Avenue X station

The Avenue X station is a local station in the Gravesend neighborhood of Brooklyn on the IND Culver Line of the New York City Subway. It is served by the F train at all times and the <F> train during rush hours in the peak direction.

Avenue X  ​
New York City Subway station (rapid transit)
An R160 F train at the station
Station statistics
Address	Avenue X & McDonald Avenue Brooklyn, New York
Borough	Brooklyn
Locale	Gravesend
Coordinates	40°35′24.51″N 73°58′26.85″W
Division	B (IND, formerly BMT)[1]
Line	IND Culver Line BMT Culver Line (formerly)
Services	F  (all times) <F>  (two rush hour trains, peak direction)​
Transit	NYCT Bus: B1, B4
Structure	Elevated
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	3 (2 in regular service)
Other information
Opened	May 10, 1919 (105 years ago) (1919-05-10)
Opposite- direction transfer	Yes
Traffic
2023	479,429[2]  8.4%
Rank	388 out of 423[2]
Services Preceding station New York City Subway Following station Avenue U F  <F> ​ toward Jamaica–179th Street Local Neptune Avenue F  <F> ​ toward Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue
Non-revenue services and lines Preceding station New York City Subway Following station Kings Highway express no service
Location Show map of New York City Subway Show map of New York City Show map of New York
Track layout Legend to Kings Highway to Avenue U to Coney Island Yard to Neptune Avenue
Street map
Station service legend Symbol Description Stops all times Stops rush hours in the peak direction only (limited service) Stops weekdays and weekday late nights

History

Platforms prior to renovation

As part of Contract 4 of the Dual Contracts, between the city and the BRT, a three-track elevated railway was built above the surface Culver Line from the Fifth Avenue Elevated southeast and south to Coney Island.^[3] The Culver Line was operated as a branch of the Fifth Avenue Elevated, with a free transfer at Ninth Avenue to the West End Line into the Fourth Avenue Subway.^[4][5][6][7] Avenue X station opened as the line was extended from Kings Highway at noon on May 10, 1919.^[8][9][10] This station ceased being the line's terminal with the completion of the line to Coney Island on May 1, 1920.^[11][12]

On October 30, 1954,^[13][14] this station began being served by IND D Concourse Express trains operating to Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue as the connection between the IND South Brooklyn Line at Church Avenue and the BMT Culver Line at Ditmas Avenue opened.^[15][16] BMT Culver Line (5) trains were truncated to Ditmas Avenue, the south end of the connection, operating through to Manhattan via the Nassau Street Loop during the day, and terminating at Ninth Avenue at other times.^[17][18] This Culver Shuttle became full-time on May 28, 1959, and was discontinued in 1975.^[19][20][21]

The station was renovated from June 29, 2015 to December 28, 2015 (Manhattan-bound platform) and June 7, 2016 to May 8, 2017 (Coney Island-bound platform with trains bypassing on the center track) as part of a $140 million renewal project on the Culver Line.^{[22][23][24][25]}

In May 2018, site specific permanent public artwork created by NYC based American artist Derek Lerner was installed at this station. The MTA Arts & Design commissioned art consists of six multi-panel original and unique ink drawings fabricated as laminated glass and installed in platform windscreens.^[26]

Station layout

Platform level	Side platform
	Northbound local	← toward Jamaica–179th Street (Avenue U)
	Peak-direction express	→ No regular service
	Southbound local	→ toward Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue (Neptune Avenue) →
	Side platform
Mezzanine		Fare control, station agent, MetroCard and OMNY machines
Ground	Street level	Entrance/exit

Station view from ground level

It is the southernmost three-track station on the line, with two side platforms. South of this station, the line is reduced to two tracks as it runs to Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue. Alongside the southbound side of the station is the Coney Island Complex, and there are two tracks that lead to the yard south of this station.^[22][27]

Exits

The full-time mezzanine at 86th Street and Avenue X has two staircases to the street, and one staircase to each platform. There was a second mezzanine that was abandoned and removed years ago, but little evidence of it remains. The platform stairs are narrower today than they were when the station first opened. The width is more than two feet shorter than normal at the top half of each staircase.^[28]

The southbound side has an exit-only staircase at platform level^[28] that was used primarily to direct customers to the F shuttle bus to Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue when it was closed for reconstruction from September 2002 to May 2004, and this station was used as a terminal.

