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139-426: [REDACTED] The Grand Central–42nd Street station (also signed as 42nd Street–Grand Central ) is a major station complex of the New York City Subway . Located in Midtown Manhattan at 42nd Street between Madison and Lexington Avenues, it serves trains on the IRT Lexington Avenue Line , the IRT Flushing Line and the 42nd Street Shuttle . The complex is served by the 4 , 6 , and 7 trains at all times;

278-521: A pylon station . The first deep column station in the world is Mayakovskaya , opened in 1938 in Moscow. One variety of column station is the "column-wall station". In such stations, some of the spaces between the columns are replaced with walls. In this way, the resistance to earth pressure is improved in difficult ground environments. Examples of such stations in Moscow are Krestyanskaya Zastava and Dubrovka . In Saint Petersburg , Komendantsky Prospekt

417-699: A "metro" or "subway". A station provides a means for passengers to purchase tickets , board trains, and evacuate the system in the case of an emergency. In the United Kingdom, they are known as underground stations , most commonly used in reference to the London Underground . The location of a metro station is carefully planned to provide easy access to important urban facilities such as roads, commercial centres, major buildings and other transport nodes . Most stations are located underground, with entrances/exits leading up to ground or street level. The bulk of

556-511: A cathedral "that must surpass anything in the West." The Italian quattrocento design features tall, paired campanili at the west end and a central dome. The firm sent two young architects, W. Marbury Somervell and Joseph S. Coté, to oversee construction on the site, who went on to establish a thriving architectural practice in Seattle. The cornerstone ceremony took place on November 12, 1905. The cathedral

695-551: A chapter building of St. Anthony Hall , also known as the Delta Psi fraternity, stood from 1894 to 1913. Their ornamental iron gates were re-used in the 1913 successor by Charles C. Haight . In 1899, Heins & LaFarge built the Houghton Memorial Chapel at Wellesley College , Wellesley, Massachusetts, Richardsonian in its recessed entrance, dominating central tower and interpenetrating Romanesque massing. Also in 1899, at

834-491: A concourse to connect the under-construction Grand Central Terminal with new subway lines planned at 42nd Street. The plan called for the construction of a passageway under 42nd Street from the Vanderbilt Avenue end of the existing subway station to an elevator shaft at Lexington Avenue, connecting the planned Steinway Tunnel and Broadway–Lexington Avenue subway lines with street level. An elevator shaft would have connected

973-632: A contemporary mosaic frieze in multiple colors along the walls of the Shuttle platform. In addition, the stained concrete floors in the station complex would be replaced with pre-cast quartz terrazzo tiles, which would have the same color beige as the marble floors in Grand Central Terminal. Under a 1990s plan for the Second Avenue Subway , a spur to Grand Central Terminal was considered, which would have turned off Second Avenue at 44th Street as

1112-564: A disabled or troubled train. A subway station may provide additional facilities, such as toilets , kiosks and amenities for staff and security services, such as Transit police . Some metro stations are interchanges , serving to transfer passengers between lines or transport systems. The platforms may be multi-level. Transfer stations handle more passengers than regular stations, with additional connecting tunnels and larger concourses to reduce walking times and manage crowd flows. In some stations, especially where trains are fully automated ,

1251-538: A new entrance to the northwestern corner of this intersection into the United Cigar Stores Company building. In Fiscal Year 1913, work to connect the Grand Central subway station and Grand Central Terminal was authorized, as was the extension of the eastern mezzanine to connect with a building at the northwestern corner of Vanderbilt Avenue and 42nd Street. Work to build a new mezzanine at the western end of

1390-605: A passenger stepping on a rubber platform instead of running continuously. As part of the plan, two escalators at the Third Avenue entrance to the Flushing Line platform would be reconditioned. On August 9, 1979, it was announced that New York City would receive $ 32 million (equivalent to $ 134,338,000 in 2023) from the Urban Mass Transit Administration 's Urban Initiatives Projects grant program to renovation

1529-497: A preexisting railway land corridor is re-purposed for rapid transit. At street level the logo of the metro company marks the entrances/exits of the station. Usually, signage shows the name of the station and describes the facilities of the station and the system it serves. Often there are several entrances for one station, saving pedestrians from needing to cross a street and reducing crowding. A metro station typically provides ticket vending and ticket validating systems. The station

