hook to be served by the W train is being evaluated as part of the MTA s 2025 2044 20 Year Needs Assessment 157 Other proposals edit As of 2022 update a potential extension of the IRT New Lots Line to be served by the 3 train to Spring Creek Brooklyn is being evaluated as part of the 2025 2044 20 Year Needs Assessment 157 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 following the completion of Phase 2 The line might be extended westward to Broadway and 125th Street connecting with the IRT Broadway Seventh Avenue Line s 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 and 137th Street or to St Nicholas Avenue and 135th Street merging with the IND Eighth Avenue Line 157 Discontinued plans edit PATH Lexington Avenue connection edit After the PATH s 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 loops 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 3 000 feet 910 m to the Brooklyn Bridge City Hall station on the New York City Subway s IRT Lexington Avenue Line 81 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 81 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 158 159 References edit A New Subway Line for New York City The Triborough System Its History 1910 www nycsubway org Retrieved March 25 2014 The Dual System of Rapid Transit 1912 www nycsubway org Retrieved March 25 2014 M Adoo Would Build A West Side Subway The New York Times September 16 1910 p 10 Retrieved July 19 2011 M ADCO READY TO RUN TRIBOROUGH Giving a 5 Cent Ride from the Bronx to the End of the Brooklyn Extension The New York Times November 19 1910 ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved April 26 2018 nycsubway org The Dual Contracts a b Transit Outlook Bright in Brooklyn First Branch Lines on Assessment Plan Likely to be Built in That Borough The New York Times March 6 1910 ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved August 9 2016 Two Subway Routes Adopted by City The New York Times August 4 1923 p 9 Plans Now Ready to Start Subways The New York Times March 12 1924 p 1 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y nycsubway org History of the Independent Subway a b c Raskin Joseph B 2013 The Routes Not Taken A Trip Through New York City s Unbuilt Subway System New York New York Fordham University Press doi 10 5422 fordham 9780823253692 001 0001 ISBN 978 0 82325 369 2 Three Rapid Transit Contracts are Let PDF The New York Times December 29 1922 Retrieved June 28 2015 95th St Subway Extension Opened at 2 P M Today Brooklyn Daily Eagle Newspapers com October 31 1912 Retrieved June 29 2015 a b c nycsubway org Extensive Rapid Transit Plan Proposed for North Jersey 1926 1927 a b City Subway Link to New Jersey At 14th St Urged to Ease Traffic PDF The New York Times June 14 1954 p 23 Retrieved February 8 2016 Commuters Offer Transit Proposals PDF The New York Times June 12 1963 Retrieved August 17 2015 a b Study Suggests IRT Extension to New Jersey The New York Times March 21 1986 Retrieved August 17 2015 Charles V Bagli November 17 2010 Take the No 7 to Secaucus The New York Times Retrieved July 3 2013 Haughney Christine April 3 2012 MTA Chief rules out subway line to New Jersey The New York Times Retrieved April 4 2012 Plan to extend No 7 subway from NYC to New Jersey could be back on track Mike Frassinelli The Star Ledger April 10 2013 Brinkerhoff Parsons April 2013 No 7 Secaucus Extension Feasibility Analysis Final Report PDF Report NYCEDC p III X Archived from the original PDF on November 5 2013 Retrieved April 10 2013 Higgs Larry April 21 2017 New York subway extension to N J may not be dead after all NJ com Retrieved February 28 2018 Smith Sandy April 26 2017 On Again Off Again New Jersey Bus Terminal May Be On Again Next City Retrieved May 5 2017 Barone Vincent February 27 2018 Cross Hudson study options include 7 line extension into NJ am New York Retrieved February 28 2018 McGeehan Patrick February 27 2018 A Subway Ride to New Jersey It Could Happen Officials Say The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved February 28 2018 Transit study will look into running No 7 train into New Jersey NY Daily News February 13 2018 Retrieved February 28 2018 a b c nycsubway org IND Second System 1929 Plan 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 a b c 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 amp 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 The New York Times February 29 1932 Retrieved May 27 2017 Whitestone Group Has Shuttle Plan Board of Estimate is Asked to Back Private Operation of Abandoned Line PDF The New York Times March 9 1932 Retrieved August 17 2015 Tunnel Prospects Bright Brooklyn Daily Eagle Newspapers com July 19 1933 Retrieved June 29 