References

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. "Annual Subway Ridership (2018–2023)". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2023. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
3. New York Public Service Commission, New Subways For New York: The Dual System of Rapid Transit, June 1913
4. The New York Times, B.R.T. Will Open Culver Line Elevated Road as Far as Kings Highway on Sunday Next, March 9, 1919, page 23
5. The New York Times, Culver Line Open Today, March 16, 1919, page 8
6. Frederick J. H. Kracke, Public Service Commissioner, The New York Times, New Rapid Transit Link in Operation, March 16, 1919, page 106
7. The New York Times, Culver Elevated Opens, March 17, 1919, page 21
8. Legislative Documents. J.B. Lyon Company. January 1, 1920.
9. The New York Times, New Transit Line Opened, May 11, 1919, page 25
10. The New York Times, New Culver Extension, May 18, 1919, page 116
11. "5-CENT FARE TO CONEY.; Change Is Effective Today on B.R. T. Elevated and Subway Lines". The New York Times. May 1, 1920. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 15, 2016.
12. District, New York (State) Public Service Commission First (January 1, 1921). Annual Report for the Year Ended ... The Commission.
13. Chiasson, George (May 2010). "A History of the F (and V) Train Service". New York Division Bulletin. 53 (5). Electric Railroaders' Association: 1, 4.
14. Culver Line Ceremonies
15. The New York Times, Adequate Transit Promised for City, October 29, 1954, page 25
16. Sparberg, Andrew J. (October 1, 2014). From a Nickel to a Token: The Journey from Board of Transportation to MTA. Fordham University Press. ISBN 978-0-8232-6190-1.
17. The New York Times, Bronx to Coney Ride in New Subway Link, October 18, 1954, page 34
18. The New York Times, Bronx-Coney Line is Opened by IND, October 31, 1954, page 73
19. "BMT Acts to Speed Rush-Hour Service" (PDF). The New York Times. May 21, 1959. Retrieved September 4, 2016.
20. Muir, Hugh O. (June 8, 1959). "TA Says End Of Culver Line Speeds BMT". New York World-Telegram. Fultonhistory.com. p. B1. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
21. Hanley, Robert (May 12, 1975). "Brooklyn's Culver Shuttle Makes Festive Final Run". The New York Times. p. 20. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
22. "Feasibility and Analysis of F Express Service in Brooklyn" (PDF). Metropolitan Transportation Authority. May 2016. Retrieved June 24, 2016.
23. "Coney Island-bound F subway trains will not stop at Avenue I, Bay Pkwy, Avenue N, Avenue P, Avenue U, and Avenue X until early 2017". web.mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2016. Archived from the original on May 27, 2016. Retrieved October 9, 2016.
24. "Coney Island-bound Service Restored". web.mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. May 1, 2017. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
25. "New York City Subway Map" (PDF). mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. May 2, 2017. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
26. "Station artwork by artist Derek Lerner titled AVEX1-6(station)". mta.info. MTA Arts & Design. May 24, 2018. Retrieved May 24, 2018.
27. Dougherty, Peter (2006) [2002]. Tracks of the New York City Subway 2006 (3rd ed.). Dougherty. OCLC 49777633 – via Google Books.
28. "MTA Neighborhood Maps: Coney Island" (PDF). mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2015. Retrieved August 15, 2016.

External links

• nycsubway.org – BMT Culver Line: Avenue X
• Station Reporter — F Train
• The Subway Nut — Avenue X Pictures
• Avenue X and 86th Street entrance from Google Maps Street View
• Exit to bus stop from Google Maps Street View
• Platforms from Google Maps Street View