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1668-713: A significant investment in the area by private developers, including the rebuilding of the Commodore Hotel as the Grand Hyatt , the renovation of the Chrysler Building , and the construction of a new headquarters for Philip Morris . Work on the renovation project was estimated to take three years, and would include the installation of escalators and elevators. Passageways would be straightened, widened, and relocated, fare controls be relocated, mezzanine areas would be expanded, signage, lighting and entrances would be improved, and

1807-402: A sparing use of Venetian Gothic and Richardsonian Romanesque details and the square corner bell tower with a crenellated parapet embellished with gargoyle gutter-spouts reveal Richardson's training. The fine stained glass may be from Tiffany studios, or may be by John La Farge , the architect's father, which would make them even rarer. An exercise in a somewhat subdued Richardsonian manner, in

1946-432: A station may be elevated above a road, or at ground level depending on the level of the train tracks. The physical, visual and economic impact of the station and its operations will be greater. Planners will often take metro lines or parts of lines at or above ground where urban density decreases, extending the system further for less cost. Metros are most commonly used in urban cities, with great populations. Alternatively,

2085-514: A way to divert riders from the 4 and ​ 5 routes, which run express on the Lexington Avenue Line. Service on this spur could not be as frequent as that on Lexington Avenue as there would not be enough capacity on Second Avenue, and as a result this plan was dropped. As part of the construction of One Vanderbilt at the corner of Vanderbilt Avenue and 42nd Street , developer SL Green Realty made several upgrades to

2224-513: Is a mezzanine above the Lexington Avenue Line's platforms, which have numerous exits to and from Grand Central itself as well as to the streets (see § Exits ). Escalators connect this mezzanine to the Flushing Line, although there are also staircases and passageways directly between the Lexington Avenue and Flushing Lines' platforms. The Flushing Line platform also has its own exit at its extreme eastern end, though all other exits are through

2363-416: Is a type of subway station consisting of a central hall with two side halls connected by ring-like passages between a row of columns. Depending on the type of station, the rings transmit load to the columns either by "wedged arches" or through Purlins , forming a "column-purlin complex". The fundamental advantage of the column station is the significantly greater connection between the halls, compared with

2502-410: Is an example. The pylon station is a type of deep underground subway station. The basic distinguishing characteristic of the pylon station is the manner of division of the central hall from the station tunnels The pylon station consists of three separate halls, separated from each other by a row of pylons with passages between them. The independence of the halls allows the architectural form of

2641-493: Is at the expense of character. Metro stations usually feature prominent poster and video advertising, especially at locations where people are waiting, producing an alternative revenue stream for the operator . The shallow column station is a type of construction of subway stations, with the distinguishing feature being an abundance of supplementary supports for the underground cavity. Most designs employ metal columns or concrete and steel columns arranged in lines parallel to

2780-753: Is decorated with tiles spelling the Déclaration des Droits de l'Homme et du Citoyen . Every metro station in Valencia , Spain has a different sculpture on the ticket-hall level. Alameda station is decorated with fragments of white tile, like the dominant style of the Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències . Each of the original four stations in the Olympic Green on Line 8 of the Beijing Subway are decorated in Olympic styles, while

2919-422: Is divided into an unpaid zone connected to the street, and a paid zone connected to the train platforms. The ticket barrier allows passengers with valid tickets to pass between these zones. The barrier may be operated by staff or more typically with automated turnstiles or gates that open when a transit pass is scanned or detected. Some metro systems dispense with paid zones and validate tickets with staff in

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3058-540: Is famous for its Art Nouveau station entrances; while the Athens Metro is known for its display of archeological relics found during construction. However, it is not always the case that metro designers strive to make all stations artistically unique. Sir Norman Foster 's new system in Bilbao , Spain uses the same modern architecture at every station to make navigation easier for the passenger, though some may argue that this

3197-640: Is only one vault (hence the name). The first single-vault stations were built in Leningrad in 1975: Politekhnicheskaya and Ploshchad Muzhestva . Not long after, the first two-level single-vault transfer stations were opened in Washington DC in 1976: L'Enfant Plaza , Metro Center and Gallery Place . In the Moscow Metro there is only one deep underground single-vault station, Timiryazevskaya , in addition to several single-vault stations at shallow depth. In

