SSG 14: East New York Provision

Awaken NYC May 4, 2020

One of the lesser known IND Second System provisions also happens to be one of the smallest—what a surprise! Today, we are looking at another provision on the IND Fulton St line, now the A and C in Brooklyn. This one was to allow trains to continue to a proposed subway under Jamaica Av. The IND seemingly had the goal of undermining the BMT Jamaica El with this nearly parallel subway line. It’s unclear what the plan was once the Jamaica subway would reach Crescent St/Jamaica Av, where the Cypress Hills station for the BMT Jamaica Elevated stands. The intention of the IND was likely either to recapture the el and send IND trains up ranps onto the elevated line, or to undermine the el with a full length Jamaica Av subway, and tear down the elevated line upon completion. It figures that the plans for this line never really took off, as this route was and is covered by the Jamaica Elevated, now the J and Z lines. When the city was low on funds, these plans would be one of the first to be scrapped.

The tunnel itself, like many tunnels on the Fulton St line has some pretty historical graffiti, with some of the greats near the provision. Besides that, it is a pretty standard late IND-era tunnel, with lots of thick concrete columns and the prolific cut and cover “box tunnel” look.

SSG 13: Grant Layup, Pitkin Yard Leads, and 76th St

Awaken NYC May 4, 2020

Moving back into Brooklyn, we come to one of the most famous IND Second System provisions, matched only by S 4th St (Underbelly) in terms of notoriety. This provision is commonly known as the 76th St Provision, Grant Layup, or Pitkin Yard leads. A popular spot for explorers and graffiti writers (indeed, there is much notable historic graffiti inside), this spot rose to fame do to 50+ year old urban legend. Legend has it that the walls behind the bumper blocks on the lower level and the cinder block wall branching from the yard leads on the upper level are actually hollow, with a full set of tracks and a 76th St station shortly past.

So, why was this provision built in the first place? The IND originally intended to continue the Fulton St Line (which the A and C run on in Brooklyn) east into Queens down Pitkin Av and Linden Blvd, all the way to 229th St near the city limits. This extension would have served a large transportation desert, which now only has buses and the LIRR as options for rapid transit. To continue to this line, trains would have run through the lower level tunnel (Grant Layup, which isn’t much of a layup anymore) past where the wall and bumpers are. Trains also would have directly accessed the line from Pitkin Yard, which is why the upper level provision with the cinder block wall was built.

Many people have wondered if the tunnel and 76th St station exist, and why they would be sealed. Joseph Brennan of Abandoned Stations came up with a conspiracy theory as an April Fools day joke many years ago about a coverup for non union labor. Somehow many people have read that article and taken it seriously. (Really, you believed that USAF officials came around the neighborhood asking about a tunnel?). The tunnel does contain signals that are very close to the bumpers/walls; there are rail ties installed on the upper level, and there is even a board in the Euclid Tower displaying a 76th St station and the interlocking. Despite these indicators, I am of the opinion that there is no 76th St station and no tunnel beyond the infamous wall. The sand behind the cinder block wall was probably just placed there to prevent flooding and water damage to the tunnel.

SSG 8: The Hillside Extension

Awaken NYC May 4, 2020

While this spot serves as an important underground yard for one of the most important lines in the system, it is rarely photographed. The MTA tends to be protective of the most important underground layups, especially tail tracks (tracks that extend past a terminal station, increasing the line’s capacity). This specific layup/train relay turns Jamaica bound F trains back towards Manhattan and Brooklyn, along with select E trains during peak hours. It is the largest tail track layup in the system, with 2 levels of 4 tracks, giving it a turning capacity of over 60 trains per hour.

However, the reason for what could be seen as the overbuilding of this tunnel is the extension that was proposed for the IND Second System. The upper level was supposed to extend further down Hillside Ave all the way to Little Neck Rd; later down to Springfield Blvd. This extension deep into eastern Queens would have been highly beneficial to people living on or about Hillside Ave, and would have relieved what are now rather crowded buses and overwhelming traffic. There have been theories that the city actually did build a tunnel further under Hillside Ave, past the concrete wall at the end of the layup.

