Parkside Avenue station

The Parkside Avenue station is a local station on the BMT Brighton Line of the New York City Subway. It is located at Parkside Avenue and Ocean Avenue in Flatbush, Brooklyn. The station is served by the Q train at all times.[3] It is also served by the B train on weekdays until early 2025.[4]

 Parkside Avenue
 "Q" train
New York City Subway station (rapid transit)
Open-cut section
Station statistics
AddressParkside Avenue & Ocean Avenue
Brooklyn, New York
BoroughBrooklyn
LocaleProspect Lefferts Gardens, Flatbush
Coordinates40°39′19″N 73°57′42″W / 40.65535°N 73.961651°W / 40.65535; -73.961651
DivisionB (BMT)[1]
LineBMT Brighton Line
Services   B weekday rush hours, middays and early evenings (weekday rush hours, middays and early evenings)
   Q all times (all times)
TransitBus transport NYCT Bus: B12, B16
StructureOpen-cut / Underground
Platforms2 side platforms
Tracks4
Other information
Openedbefore 1895
Rebuiltcurrent station: 1919; 105 years ago (1919)
Opposite-
direction
transfer
Yes
Former/other namesWoodruff Avenue
Traffic
20231,348,897[2]Increase 7.4%
Rank229 out of 423[2]
Services
Preceding station New York City Subway New York City Subway Following station
Prospect Park
Local
Church Avenue
"B" train does not stop here
Location
Parkside Avenue station is located in New York City Subway
Parkside Avenue station
Parkside Avenue station is located in New York City
Parkside Avenue station
Parkside Avenue station is located in New York
Parkside Avenue station
Track layout

Street map

Map

Station service legend
Symbol Description
Stops all times Stops all times

History

edit

This station was originally built sometime before 1895[when?] by the Brooklyn and Brighton Beach Railroad as Flatbush station. Through a series of mergers and acquisitions, it was acquired by the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company, and reopened in 1905 as a two-track station named Woodruff Avenue.

On June 20, 1917, the New York State Public Service Commission approved a resolution directing the New York Municipal Railway to construct an additional exit staircase from the proposed station's southbound platform to Ocean Avenue north of Woodruff Avenue.[5]

This portion of the line was rebuilt from a two-track open cut to a four-track open cut in 1919.

 
Tunnel section

On August 1, 1920, a tunnel under Flatbush Avenue opened, connecting the Brighton Line to the Broadway subway in Manhattan.[6][7] At the same time, the line's former track connections to the Fulton Street Elevated were severed. Subway trains from Manhattan and elevated trains from Franklin Avenue served Brighton Line stations, sharing the line to Coney Island.[7][8]

During the 1964–1965 fiscal year, the platforms at Parkside Avenue, along with those at six other stations on the Brighton Line, were lengthened to 615 feet (187 m) to accommodate ten-car trains of 60 feet (18 m)-long IND cars, or nine-car trains of 67 feet (20 m)-long BMT cars.[9]

In April 1993, the New York State Legislature agreed to give the MTA $9.6 billion for capital improvements. Some of the funds would be used to renovate nearly one hundred New York City Subway stations,[10][11] including Parkside Avenue.[12] The renovation was completed in 1996.[13]

In May 2015, the Parkside Plaza was established outside the station’s main entrance at Parkside and Ocean Avenue.[14] The Plaza features plants, chairs, tables and umbrellas, and it serves as a local gathering space and venue for events and outdoor markets. Local residents had worked for years to create the plaza upon what had previously been a large and underused strip of sidewalk.[15]

Station layout

edit
Ground Street level Station building, entrance/exit, station agent, MetroCard and OMNY vending machines
Platform level Side platform
Northbound local   toward 96th Street,   toward Bedford Park Boulevard or 145th Street (Prospect Park)
Northbound express No regular service
Southbound express No regular service
Southbound local   toward Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue,   toward Brighton Beach (Church Avenue)
Side platform

This station currently has four tracks and two side platforms. The two center express tracks are used by the B train when it operates on weekdays.[16]

The original southern two-thirds of the platforms are in a tunnel underneath cross streets and buildings, while the remaining northern one third is in an open cut. The extreme north ends of the platforms, which were extensions built in the 1960s, have no canopies and curve to the north. The southbound platform has its concrete wall painted beige while the northbound one is carved within the Earth's crust. Here, the station signs are the standard black plates in white lettering. The rest of the open cut has a concrete canopy with red columns. The remainder of the platforms in the tunnel have red columns and a red trim line and mosaic name tablets reading "PARKSIDE AVE." in gold serif font surrounded by diamonds.