3336-512: The 5 and 42nd Street Shuttle (S) trains at all times except late nights; the <6> train during weekdays in the peak direction; and the <7> train during rush hours and early evenings in the peak direction. The station is adjacent to Grand Central Terminal , which serves all Metro-North Railroad lines east of the Hudson River . There are multiple exits to Grand Central Terminal and to nearby buildings such as One Vanderbilt and

3475-657: The American Institute of Architects (AIA), often served on advisory committees for the schools of architecture at Columbia University, M.I.T. and Princeton University, and also as trustee and secretary for the American Academy in Rome . Roosevelt was also a prime mover behind the creation of the New York Zoological Society , for whom the partners designed the original nucleus of buildings (1899–1910, now called

3614-605: The Astor Court ) as a series of pavilions symmetrically grouped round the large sea lion pool, all in a sturdy brick and limestone Roman Ionic and Doric , with the heads of elephants and rhinos, lions and zebras projecting festively from panels and friezes. The central Administration Building (1910), offering an arched passageway to the zoo's outdoor spaces, has complicated domed spaces formed of Guastavino tile . University commissions were also in their oeuvre. At Yale University , their rusticated Richardsonian Romanesque design for

3753-672: The Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn , is Heins & LaFarge's Reformed Episcopal Church of the Reconciliation (1890), now the Most Worshipful Enoch Grand Lodge of the Order of Masons . It too has a corner tower that is octagonal and embedded in the volume of the church in a most Richardsonian manner, though the materials used are tame, brick, now painted, rather than Richardsonian rustication. In Washington D.C. ,

3892-548: The Boston offices of Henry Hobson Richardson . Heins married LaFarge's aunt Aimée La Farge, the youngest sister of John La Farge, who was only two years older than her nephew. In 1886, they opened their office. Heins was the man on the site; LaFarge was the principal designer. In 1888, a design competition for the Cathedral of St. John the Divine , the most prominent project of its kind in

4031-536: The Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line , would change the operations of the IRT system. Instead of having trains go via Park Avenue, turning onto 42nd Street, before finally turning onto Broadway, there would be two trunk lines connected by the 42nd Street Shuttle . The system would be changed from looking like a "Z" system to an H-shaped system. One trunk would run via the new Lexington Avenue Line down Park Avenue, and

4170-499: The Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle , was begun in 1893, to designs of LaFarge. It is a brick structure of an abbreviated Latin cross floorplan with such a prominent crossing dome, raised on an octagonal drum lit by ranges of arch-headed windows, that has something of the aspect of a centrally-planned Greek cross. The interior is rich with frescoes and mosaics and inlaid marble floors in full American Renaissance manner. The first Mass

4309-609: The Chrysler Building . Numerous elevators make the station compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 . The present shuttle station was constructed for the Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) as an express station on the city's first subway line , which was approved in 1900. The station opened on October 27, 1904, as one of the original 28 stations of the New York City Subway. As part of

Grand Central–42nd Street station - Misplaced Pages Continue

4448-467: The Dual Contracts , the Flushing Line platform opened in 1915. After the Lexington Avenue Line platforms opened in 1918, the original station became the eastern terminal of the 42nd Street Shuttle, reconfigured with three tracks and two platforms. The Grand Central–42nd Street station complex has been reconstructed numerous times over the years, including in the early 21st century, when the shuttle station

4587-493: The Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) in April 1902 to operate the subway. The present shuttle station at Grand Central–42nd Street was constructed as part of the route segment underneath 42nd Street and Times Square, which extended from Park Avenue and 41st Street to Broadway and 47th Street. Construction on this section of the line began on February 25, 1901. Work for that section had been awarded to Degnon-McLean. By late 1903,

4726-494: The Interborough Rapid Transit Company under the direction of the chief engineer, William Barclay Parsons . When the Interborough Rapid Transit's original line opened on October 27, 1904, its showpiece station was City Hall , designed by Heins & LaFarge using uninterrupted sweeping Guastavino-tiled arches and vaults which incorporated shaped skylights and mosaics and polychrome terracotta panels . Throughout