2015 DC A Tunnel from SI to Brooklyn Daniel Convissor Retrieved December 16 2010 Leigh Irvin Matus Paul January 2002 State Island Rapid Transit The Essential History thethirdrail net The Third Rail Online Retrieved June 27 2015 Niebuhr Robert E November 27 1964 They Called The 1923 Narrows Tunnel Hope And A Hole In The Ground brooklynrail net Home Reporter and Sunset News Brooklyn Historic Railway Association Retrieved June 27 2015 a b Track diagram of the revised plan Transit Maps Transitmaps tumblr com April 5 2013 Archived from the original on March 18 2014 Retrieved March 25 2014 Drawing of Stair Layout at Utica Avenue Station IND Fulton Line nytm pastperfectonline com Board of Transportation Retrieved November 5 2017 Bulletin General Contractors Association of New York 1934 p 89 Queens Interlaced with New Arteries New Boulevards Parks and Parkways Important Factors in Growth of Borough The New York Times May 13 1928 Retrieved July 8 2015 1931 Hillside Av Widening Queens Village Bellerose SUBWAY Map NYC New York Map 494116324 Worthpoint December 17 2013 Retrieved February 5 2017 Hillside Avenue Widening at Springield sic Boulevard and 219th Street for the future extension of the Hillside Avenue Subway Flickr October 1 2015 Retrieved February 5 2017 Hillside Avenue Widening at Springield sic Boulevard and 219th Street for the future extension of the Hillside Avenue Subway Flickr October 1 2015 Retrieved February 5 2017 Hillside Avenue Widening at Springield sic Boulevard and 219th Street for the future extension of the Hillside Avenue Subway Flickr October 1 2015 Retrieved February 5 2017 In The Matter Of The Widening of Hillside Avenue Queens Boro Petition For Relief From Assessment November 19 1937 Retrieved August 9 2018 Route 108 Section 13 Springfield Boulevard Station June 19 1931 New York City Board of Transportation June 19 1931 Retrieved August 9 2018 Route 108 Section 13 Springfield Boulevard Station June 19 1931 New York City Board of Transportation June 19 1931 Retrieved August 9 2018 Route 108 Section 13 Springfield Boulevard Station June 19 1931 New York City Board of Transportation June 19 1931 Retrieved August 9 2018 a b Transportation New York N Y Board of Spinrad Isidor 1945 Report Including Analysis of Operations of the New York City Transit System For Five Years Ended June 30 1945 The Board 63rd Street Connector Contracts Map nycsubway org Metropolitan Transportation Authority Retrieved October 28 2016 Display Document thejoekorner com Retrieved February 17 2015 Display Document thejoekorner com Retrieved February 17 2015 Proceedings New York N Y Board of Transportation 1939 a b Transportation New York N Y Board of 1945 Proceedings a b c d e 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 PDF The New York Times August 10 1939 ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved January 16 2018 dead link a b c d e f g h i j Transportation New York N Y Board of 1943 Proceedings The Board Bulletin General Contractors Association of New York 1939 pp 169 170 Roess Roger P Sansone Gene 2012 The Wheels That Drove New York A History of the New York City Transit System Springer Science amp Business Media pp 416 417 ISBN 978 3 642 30484 2 Electric Railroaders Association May 2004 bulletin pp 5 6 Urge Bay Ridge Subway Work The New York Times May 19 1940 ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved August 15 2016 Wants Subway Extended Yonkers Mayor to Ask City to Take Over N Y C Branch PDF The New York Times June 27 1942 Retrieved August 17 2015 Post War Plans List 2 Subway Links for Boro Brooklyn Daily Eagle Newspapers com August 8 1943 Retrieved July 19 2015 Outlay of Billion for Transit Line Proposed for City PDF The New York Times November 17 1945 Retrieved July 5 2015 Borough Subway Relief Still 2 to 3 Years Off Brooklyn Daily Eagle Newspapers com December 6 1946 p 5 Retrieved January 22 2016 Borough Subway Relief Still 2 to 3 Years Off Brooklyn Daily Eagle Newspapers com December 6 1946 p 1 Retrieved January 22 2016 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Report for the three and one half years ending June 30 1949 New York City Board of Transportation 1949 hdl 2027 mdp 39015023094926 Transportation New York N Y Board of 1948 Proceedings 134 500 00 Asked For Queens Transit Bingham Proposal to Mayor Includes Buying Rockaway Line Linking it to 2d Ave PDF The New York Times June 22 1950 Retrieved January 26 2016 a b c d e f g h Board of Transportation 1951 Thejoekorner com Archived from the original on February 24 2021 Retrieved March 25 2014 Crowell Paul September 14 1951 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 PDF The New York Times Retrieved January 25 2016 a