96th Street station (IRT Lexington Avenue Line)

The 96th Street station is a local station on the IRT Lexington Avenue Line of the New York City Subway. Located at the intersection of Lexington Avenue and 96th Street in the Carnegie Hill and East Harlem neighborhoods of Manhattan, it is served by the 6 train at all times, the <6> train during weekdays in the peak direction, and the 4 train during late nights.

96 Street  ​
Northbound platform
Station statistics
Address	East 96th Street & Lexington Avenue New York, New York
Borough	Manhattan
Locale	Carnegie Hill & East Harlem
Coordinates	40.785773°N 73.950949°W / 40.785773; -73.950949
Division	A (IRT)[1]
Line	IRT Lexington Avenue Line
Services	4  (late nights) ​   6  (all times) <6>  (weekdays until 8:45 p.m., peak direction)
Transit	NYCT Bus: M96, M98, M101, M102, M103[2] Short Line Bus: 208
Structure	Underground
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	2
Other information
Opened	July 17, 1918 (106 years ago) (1918-07-17)[3]
Opposite- direction transfer	No
Traffic
2023	3,760,351[4]  10.9%
Rank	80 out of 423[4]
Services Preceding station New York City Subway Following station 103rd Street 4  ​6  <6> toward Pelham Bay Park Local 86th Street 4  ​6  <6> toward Brooklyn Bridge–City Hall does not stop here
Location Show map of New York City Subway Show map of New York City Show map of New York
Track layout Legend to 103rd Street to 86th Street
Street map
Station service legend Symbol Description Stops all times Stops late nights only Stops rush hours in the peak direction only

This station was constructed as part of the Dual Contracts by the Interborough Rapid Transit Company and opened in 1918. It was renovated in the 1990s.

History

A view of the station in March 1918, before it opened

Name mosaic

Following the completion of the original subway, there were plans to construct a line along Manhattan's east side north of 42nd Street. The original plan for what became the extension north of 42nd Street was to continue it south through Irving Place and into what is now the BMT Broadway Line at Ninth Street and Broadway. In July 1911, the IRT had withdrawn from the talks, and the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company (BRT) was to operate on Lexington Avenue. The IRT submitted an offer for what became its portion of the Dual Contracts on February 27, 1912.^[5][6]

In 1913, as part of the Dual Contracts, which were signed on March 19, 1913,^[7] the Public Service Commission planned to split the original Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) system from looking like a "Z" system (as seen on a map) to an H-shaped system. The original system would be split into three segments: two north–south lines, carrying through trains over the Lexington Avenue and Broadway–Seventh Avenue Lines, and a west–east shuttle under 42nd Street. This would form a roughly H-shaped system.^[8][9] It was predicted that the subway extension would lead to the growth of the Upper East Side and the Bronx.^[10][11]

The 96th Street station opened on July 17, 1918, with service initially running between Grand Central–42nd Street and 167th Street via the line's local tracks.^[3][12] On August 1, the "H system" was put into place, with through service beginning on the new east and west side trunk lines, and the institution of the 42nd Street Shuttle along the old connection between the sides.^[13][14] The cost of the extension from Grand Central was $58 million.^[15]

The city government took over the IRT's operations on June 12, 1940.^[16][17] The station was renovated in the 1990s, and had its original tilework restored.

Station layout

Ground	Street level	Exit/entrance
Mezzanine		Fare control, station agent, MetroCard machines
Platform level	Side platform
	Northbound local	← toward Pelham Bay Park or Parkchester (103rd Street) ← toward Woodlawn late nights (103rd Street)
	Southbound local	→ toward Brooklyn Bridge–City Hall (86th Street) → → toward New Lots Avenue late nights (86th Street) →
	Side platform
Express tracks[18]	Northbound express	← do not stop here
	Southbound express	→ do not stop here →

Mosaic frieze

The station has two local tracks and two side platforms. The 6 stops here at all times, and the 4 stops here during late nights.^[19][20] The express tracks run on a lower level and are not visible from the platforms.^[21] The station is between 103rd Street to the north and 86th Street to the south.^[22]

A crossover is provided, with a mosaic in the mezzanine entitled City Suite, commissioned in 1994. There are new^[when?] "96th Street" mosaics, and a window in the mezzanine overlooks the tracks, giving a view of oncoming trains from the south. The south end of the station features a rounded ceiling due to problems encountered during construction. Both platforms have emergency exits from the lower level express tracks.

Exits

The station has staircases leading to all four corners of the intersection of Lexington Avenue and 96th Street.^[23]