4865-594: The Metropolitan Transportation Authority installed an online, interactive touchscreen computer program called " On The Go! Travel Station " (OTG) in Grand Central. The self-updating kiosks allow people to route their trips and check for delays. The MTA set up the map as part of a pilot project in five subway stations. It lists any planned work or service changes, as well as information to help travelers find nearby landmarks and addresses. The station has numerous exits into Grand Central Terminal , to

5004-469: The Mexico City Metro is prominently identified by a unique icon in addition to its name, because the city had high illiteracy rates at the time the system was designed. Some metro systems, such as those of Naples , Stockholm , Moscow , St. Petersburg , Tashkent , Kyiv , Montreal , Lisbon , Kaohsiung and Prague are famous for their beautiful architecture and public art . The Paris Métro

5143-659: The Montreal Metro . In Prague Metro , there are two underground stations built as single-vault, Kobylisy and Petřiny . In the Bucharest Metro , Titan station is built in this method. The cavern station is a metro station built directly inside a cavern . Many stations of the Stockholm Metro , especially on the Blue line, were built in man-made caverns; instead of being enclosed in a tunnel, these stations are built to expose

5282-551: The Moscow Metro , typical pylon station are Kievskaya-Koltsevaya , Smolenskaya of the Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya line, Oktyabrskaya-Koltsevaya , and others. In the Saint Petersburg Metro , pylon stations include Ploshchad Lenina , Pushkinskaya , Narvskaya , Gorkovskaya , Moskovskie Vorota , and others. The construction of a single-vault station consists of a single wide and high underground hall, in which there

5421-540: The New York City Board of Estimate on January 12, 1954. The third priority was an overall program to rehabilitate and modernize the Lexington Avenue Line for $ 52.7 million (equivalent to $ 597,920,000 in 2023). The most expensive element of the plan was the construction of a lower level station with multiple platforms and storage tracks, which was expected to cost $ 20 million (equivalent to $ 226,914,000 in 2023). The new tracks would be used by southbound trains in

5560-531: The New York Public Service Commission proposed lengthening the platforms at stations along the original IRT subway. As part of a modification to the IRT's construction contracts made on January 18, 1910, the company was to lengthen station platforms to accommodate ten-car express and six-car local trains. In addition to $ 1.5 million (equivalent to $ 49.1 million in 2023) spent on platform lengthening, $ 500,000 (equivalent to $ 16,350,000 in 2023)

5699-706: The New York State Legislature passed the Rapid Transit Act. The subway plans were drawn up by a team of engineers led by William Barclay Parsons , the Rapid Transit Commission's chief engineer. It called for a subway line from New York City Hall in lower Manhattan to the Upper West Side , where two branches would lead north into the Bronx . A plan was formally adopted in 1897, which called for

Grand Central–42nd Street station - Misplaced Pages Continue

5838-546: The Nizhny Novgorod Metro there are four such stations: Park Kultury , Leninskaya , Chkalovskaya and Kanavinskaya . In the Saint Petersburg Metro all single-vault stations are deep underground, for example Ozerki , Chornaya Rechka , Obukhovo , Chkalovskaya , and others. Most of the underground stations of the Washington, D.C.'s Metro system are single-vault designs, as are all the single-line vaulted stations in

5977-733: The United States Military Academy , West Point , they erected the Roman Catholic chapel of the Most Holy Trinity, also hearkening back to their Richardson apprenticeship with an essay in rusticated granite, with a battlemented corner tower and a heavy arcaded porch. It was enlarged in 1959. In 1903, Heins & LaFarge were commissioned to design the Municipal Building for Washington, D.C. Beginning in 1901, Heins & LaFarge designed subway stations and buildings for

6116-539: The "reservoir" stations or build a second subway line on Manhattan's east side. Although the "reservoir" plan was technically feasible, the $ 25 million (equivalent to $ 455,976,000 in 2023) projected cost was too high. In November 1929, the W. P. Chrysler Building Corporation reached an agreement with the Transit Commission to build an entrance from the subway station to the Chrysler Building between 42nd Street and 43rd Street. The IRT sued to block construction of