b c d e Assurance of Nostrand Avenue Spur Is a Great VIctory for Brooklyn Brooklyn Daily Eagle Newspapers com January 17 1954 Retrieved August 19 2015 a b c d e f g h i j k l m Improvements That Are Planned for Subways PDF The New York Times March 24 1954 Retrieved February 8 2016 3 Candidates Vie Again in Queens Borough President Clancy Faces Tougher Battle PDF The New York Times November 1 1961 Retrieved February 8 2016 Perlmutter Emanuel July 18 1962 New Subway Line to Bronx Asked for Rush Hours Authority Seeks 197 Million for Non Stop Service to 59th Street District The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved January 8 2017 via New York Times Archive Perlmutter Emanuel July 18 1962 New Subway Line to Bronx Asked for Rush Hours Authority Seeks 197 Million for Non Stop Service to 59th Street District The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved January 8 2017 via New York Times Archive Perlmutter Emanuel July 18 1962 New Subway Line to Bronx Asked for Rush Hours Authority Seeks 197 Million for Non Stop Service to 59th Street District The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved January 8 2017 via New York Times Archive a b c d e f Complete Text of TA s Queens Subway Plan Long Island Star Journal April 1 1963 Retrieved April 24 2018 Preliminary Proposal For Rapid Transit Expansion Borough of Queens February 1963 Worthpoint Retrieved April 24 2018 1 d81871b68bbe111193165e90b4971a6c 1 Flickr Photo Sharing 1 d81871b68bbe111193165e90b4971a6c Flickr Photo Sharing a b c d e f g h i j k 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 May 1 1963 Retrieved May 27 2017 a b c d e f g h i Better Rapid Transit for New York City A Report and Program by the New York City Planning Commission May 1 1963 Retrieved May 27 2017 1968 NYCTA Expansion Plans Picture Second Avenue Sagas Retrieved December 1 2013 Program for Action maps from thejoekorner com a b c d e f g Archived copy Archived from the original on December 8 2013 Retrieved August 19 2015 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint archived copy as title link Kihss Peter April 13 1967 3 Routes Proposed to Aid Growing Queens Areas PDF The New York Times Retrieved June 27 2015 Johnson Kirk December 9 1988 Big Changes For Subways Are to Begin The New York Times Retrieved July 5 2009 Archer Ave Route proposed Construction Queens Environmental Impact Statement Urban Mass Transit Administration United States Department of Transportation August 1973 Archived from the original on August 20 2020 Retrieved August 6 2016 Darlington Peggy IND 6th Ave 63rd St Line www nycsubway org Retrieved October 20 2011 Caitsith810 December 17 2008 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 Youtube Archived from the original on December 12 2021 Retrieved September 1 2013 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint numeric names authors list link a b c PATH Lex Connection PDF rrwg org April 14 2004 Retrieved April 24 2018 West Side Transit Officials Take A Look Ahead The New York Times January 18 1986 Retrieved August 17 2015 M T A Proposes Rail Line to Link Major Airports The New York Times March 18 1990 Retrieved August 17 2015 Toscano John July 16 2003 N Train Extension To LaG Scrapped Queens Gazette Archived from the original on May 25 2009 Retrieved July 26 2009 Flashback To 1999 www qgazette com Queens Gazette www qgazette com June 27 2007 Archived from the original on March 22 2016 Retrieved March 25 2014 a b c d e f g Metrolink Archived August 2 2010 at the Wayback Machine a b Work to Begin Under Last Major Contract Needed to Extend the 7 MTA info September 14 2011 Archived from the original on August 17 2012 Retrieved September 16 2011 7 Line Extension MTA info Retrieved November 10 2013 Hogarty Dave October 20 2007 The Shrinking 7 Line Extension Gothamist Archived from the original on June 6 2009 Retrieved February 26 2017 MTA s 7 Line Extension Project Pushed Back Six Months NY1 June 5 2012 Archived from the original on July 11 2012 Retrieved June 5 2012 More Delays and Rising Cost for Project Connecting L I R R to Grand Central Terminal The New York Times January 27 2014 Kabak Benjamin February 27 2014 7 line extension opening now projected for November Second Avenue Sagas Retrieved March 5 2014 Mueller Benjamin June 23 2014 Transit Hub and Work on No 7 Line Face Delays The New York Times New York will have to wait till spring for No 7 subway extension NY Daily News December 15 2014 Retrieved December 15 2014 Emma G Fitzsimmons March 24 2015 More Delays for No 7 Subway Line Extension The New York Times Retrieved March 29 2015 Fitzsimmons Emma G September 12 2015 Subway Station to Open This Weekend Bringing 7 