Kingston Avenue station

For the station at Kingston Avenue between Fulton Street and Throop Avenue, see Kingston–Throop Avenues station.

The Kingston Avenue station is a local station on the IRT Eastern Parkway Line of the New York City Subway. Located at the intersection of Kingston Avenue and Eastern Parkway in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, it is served by the 3 train at all times except late nights and the 4 train during late nights. There is also limited rush hour 2 and 5 service here.

Kingston Avenue
New York City Subway station (rapid transit)
Southbound platform
Station statistics
Address	Kingston Avenue & Eastern Parkway Brooklyn, New York
Borough	Brooklyn
Locale	Crown Heights
Coordinates	40.669376°N 73.942151°W / 40.669376; -73.942151
Division	A (IRT)[1]
Line	IRT Eastern Parkway Line
Services	2  (limited rush hour service in the reverse-peak direction) ​   3  (all except late nights) ​   4  (late nights, and limited rush hour service) ​   5  (one weekday a.m. rush hour trip in the northbound direction only)
Transit	NYCT Bus: B43, B45[2]
Structure	Underground
Levels	2
Platforms	2 side platforms (1 on each level)
Tracks	4 (2 on each level)
Other information
Opened	August 23, 1920; 104 years ago (1920-08-23)
Opposite- direction transfer	Yes
Traffic
2023	1,017,521[3]  11.3%
Rank	290 out of 423[3]
Services Preceding station New York City Subway Following station Nostrand Avenue 2  ​3  ​4  ​5  toward Harlem–148th Street Local Crown Heights–Utica Avenue 2  ​3  ​4  toward New Lots Avenue
Location Show map of New York City Subway Show map of New York City Show map of New York
Track layout Legend to Nostrand Avenue Superimposed tracks (left tracks above right) to Utica Avenue Upper level Lower level
Street map
Station service legend Symbol Description Stops all times except late nights Stops late nights only Stops rush hours only Stops weekdays during the day

The station opened on August 23, 1920, as part of an extension of the IRT Eastern Parkway Line by the Interborough Rapid Transit Company. The station's platforms were extended in the 1964—1965 fiscal year so they could accommodate ten-car trains.

History

Mosaic name tablets

Background

Kingston Avenue station was constructed as part of the Eastern Parkway Line. The line's section to Atlantic Avenue was part of Contract 2 of the Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT)'s plan to construct an extension of the original subway, Contract 1. Contract 2 extended the original line from City Hall in Manhattan to Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn. The Board of Rapid Transit Commissioners approved the route on September 27, 1900,^[4] and the contract was signed on September 11, 1902. Construction commenced on Contract 2 on March 4, 1903.^[5] The first section opened on January 9, 1908, extending the subway from Bowling Green to Borough Hall.^[6][7][8] On April 28, 1908, the IRT formally applied with the New York Public Service Commission for permission to open the final section of the Contract 2 line from Borough Hall to Atlantic Avenue near the Flatbush Avenue LIRR station. The application was approved, and the IRT extension opened on May 1, 1908.^{[9]: 194 [5]}

Staircase to the mezzanine on the Brooklyn-bound platform

On March 19, 1913, New York City, the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company, and the IRT reached an agreement, known as the Dual Contracts, to drastically expand subway service across New York City. As part of Contract 3 of the agreement, between New York City and the IRT, the original subway opened by the IRT in 1904 to City Hall,^[10] and extended to Atlantic Avenue in 1908,^[11] was to be extended eastward into Brooklyn.^[12] The line was to be extended along Flatbush Avenue and Eastern Parkway to Buffalo Street as a four-track subway line, and then along East 98th Street and Livonia Avenue to New Lots Avenue as an elevated two-track line, with provisions for the addition of a third track. In addition, a two-track branch line along Nostrand Avenue branching off east of the Franklin Avenue station was to be constructed.^[13] The underground portion of the line became known as the Eastern Parkway Line, or Route 12, while the elevated portion became known as the New Lots Line.^[14]

Construction and opening

The IRT Eastern Parkway Line was built as part of Route 12 from 1915 to 1918.^[15] On August 23, 1920, the Eastern Parkway Line was extended from Atlantic Avenue to Crown Heights–Utica Avenue, with the Kingston Avenue station opening at this time. The new trains would be served by trains from Seventh Avenue.^[16]

Later years

During the 1964–1965 fiscal year, the platforms at Kingston Avenue, along with those at four other stations on the Eastern Parkway Line, were lengthened to 525 feet (160 m) to accommodate a ten-car train of 51-foot (16 m) IRT cars.^[17][18] The work was performed by the Arthur A. Johnson Corporation.^[18]

Station layout

Platform extension sign

Entrance on the south side of Eastern Parkway

Ground	Street level	Exit/entrance
Basement 1	Southbound express	→ does not stop here → → does not stop here (select rush hour trips) →
	Southbound local	→ ( late nights) toward New Lots Avenue (Crown Heights–Utica Avenue) → → toward New Lots Avenue (select rush hour trips) (Crown Heights–Utica Avenue) →
	Side platform
	Mezzanine	Fare control, station agent, MetroCard and OMNY machines
Basement 2	Northbound express	← does not stop here ← does not stop here (select rush hour trips)
	Northbound local	← toward Harlem–148th Street (Nostrand Avenue) ← toward Woodlawn late nights (Nostrand Avenue) ← toward Wakefield–241st Street (select rush hour trips) (Nostrand Avenue) ← toward Eastchester–Dyre Avenue (one a.m. rush hour trip) (Nostrand Avenue)
	Side platform

