IRT New Lots Line

IRT New Lots Line

The 2, 3, 4 and 5 trains serve the entire IRT New Lots Line.
Overview
Type Rapid transit
System New York City Subway
Status Operating
Locale Brooklyn
Termini Sutter Avenue–Rutland Road
New Lots Avenue
Stations 7
Daily ridership 73,760[1]
Operation
Opened 1920-1922
Owner City of New York
Operator(s) New York City Transit Authority
Character Elevated
Technical
Line length 4.91 miles (7.90 km)
Number of tracks 2-3
Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification 600V DC third rail
IRT New Lots Line
Legend
 IRT Eastern Parkway Line
IRT Eastern Parkway Line express
tracks dead-end at Ralph Avenue
Sutter Avenue–Rutland Road
 Saratoga Avenue
 Rockaway Avenue
 Junius Street
Linden Shops
 Long Island Rail Road
Livonia Ave
Pennsylvania Avenue
 Van Siclen Avenue
 New Lots Avenue
Livonia Yard

The IRT New Lots Line or Livonia Avenue Line is a rapid transit line in the IRT A Division of the New York City Subway. Located in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, the line runs from Utica Avenue in Crown Heights and continues to New Lots Avenue in East New York.[2][3][4]

History

This line was built as a part of the Dual Contracts.[5] It was built as an elevated line because the ground in this area is right above the water table, and as a result the construction of a subway would have been prohibitively expensive.[6]

Toward the end of 1919, work on the Livonia Avenue Line was suspended because of the default of a contractor who had the contract for the erection of steel. During 1919, the city purchased an area of land bounded by Hegeman and Lawrence Avenues, and Elton and Linwood Streets. Contracts for the yard were awarded in 1920.[5]

The first portion of the line between Utica Avenue and Junius Street opened on November 22, 1920, with shuttle trains operating over this route.[7] The line opened one more stop farther to the east to Pennsylvania Avenue on December 24, 1920. In 1921, the stations at Van Siclen Avenue and New Lots Avenue were practically completed, but they were not opened yet because trains could not run to the terminal until track work, the signal tower, and the compressor room were in service. Work began on June 19, 1922 and shuttles started operating between Pennsylvania Avenue and New Lots Avenue on October 16, 1922. A two-car train operated on a single track on the northbound track.[8]

Work on the contract for installation of tracks in Livonia Yard began on May 18, 1922 and was completed on July 18, 1922. The yard was built with inspection facilities and the ability to store 250 cars. Work was completed on December 31, 1922, and the yard was opened for service on July 28, 1923. On October 31, 1924, through service to New Lots Avenue was begun.[8]

2 and 3 trains kept on switching their southern terminals until July 10, 1983, when the 2 was sent to Flatbush Avenue and the 3 to New Lots Avenue, which remains the current service pattern. The purpose of this switch was so that the 3 would readily have access to the shops at Livonia Yard. 4 trains were added on December 20, 1946, and 5 trains were gradually added between 1938 and 1950.

In 1968, as part of the proposed Program for Action, the IRT New Lots Line in East New York, would be extended southerly through the Livonia Yard to Flatlands Avenue to a modern terminal at Flatlands Avenue and Linwood Street. This line would have run at ground level and it would have provided better access to the then-growing community of Spring Creek. This extension would have been completed at the cost of $12 million.[9][10]

Extent and service

All services serve the entire line and make all stops.

  Time period
rush hours middays, evenings,
and weekends		 late nights
service no service
service no service
service no service service
service no service

The line is served by the 3 train at all times except late nights, when the 4 train takes over service. Some rush hour 2 and 5 trains also run on this line because of capacity issues at their usual terminal at Flatbush Avenue – Brooklyn College on the IRT Nostrand Avenue Line.

Crossing over BMT Canarsie Line.