Line to Far West Side The New York Times Retrieved September 13 2015 See also RPA plans a b c d e f Fourth Regional Plan Transportation Regional Plan Association Retrieved November 30 2017 Barone Vincent November 30 2017 New subway lines extensions key for system s future Report am New York Retrieved December 1 2017 MTA Press Release March 20 2007 Arup to design new Second Avenue Subway New York Arup November 20 2001 Archived from the original on February 5 2009 Retrieved June 9 2013 Second Avenue Subway Transport Consulting Arup Archived from the original on February 2 2009 Retrieved June 9 2013 Second Avenue Subway A Status Report PDF Retrieved August 2 2009 Sargent Greg March 29 2004 The Line That Time Forgot Second Avenue Subway Nymag com Retrieved August 2 2009 a href Template Cite journal html title Template Cite journal cite journal a Cite journal requires journal help Neuman William April 13 2007 Was There a Ghost No Just a Tunnel at the Latest Subway Groundbreaking The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved June 12 2017 Blasting on Second Avenue thelaunchbox blogspot com March 22 2010 Siff Andrew May 14 2010 2nd Ave Subway Tunnel Dig Begins WNBC Retrieved May 14 2010 Tunneling Begins Under Second Avenue MTA May 14 2010 Archived from the original on August 17 2012 Retrieved May 17 2010 Various September 23 2011 Second Avenue Subway has a breakthrough moment several billion more are all the M T A wants Capital New York Archived from the original on March 31 2014 Retrieved March 31 2014 Slotnik Daniel E Wolfe Jonathan Fitzsimmons Emma G Palmer Emily Remnick Noah January 1 2017 Opening of Second Avenue Subway Updates The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved January 1 2017 Rivoli Dan Sandoval Edgar Brown Stephen Rex January 1 2017 New Yorkers take historic first ride on Second Ave subway New York Daily News Retrieved January 1 2017 Nessen Stephen January 1 2017 See Inside The 2nd Avenue Subway Opens to All WNYC Retrieved January 1 2017 Drone takes tour of NYC s 2nd Avenue subway line CBS News September 16 2015 Retrieved October 27 2016 New York City 2nd Ave Subway Phase 2 Profile PDF FTA December 27 2016 Archived from the original PDF on January 5 2017 Retrieved January 4 2017 Garber Nick April 19 2022 125th Street Building Seized By MTA For Second Avenue Subway Harlem NY Patch Retrieved April 19 2022 Stallone Michael October 31 2023 2nd Avenue subway Harlem extension due to open in 2032 What to know FOX 5 New York Retrieved November 1 2023 Simko Bednarski Evan October 30 2023 Second Ave subway s Harlem extension due in 2032 documents New York Daily News Retrieved November 1 2023 a b How About a Subway Linking Brooklyn Queens amp The Bronx WITHOUT Manhattan Gothamist August 21 2013 Archived from the original on August 21 2013 Retrieved August 22 2013 Third Regional Plan Summary rpa org Archived from the original on July 28 2013 Retrieved February 17 2015 a b c Rubinstein Dana April 25 2012 The surprising return of the three borough X line subway Capital New York Retrieved March 25 2014 RPA Growing Outer Boroughs Need New Generation of Transit Investment Streetsblog New York City Retrieved February 9 2016 R P A calls again for outer borough X line www capitalnewyork com Retrieved February 8 2016 RPA Reiterates Their Triboro Rx Outer Borough Subway Plan in Updated Report Viewing NYC April 16 2015 Retrieved February 9 2016 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 Committee For Better Transit April 1995 Retrieved May 29 2017 Manhattan Centric Transit System Falls Short in Other Boroughs Regional Plan Association Retrieved February 9 2016 a b Overlooked Boroughs Where New York City s Transit Falls Short and How to Fix It Technical Report PDF Regional Plan Association February 2015 Archived from the original PDF on March 4 2016 Retrieved February 8 2016 Advocates Push to Revive Three Old Rail Lines in City www ny1 com Retrieved October 16 2019 WABC January 5 2022 Proposed transit line would connect Brooklyn Queens to 17 subway lines LIRR ABC7 New York Retrieved January 6 2022 Interborough Express Gold Michael January 20 2022 Transit Line Connecting Brooklyn and Queens Moves Step Closer to Reality The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved January 21 2022 Duggan Kevin January 20 2022 Hochul unveils more details about Interborough Express in new study amNewYork Retrieved January 21 2022 Interborough Express IBX Feasibility Study and Alternatives Analysis Interim Report MTA January 2022 Guse Clayton September 23 2022 MTA officials see light rail as easiest option for Brooklyn Queens Interborough Express final choice months away New York Daily News Retrieved January 