6255-531: The 1960s and 1970s, but in Saint Petersburg , because of the difficult soil conditions and dense building in the centre of the city this was impossible. The Saint Petersburg Metro has only five shallow-depth stations altogether, with three of them having the column design: Avtovo , Leninsky Prospekt , and Prospekt Veteranov . The first of these is less typical, as it is buried at a significant depth, and has only one surface vestibule. A deep column station

6394-580: The BRT. The Dual Contracts involved opening the Steinway Tunnel as part of the new Flushing subway line . The route, traveling under 41st and 42nd Streets in Manhattan, was to go from Times Square through the tunnel over to Long Island City and from there continue toward Flushing . The tunnel, with trolley loops on both the Manhattan and Queens sides, had sat unused since 1907, when test runs had been performed in

6533-522: The Grand Central station in late 1948. On March 2, 1950, a new type of stainless steel portable newsstand was installed at the Flushing Line platform at Grand Central. The newsstand was owned by the Union News Company. On February 15, 1954, a new ramp and stairway passageway between the Lexington Avenue Line and Flushing Line platforms opened. In April 1954, the Bowery Savings Bank completed

6672-625: The Grand Central station. In late 1959, contracts were awarded to extend the platforms at Bowling Green, Wall Street, Fulton Street, Canal Street, Spring Street, Bleecker Street, Astor Place, Grand Central, 86th Street and 125th Street to 525 feet (160 m) to accommodate ten-car trains. In August 1960, the Board of Estimate approved a $ 1,361,400 (equivalent to $ 14,021,000 in 2023) contract to extend platforms at 138th Street-Grand Concourse, 149th Street-Grand Concourse, 125th Street, 86th Street, and Grand Central. The platforms at all these stations other than

6811-471: The Grand Central, Herald Square, and 42nd Street–Port Authority Bus Terminal subway stations. The remainder of the $ 40 million (equivalent to $ 167,923,000 in 2023) cost of renovating these stations would be covered by state and private sector matching funds. This program was set up by the Carter administration to use public funding to spur private-sector investments to rebuild cities. The Grand Central project,

6950-523: The Graybar subway passage because of its low usage and its proximity to other connections. After a woman was raped in another subway passageway, the Graybar subway passage and 14 others were closed by emergency order of the New York City Transit Authority on March 29, 1991, with a public hearing being held afterward. From January 1, 1990, to its closure, there had been 365 felonies committed in

7089-474: The Graybar subway passage, making it the most dangerous of the 15 passageways ordered closed. The passageway had been located behind a token booth, making it hard to patrol; at the time of its closure, the hallway was described as being "deceptively long and treacherous". Work began on a five-year $ 82 million (equivalent to $ 163,964,000 in 2023) project to renovate the station in November 1995. The project, which

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7228-541: The Hyatt with a skyscraper at 175 Park Avenue, to be called Project Commodore, which is expected to be built from 2022 to 2030. As part of the project, the subway turnstiles in the basement of the Hyatt would be moved to the ground floor of Project Commodore. The 42nd Street Passage from the street to Grand Central's Main Concourse , within the Hyatt's ground level, would be expanded by 5,400 square feet (500 m). The escalators at

7367-436: The IRT installed silencers on seven turnstiles at the station in April 1930; the Transit Commission authorized the IRT to install silencers on all of its turnstiles three months later. The city government took over the IRT's operations on June 12, 1940. On February 12, 1946, work began to double the width of the passageway connecting the shuttle platforms and the main mezzanine over the Lexington Avenue Line platforms. As part of

7506-442: The Lexington Avenue Line platforms and mezzanine. Outside the Lexington Avenue Line mezzanine's fare control, there are stairs, escalators, and an elevator to Grand Central. An east-west passageway connects the Lexington Avenue Line's mezzanine to the 42nd Street Shuttle , which also has its own dedicated entrance and exit stairs. The whole station is handicapped accessible , as is the connection to Grand Central Terminal . In 2000,

7645-557: The Lexington Avenue Line station received air conditioning after Metro-North Railroad installed chillers for Grand Central Terminal. The chillers cost $ 17 million (equivalent to $ 30,078,000 in 2023) to install and are capable of cooling up to 3,000 tons of air. The Lexington Avenue Line station is one of a very small number of artificially cooled stations in the New York City Subway . The Flushing Line platforms have been equipped with fans, but not an air-cooling system. In 2014,