Route description

The New Lots Line is the only elevated structure on the Brooklyn IRT. The line begins just east of Utica Avenue in Crown Heights, branching off from the IRT Eastern Parkway Line. The line then emerges from a tunnel on the southeast corner along the eastern edge of Lincoln Terrace Park, the IRT New Lots Line then crosses a bridge over East New York Avenue and then runs over East 98th Street with only one station, until it approaches the intersection with Livonia Avenue, where the line moves over that road, and remains as such almost entirely. Right after Junius Street Station, Livonia Avenue is bisected by the Long Island Rail Road Bay Ridge Branch as well as the Linden Shops, both of which run between Junius Street and Van Sinderin Avenue, the latter of which if flanked by the BMT Canarsie Line, also an elevated line, but runs underneath the New Lots Line. The last station on the line is New Lots Avenue, which is actually two blocks west of the eastern terminus of Livonia Avenue at the street the station is named for. The New Lots Line crosses over New Lots Avenue and then Elton Street, curving to the south and terminating within the Livonia Yard.[11][2][3][4]

The line includes an unused trackway in the middle for a third track. On the roof of the mezzanines at each station are cross ties but no rails. In some areas, the space is used for mechanical and signal rooms. A center track exists only at Junius Street, where it crosses the southbound track at grade towards the Linden Shops. This un-electrified track is one of only two connections to the national rail system. The BMT West End Line is the other connection, via the New York Connecting Railroad; the Linden Shops are connected to the Long Island Rail Road and from there to the rest of the national network.[11] There are plans to renovate the elevated structure, including new mezzanines and stairs.

Station listing

Station service legend
Stops all times except late nights
Stops late nights only
Stops rush hours only
Time period details
Neighborhood
(approximate)		 Station Services Opened Transfers and notes
Begins as continuation of IRT Eastern Parkway Line local tracks (2  3  4  5 )
Brownsville Sutter Avenue–Rutland Road 2  3  4  5  November 22, 1920 Station is closed during renovations until Spring of 2017.
Saratoga Avenue 2  3  4  5  November 22, 1920
Rockaway Avenue 2  3  4  5  November 22, 1920
Junius Street 2  3  4  5  November 22, 1920 Station is closed during renovations until Spring of 2017.
connecting track to Linden Shops (non-electrified)
East New York Pennsylvania Avenue 2  3  4  5  December 24, 1920
Van Siclen Avenue 2  3  4  5  October 16, 1922
New Lots Avenue 2  3  4  5  October 16, 1922 B15 bus to JFK Airport
Terminus of all service
Connecting tracks to Livonia Yard

References

  1. ↑ MTA. "Average weekday subway ridership". Retrieved 2 April 2014.
  2. 1 2 Metropolitan Transportation Authority, 2005 Adopted Budget - February Financial Plan 2005–2008, "Section VII: MTA Capital Program Information" (PDF). (91.7 KiB): shows Utica Avenue on "EPK" and Sutter Avenue on "NLT"
  3. 1 2 Metropolitan Transportation Authority, 2005 Final Proposed Budget - November Financial Plan 2005–2008, "Section VI: MTA Capital Program Information" (PDF). (1.02 MiB): "Sutter Avenue Portal to end"
  4. 1 2 In a 1981 list of "most deteriorated subway stations", the MTA listed Borough Hall and Court Street stations as part of the New Lots Line:
    New York Times, Agency Lists Its 69 Most Deteriorated Subway Stations, June 11, 1981, section B, page 5
  5. 1 2 "Nearly 70 Track Miles to Be Added To Rapid Transit Facilities in 1920" (PDF). Brooklyn Standard Union. December 28, 1919. Retrieved August 14, 2016 – via Fulton History.
  6. ↑ "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.
  7. ↑ "Annual report. 1920-1921.". HathiTrust. Interborough Rapid Transit. Retrieved 2016-09-05.
  8. 1 2 "IRT Brooklyn Line Opened 90 Years Ago". New York Division Bulletin. New York Division, Electric Railroaders' Association. 53 (9). September 2010. Retrieved August 31, 2016 – via Issu.
  9. ↑ "Full text of "Metropolitan transportation, a program for action. Report to Nelson A. Rockefeller, Governor of New York."". Internet Archive. November 7, 1967. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  10. ↑ Feinman, Mark. "The New York Transit Authority in the 1970s". nycsubway.org. Retrieved April 23, 2015.
  11. 1 2 Marrero, Robert (2015-09-13). "469 Stations, 846 Miles" (PDF). B24 Blog, via Dropbox. Retrieved 2015-10-09.

Route map: Bing / Google

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