The Awaken team went to see if these theories had any grounding. I can say conclusively, after walking down Hillside Ave for about 3 miles (all the way to 232nd St) on a rather hot summer afternoon, checking the whole street and looking for signs of a tunnel, and also going down and inspecting the end of the layup, that there is no sign of any subway tunnel having been constructed past the end of the layup.

The actual tunnel isn’t very different from any other Queens Blvd tunnel, with the classic IND cut-and-cover box design and lots of brown snow. Notably, there is a lack of graffiti, aside from a few small tags here and there from legends such as Smith. A lack of heavy tagging tends to be a sign that a tunnel is special in some way, and I would say that this tunnel was no exception.

SSG 7: The Express Stop That Never Was (Updated)

Awaken NYC May 4, 2020

As we wrap up our look at the IND Queens Blvd line’s mainline provisions, we must take a look at the express stop that never was: Woodhaven Blvd. Now a lonely average IND station, this local stop was once planned to be converted into an express stop.

As a part of the updated 1930s IND Second System plans, this station was constructed with 4 bellmouth provisions, one before and after the station on both local tracks. The intention of these provisions was to make it easier to build the tunnel out when eventually converting the station, as the local tracks would just run slightly further outside of the express tracks, creating room for island platforms on what are now currently the local tracks. The station was also built so that it would be easy to eventually lengthen the platforms.

Unfortunately for the city, the line that the reconstruction of this station would have depended on was never built. The express stop conversion was intended to allow better service to be provided to the line that the provision at 63rd Dr would have served.

Bellmouth provision east of Woodhaven Blvd

The truth is, this extra express stop is proof of just how much higher the capacity of Queens Blvd was intended to be than what it is today. The line was built to be able to serve two extensions, with the ability to someday serve four extensions if they were built. It could have even been 6 tracks for the mainline, had the super express tracks been built. Now enormous, overbuilt, lonely stations such as Woodhaven Blvd, Union Tpke-Kew Gardens, Parsons Blvd/Hillside Ave, 179th St, and more sit lonely, underwhelmed by the traffic they get now. The next post will be the last full post for the Queens Blvd line.

SSG 5: The Winfield Spur

Awaken NYC August 9, 2019

Looking at queens in terms of IND provisions, it would be impossible to neglect to mention this most notable of abandoned Second System relics: Roosevelt Ave Upper. This well known spot also may be known as the Winfield Spur. It includes a fully tiled station shell and a “spur” tunnel which runs above the Queens Blvd mainline and turns south at the east end of the provision. It was built during the original construction of the IND Queens Blvd line between 1933 and 1936, intended for full revenue service on a 2 track line going south through the neighborhoods of Maspeth, Ridgewood, and eventually the Rockaways. On the lower level, there are 2 provisional trackways hugging the mainline, which would have allowed Queens Blvd local trains coming from/going to Manhattan to run up through the Winfield Spur and join the line heading south.

The IND was serious about constructing this line—so serious, in fact, that the Roosevelt Av Upper station was actually fully tiled, unlike other IND station shells. The serious plans (from 1929) to use this station and the trackways beyond continued for nearly 10 years, dying out sometime in the late 1930s when it was decided that the new branch should extend from an area of Queens Blvd further east, near Rego Park.

The line was intended to run underground through much of Queens and Brooklyn, actually joining another line which was planned to run up Myrtle Ave, branching from the S 4th St hub. After running up Central Av, the line would have come above ground to run over an already built LIRR Right of Way (the Rockaway Beach Branch). This Right of Way actually largely lays in decay now, after being abandoned in 1962. Some of the Right of Way (the bridge over Jamaica Bay into the Rockaways and the line in the Rockaways) was converted for use by the Transit Authority in 1955, and in 1956 the IND Rockaway Line (coming from the IND Fulton St Line) began operation. The (A) train now uses this southeastern branch full time, along with the Rockaway Shuttle. However, a large section of the ROW is still abandoned, and it would have been much better put to use as a subway line than what it is now: a somewhat nice place to walk and a breeding ground for mosquitoes.