The 1994 artwork here is called Brighton Clay Re-Leaf by Susan Tunick. It features ceramic tiles portraying leaves in the station house within fare control. This artwork can also be found at the Prospect Park station.

Exits

edit
 
Station entrance

The station's main entrance/exit is a street level station house on the northern end of the tunnel above the platforms and tracks. Two staircases from each platform go up to a waiting area/crossover, where a turnstile bank provides entrance/exit from the system. Outside fare control, there is a token booth and two sets of doors, one leading to Parkside Avenue and Ocean Avenue and the other to the southern entrance of Prospect Park.[17]

The Coney Island-bound platform has an exit-only at the extreme south end. A single platform-level turnstile leads to a short tunnel, where a staircase goes up to the southwest corner of Woodruff and Ocean Avenues. The extreme south end of the Manhattan-bound platform has an employee-only facility.[17]

References

edit
  1. ^ "Glossary". Second Avenue Subway Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement (SDEIS) (PDF). Vol. 1. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. March 4, 2003. pp. 1–2. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 26, 2021. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Annual Subway Ridership (2018–2023)". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2023. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  3. ^ "Q Subway Timetable, Effective June 30, 2024". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved June 28, 2024.
  4. ^ "B Subway Timetable, Effective June 30, 2024". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved June 28, 2024.
  5. ^ Proceedings of the Public Service Commission for the First District, State of New York, Volume XIV From January 1 to June 30, 1917 (Without Index). New York Public Service Commission. 1917. p. 1190.
  6. ^ "New Subway Link Opens; Service Started Through Queens and Montague Street Tubes". The New York Times. August 1, 1920. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on October 18, 2022. Retrieved May 3, 2018.
  7. ^ a b "Montague Street Tube, Brighton Subway Operation Begun". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. August 1, 1920. p. 53. Archived from the original on May 3, 2018. Retrieved May 3, 2018 – via Brooklyn Public Library; newspapers.com.
  8. ^ Kennedy, Randy (September 30, 2003). "Tunnel Vision; Short Line. Small Train. Little Graffiti". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on May 3, 2018. Retrieved May 3, 2018.
  9. ^ Annual Report 1964–1965. New York City Transit Authority. 1965.
  10. ^ Benenson, Joel (April 1, 1993). "Albany deal to save the $1.25 fare". New York Daily News. p. 1059. Archived from the original on April 28, 2023. Retrieved April 28, 2023.
  11. ^ Faison, Seth (April 3, 1993). "$9.6 Billion Package for M.T.A. Is Crucial to its Rebuilding Plans". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on April 28, 2023. Retrieved April 28, 2023.
  12. ^ "Stop the Fussing". Newsday. May 28, 1993. p. 56. Archived from the original on May 3, 2023. Retrieved April 28, 2023.
  13. ^ Hays, Constance L. (December 29, 1996). "Notes from the Underground: Station Renovations Continue. Watch Your Step on the Tiles". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 6, 2023.
  14. ^ "New Design for Parkside Plaza to Be Unveiled This Weekend". DNAinfo New York. Archived from the original on January 27, 2020. Retrieved January 27, 2020.
  15. ^ "Meet the People Breathing Life Into NYC's Overlooked Public Spaces". Streetsblog New York City. September 11, 2015. Retrieved January 27, 2020.
  16. ^ Dougherty, Peter (2006) [2002]. Tracks of the New York City Subway 2006 (3rd ed.). Dougherty. OCLC 49777633 – via Google Books.
  17. ^ a b "MTA Neighborhood Maps: Crown Heights" (PDF). mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2015. Retrieved January 1, 2017.
edit