11 2023 Martinez Jose January 10 2023 Hochul Calls MTA Lifeblood of New York but Transit Plans Lack Meat The City Retrieved January 11 2023 Marybeth Luczak January 11 2023 Light Rail Selected for New York s Interborough Express Project Railway Age Jose Martinez October 8 2019 Rockaway Branch Rail Reboot Study Finally Lands The City Retrieved July 12 2021 Colangelo Lisa L February 13 2012 Lawmakers southern Queens commuters need a new railway more than the Queensway Daily News New York Retrieved February 14 2012 Colangelo Lisa L February 13 2012 Lawmakers southern Queens commuters need a new railway more than the Queensway Daily News New York Retrieved February 14 2012 Rafter Domenick March 21 2013 Rockaway Beach rail plan to be backed by Reps Jeffries Meeks Queens Chronicle Retrieved March 21 2013 Kabak Benjamin March 31 2015 Samuelsen Reactivate the Rockaway Beach Branch ROW Second Avenue Sagas Retrieved February 9 2016 Kabak Benjamin May 7 2012 Making the case for the Rockaway Beach Branch Second Avenue Sagas Retrieved February 9 2016 Colangelo Lisa L February 13 2012 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 New York Daily News Retrieved February 8 2016 New York State Assembly Phillip Goldfeder assembly state ny us Archived from the original on February 16 2016 Retrieved February 9 2016 A Revamped La Guardia Airport Could Look Like This In 2021 Curbed NY March 19 2014 Retrieved February 17 2015 The right train to the plane NY Daily News February 21 2017 Retrieved February 22 2017 Emma G Fitzsimmons April 22 2015 Mayor de Blasio Revives Plan for a Utica Avenue Subway Line The New York Times Retrieved April 23 2015 Jennifer Fermino April 22 2015 De Blasio unveils One New York plan combining efforts to fight poverty improve environment add transit New York Daily News Retrieved April 23 2015 MTA Capital Program 2015 2019 Renew Enhance Expand Amendment No 2 As Proposed to the MTA Board May 2017 PDF mta info May 24 2017 Retrieved May 24 2017 MTA looks into possible new subway line to Marine Park news12 com News 12 Brooklyn August 8 2016 Archived from the original on August 12 2016 Retrieved August 9 2016 Is Mayor Bill de Blasio s Utica Avenue Brooklyn subway extension dead Metro US December 27 2017 Retrieved January 4 2018 Burger Elena February 21 2017 Little Progress on Utica Avenue Subway Expansion Gotham Gazette Retrieved January 4 2018 Jacobson Savannah March 25 2019 City Transportation Commissioner on Managing the Streets Expanding the Subway amp More Gotham Gazette Retrieved April 7 2019 Rivoli Dan April 5 2019 MTA to Study if a Utica Avenue Subway Extension is Worth Pursuing ny1 com Retrieved April 7 2019 Utica Avenue transit study to inform MTA leading into Brooklyn Bus Redesign amNewYork February 13 2020 Retrieved February 14 2020 Siff Andrew Price R Darren November 30 2017 No 24 7 Subways Move MSG Radical Transit Proposal Released NBC New York Retrieved December 1 2017 Plitt Amy November 30 2017 To save the NYC subway stop running it 24 7 report Curbed NY Retrieved December 1 2017 Davidson Justin November 30 2017 The Regional Plan Association Would Like to Close the Subways All Night Daily Intelligencer Retrieved December 1 2017 Barone Vincent January 2 2018 Subway extension to Red Hook proposed by Cuomo am New York Retrieved January 3 2018 Warerkar Tanay January 2 2018 Cuomo proposes subway extension from Lower Manhattan to Red Hook Curbed NY Retrieved January 3 2018 a b c MTA s 2025 2044 20 Year Needs Assessment MTA Retrieved July 27 2022 The Port Authority s Missed Connection The PATH Lex Line That Never Was New York YIMBY September 12 2014 Retrieved April 24 2018 Port Authority of New York and New Jersey 2007 Permanent WTC PATH Terminal Environmental Impact Statement United States Department of Transportation Federal Transit Administration pp S 8 to S 9 External links editKML file edit help Template Attached KML Proposed New York City Subway expansion 1929 40 KML is from Wikidata NYCsubway org IND Second System Abandoned Stations A thorough treatment of the history of the abandoned subway stations IND Second System unfinished stations JoeKorNer IND Second System including a plan for a line to Staten Island The Future NYC Subway Archived November 29 2013 at the Wayback Machine a thorough treatment of subway extensions that have been discussed but never built Jim O Grady Lost Subways Abandoned Stations amp Unbuilt Lines The Lost Subways of New York interactive map WNYC Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Proposed expansion of the New York City Subway amp oldid 1221512640 Triboro RX, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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