To start off, I really enjoy doing these longer “series” posts, and will continue this style of posting. I didn’t really know where I was going with this when I posted the first Second System Gem (S 4th St aka Underbelly), but I like how it turned out. Below, I am showing photos of some honorable mentions and my favorites from the series.
This series covered every provision that I know of in the existing system that was included in the IND Second System plans of the late 1920s and the 1930s. The Second System would have doubled the size of the NYC Subway, serving transit-desert neighborhoods and feeding the capacity of the First System.
The major lines of the Second System plans that I covered were the 2nd Ave line, 63rd St line and Boston Road line; the Lafayette Ave line; Worth St, S 4th St, Utica Ave, and Myrtle Ave lines; the Pitkin Ave line; the World’s Fair line, Queens Blvd super-express and Rockaway lines, Archer Ave/Rockaway line, and Hillside Ave line.
Almost the entire Second System plan was abandoned, so “provisions” (for easy extensions of lines) that were built in anticipation of the Second System construction sit throughout the IND system collecting dust. Most of the plans of the Second System were dropped during the Great Depression, and they never regained momentum due to World War II (shortage of labor and funds), the Robert Moses era (focus shifted from trains to cars), and the White Flight of the 50s and 60s (people left the city and took their money with them). However, some plans were preserved and constructed, or are in progress.
In the 60s, the Chrystie St connection was constructed, which expanded the capacity of the 6th Ave line, and connected it to the BMT in Brooklyn. It opened in 1967, and in 1968, the Program for Action was proposed, which set in motion the construction of the 63rd St tunnel, 2nd Avenue Subway (SAS), and Archer Ave extension, with the 63rd St tunnel/Chrystie St connection utilizing the additional capacity to feed the QBL (Queens Blvd Line).
As the ‘70s rolled around, the Transit Authority (TA) was ready to finally begin construction on the 63rd St tunnel, Second Avenue Subway, and Archer Ave extension. Ground was broken for the 63rd St tunnel in late 1969, in Queensbridge Park. In 1972, ground was broken for SAS, and soon thereafter in 1973, ground was broken for the Archer Ave extension.
Unfortunately, things soon took a turn for the worse. When the fiscal crisis hit the city in early 1975, the timeline for every line was pushed back. A stop work order was issued for one section of SAS being constructed (from 2nd St-9th St), and the other three portions that had been completed were sealed (Chatham Sq-Canal St, 99th-105th St, and 110th-120th St). Construction on the 63rd St tunnel and the Archer Ave extension continued, but the projects were delayed significantly due to the city’s financial constraints.
Finally, in 1988, the Archer Ave extension opened after being plagued with problems and delays for years. The 63rd St tunnel opened soon after, in 1989. However, more than half of the 63rd St tunnel would go unused for decades, and the capacity of the F line T1/2 tunnel was not fully utilized until the connection between 21st St—Queensbridge and the Queens Blvd Line at Northern Blvd was completed in 2001. (The capacity of the G3/4 tunnel was not utilized until SAS Phase I was completed in 2016.)
In 2002, plans were submitted by the MTA for an LIRR connection to Grand Central—East Side Access—utilizing the lower level of the 63rd St tunnel as originally planned. In 2004, the MTA submitted a large proposal for a full length SAS completed in four phases. Then, in 2005, a proposal was submitted for an extension of the 7 line to 34th St—Hudson Yards as a part of the proposal for the development of Hell’s Kitchen in the area around the LIRR West Side Yard. These projects are the only significant expansion projects that have been proposed and gained traction in the past 30 years—and they probably will continue to be the only ones. Expansion projects in the 21st century follow the money. The 7 extension was only built because NYC wanted to host the 2012 Summer Olympics, and because billionaire developers wanted to build a massive project in the area. The Second System plans other than SAS all serve neighborhoods with no major redevelopment plans, so they will probably not be revived anytime soon.
Construction on SAS Phase I and East Side Access started soon after the approval, and SAS Phase I was completed at the end of 2016. East Side Access is near complete as of the time I’m writing this, and is projected to open in 2022. SAS Phase II is but a possibility at this point (until the money comes in) and I can’t imagine Phases III-IV happening anytime in the next 50 years. I dare the NY government to prove me wrong :)