As for what it is now, the space has not gone to complete waste. Although its story in terms of helping the city and the commuter, and providing rapid transit to underserved neighborhoods came to an end the way most IND Second System stories did, with the Great Depression and World War II draining the city’s and country’s resources to build rail infrastructure, the station shell is now used for storage and office space for the MTA. The tunnel does lay rotting, however. One trackway is nearly completely filled with garbage and the rest lay dark and lonely, never seeing light except from the occasional MTA worker, graffiti artist, or explorer. The construction is the standard IND Cut and Cover still, looking as boxy as ever. Also like usual, the abandoned tunnel is pitch black and extremely dirty. It is a true shame it will never get to see train headlights.

Integral Interlockings 1: Rogers Junction

Awaken NYC August 8, 2019

As one of the most important—and most problematic—interlockings in the system, it seems only appropriate to start this series with Rogers Junction. Rogers Junction lies near beginning/end of the IRT Eastern Parkway Line (very close underneath Rogers Av on the surface), between Franklin Av and Nostrand Av or President St, depending on which way you go. It is at this point that the (2) (3) (4) (5) services join together into one line. The (2) and (5) turn south down Nostrand Av and continue a couple miles before terminating at Flatbush Av, while the (3) and (4) keep going east under Eastern Parkway just a couple stops to Utica Av.

Rogers Junction has proved problematic over the years as the IRT chose to build it in a cheaper and more antiquated manner. A modern version of this junction would have made use of a flying junction, wherein lines only merge on the track that they need to merge on, and any other grade crossings are eliminated. The photo on the left shows an example of a flying junction outside of Delancey St/Essex St, where the (M) line merges with the (J) (Z). Although the routes are simpler here, the principle is the same and could be applied at Rogers. With the current service pattern of the Eastern Parkway line, the (5) merges with the (2) (3), and then the (2) and (5) switch to the Nostrand Av line and turn south. This causes a major bottleneck at peak hours when all lines are running at capacity, especially as the (2) (3) (4) (5) remain some of the busiest lines in the system. When there is any delay at Rogers, no matter how slight, it causes bigger delays down the lines as wait times add up more and more and crowds build, causing further delays. Furthermore, when there is a malfunction, things get very complicated. Just a few weeks ago, on July 22nd, a switch malfunction at Rogers Junction (supposedly caused by extreme heat in the tunnel, which I can certainly vouch for after being there in person) caused major disruptions and service changes starting mid afternoon and running late into the night, ruining many evening rush hour commutes. (2) trains were terminating at South Ferry in Manhattan and (5) trains at Bowling Green. (3) and (4) trains were running express on all of Eastern Parkway with extreme delays due to a slow speed order in the vicinity of Rogers Junction. This cascade of problems, at least for the most part, could be avoided with a rebuild of the interlocking.

Unfortunately, there are only really two solutions. The interlocking cannot simply be reconfigured. Not only would it be obscenely expensive to do so (the full reconstruction option costing nearly $1.6 billion and the lesser option still over $340 million), but it would also require at least a partial demolition and rebuilding of Eastern Parkway on the surface, and the tunnel would have to be completely reconstructed. On top of that, both the Nostrand Av and President St stations occur within extremely close proximity to the interlocking, meaning one, if not both, of these stations would need to be closed in order to rebuild the junction. The other solution would be to change the service pattern of IRT Brooklyn trains. Some (3) trains would be sent to Flatbush Av and the (5) would always be sent to Utica Av via the express, so the (4) and (5) would continue down the Eastern Parkway express while the (2) and some (3) trains would go down Nostrand Av, and some (3) would stay on the Eastern Parkway local. This would eliminate the bottleneck and allow the lost train capacity on the Brooklyn lines to come back, but it would be unfavorable for Nostrand Av Line residents and is probably less likely to be pursued than an incredibly expensive reconstruction.

No matter how many problems it causes, there is no denying Rogers is one of the most important interlockings in the system, which is demonstrated by the level of disruption it has the potential to cause.

Click here to read the official study done by the MTA for the rebuilding of Rogers Junction.

Click here to see the systemwide track map.