This underground local station has two levels. The upper level serves New Lots Avenue-bound trains while the lower level serves Manhattan-bound trains. From north to south, each level has an express track, a local track, and one side platform.^[19] 3 trains stop here at all times except late nights and 4 trains stop here during late nights. Other times, 4 trains as well as limited rush hour 5 trains run on the express track to the north of the local track on each level to bypass the station. Limited rush hour 2 trains in the reverse-peak direction and one weekday morning northbound 5 train also serve this station.^{[20][21][22][23]} The station is between Nostrand Avenue to the west (railroad north) and Crown Heights–Utica Avenue to the east (railroad south).^[24]

Both platforms have their original Dual Contracts-era IRT trim line and name tablets. The trim line has a golden-yellow center, line green border, and a spec of blue in-between. "K" tablets on a blue border run along the trim line at regular intervals. The name tablets read "KINGSTON AVE." in serif font in gold lettering on a blue background, a gold center, and lime green border.^{[citation needed]}

The platform extensions at either end have signs reading "KINGSTON AVE" in white sans serif lettering on a black border.^[25] There is a vent chamber on the lower level.

Exits

The upper level has one fare control at the center with two staircases going down to the lower level. It has a turnstile bank, token booth, and two staircases going up to the south side mall of Eastern Parkway (between the main and service roads) and Kingston Avenue. One staircase goes to the southeast corner while the other goes to the southwest corner.^[26]

Nearby points of interest

• Brooklyn Children's Museum^[26]
• Brower Park^[26]
• Jewish Children's Museum^[26]
• 770 Eastern Parkway^[26]

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. "Brooklyn Bus Map" (PDF). Metropolitan Transportation Authority. October 2020. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
3. "Annual Subway Ridership (2018–2023)". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2023. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
4. Report of the Public Service Commission for the First District of the State of New York for the Year Ending December 31, 1909 Vol. 1. New York State Public Service Commission. 1910. p. 195.
5. "Brooklyn Joyful Over New Subway". The New York Times. May 2, 1908. p. 1.
6. "Subway to Brooklyn Opened for Traffic; First Regular Passenger Train Went Under the East River Early This Morning. Not a Hitch in the Service. Gov. Hughes and Brooklyn Officials to Join in a Formal Celebration of Event To-day". the New York Times. January 9, 1908. Retrieved September 1, 2016.
7. "Brooklyn Joyful Over Its Tunnel". The New York Times. January 10, 1908. Retrieved March 6, 2010.
8. Gasparini, D. A. (February 2006). "Battery-Joralemon Street Tunnel". Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities. 20 (1). American Society of Civil Engineers: 92–107. doi:10.1061/(ASCE)0887-3828(2006)20:1(92).^{[permanent dead link]}
9. Report of the Public Service Commission For The First District of the State of New York For The Year Ending December 31, 1908. New York State Public Service Commission. 1908.
10. "Exercises In City Hall.; Mayor Declares Subway Open -- Ovations for Parsons and McDonald". The New York Times. October 28, 1904. Retrieved December 16, 2018.
11. "Brooklyn Joyful Over New Subway — Celebrates Opening of Extension with Big Parade and a Flow of Oratory — An Ode to August Belmont — Anonymous Poet Calls Him "the Brownie of the Caisson and Spade" — He Talks on Subways". The New York Times. May 2, 1908. p. 1. Retrieved November 6, 2016.
12. "618 Miles of Track In The Dual System; City Will Have Invested $226,000,000 When Rapid Transit Project Is Completed". The New York Times. August 3, 1913. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
13. Comptroller's Monthly Report For March 1916 And From January 1, 1916 To March 31, 1916. New York City Department of Finance. 1916. p. 121.
14. "Differ Over Assessment Plans in Transit Projects: Eastern Parkway Subway and Livonia Avenue Extension the Cause of Bitter Dissension Among Property Owners Uptown" (PDF). The Daily Standard Union. March 13, 1910. Retrieved August 14, 2016 – via Fulton History.
15. "More Interborough Service for Brooklyn 2 New Lines". pudl.princeton.edu. Interborough Rapid Transit Company. August 23, 1920. Retrieved September 19, 2016.
16. "Brooklyn Tube Extensions Open: I.R.T. Begins Service on Eastern Parkway and Nostrand Avenue Lines" (PDF). The New York Times. August 23, 1920. Retrieved December 20, 2015.
17. Annual Report 1964–1965. New York City Transit Authority. 1965.
18. New York City Transit Authority (1964). Proceedings of the New York City Transit Authority Relating to Matters Other Than Operation. The Authority. p. 86.
19. Dougherty, Peter (2006) [2002]. Tracks of the New York City Subway 2006 (3rd ed.). Dougherty. OCLC 49777633 – via Google Books.
20. "2 Subway Timetable, Effective June 26, 2022". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved June 28, 2024.
21. "3 Subway Timetable, Effective June 30, 2024". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved June 28, 2024.
22. "4 Subway Timetable, Effective December 4, 2022". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved June 28, 2024.
23. "5 Subway Timetable, Effective June 30, 2024". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved June 28, 2024.
24. "Subway Map" (PDF). Metropolitan Transportation Authority. September 2021. Retrieved September 17, 2021.
25. DanTD (November 17, 2014). File:Kingston Ave - IRT Eastern Pkwy; IND-style Mosaics.JPG (photograph). Retrieved November 25, 2015. {{cite AV media}}: External link in |people= (help)
26. "Kingston Avenue Neighborhood Map". mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. April 2018. Retrieved May 20, 2022.

External links

• nycsubway.org – Brooklyn IRT: Kingston Avenue