7784-578: The Second Avenue Subway is built. The transfer was evaluated as part of the Second Avenue Subway's environmental impact statement published in 2004. The 900-foot-long (270 m) transfer passageway would run under 42nd Street between Second Avenue and Third Avenue, connecting to the IRT Flushing Line platform. Up to four properties might need to be required for the necessary ancillaries and emergency exits to built. The passageway would run under

7923-460: The Steinway Tunnel platforms. The concourse for the station would have been located on the north side of 42nd Street between Depew Place and Park Avenue, with stairways connecting to the Steinway Tunnel platform below. Two elevator shafts would have connected the Steinway Tunnel and the H&;M platforms. By 1909, the IRT had constructed an unauthorized ventilation shaft between the 42nd Street Shuttle and

8062-674: The Steinway Tunnel, a platform with the Hudson & Manhattan Railroad (H&M, now PATH ), and the new concourse, and would have led out to street level adjacent to a stairway leading to an extension of the IRT Third Avenue Line . As part of this proposal, the new station on the Broadway–Lexington Avenue Line would have been located at 42nd Street instead of 43rd Street to provide an adequate connection with Grand Central Terminal. The New York Central also recommended revising

8201-512: The Steinway Tunnel. This would force the H&M to build its station at a very low depth, thus making it harder for any passengers to access the H&M station. As an alternative, it was proposed to connect the Uptown Tubes to the Steinway Tunnel. A franchise to extend the Uptown Tubes to Grand Central was awarded in June 1909, with the expectation that construction could start within six months and that

8340-514: The Third Avenue Elevated, increased ridership on the Flushing Line, and additional office construction near the station. On March 10, 1955, the New York City Transit Authority (NYCTA) awarded a $ 1.6 million (equivalent to $ 18,198,000 in 2023) engineering contract for design, inspection, and field supervision for the project to Parsons, Brinckerhoff, Hall and MacDonald. Engineering work was expected to begin within six weeks. This project

8479-463: The Third Avenue entrance to the Flushing Line platform were replaced during much of 2023. In February 2024, workers began constructing a transfer passageway between the Flushing and Lexington Avenue lines. As part of the construction of the Second Avenue Subway , a transfer might be included between here and the 42nd Street station on that line. This would provide a transfer to the T train if Phase 3 of

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8618-404: The U.S., was entered by 68 architectural firms, and won in 1891 by Heins & LaFarge, with an eclectic design, based on Romanesque forms but with many Byzantine and Gothic elements, dominated by a massive spired tower over the crossing. The cornerstone was laid December 27, 1892, but unexpectedly, massive excavation was required before bedrock was hit. Heins & LaFarge completed the east end and

8757-431: The automated train being tested in the 42nd Street Shuttle at the time. The fire began under a shuttle train on track 3, and it became larger, feeding on the wooden platform. The basements of nearby buildings were damaged. Tracks 1 and 4 returned to service on April 23, 1964, while Track 3 returned to service on June 1, 1964. The reinstallation of Track 3 was delayed because of the need to replace 60 beams that were damaged in

8896-458: The bedrock in which they are excavated. The Stockholm Metro also has a depot facility built in a cavern system. In the Hong Kong MTR , examples of stations built into caverns include Tai Koo station on Hong Kong Island , Other examples in the city include Sai Wan Ho, Sai Ying Pun, Hong Kong University and Lei Tung stations. Heins %26 LaFarge The two young men met at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and trained together in

9035-444: The central and side halls to be differentiated. This is especially characteristic in the non-metro Jerusalem–Yitzhak Navon railway station , constructed as a pylon station due to its 80-meter depth, where the platform halls are built to superficially resemble an outdoor train station. Building stations of the pylon type is preferable in difficult geological situations, as such a station is better able to oppose earth pressure. However,

9174-469: The construction of "reservoir" stations at 33rd/34th and 42nd Streets. The proposal entailed constructing a northbound-only tunnel under Lexington Avenue from 30th to 42nd Street, with stations at 34th and 42nd Streets, then converting the IRT tunnel under Park Avenue and the existing 33rd and 42nd Street stations to southbound-only use. The northbound and southbound stations at 33rd/34th and 42nd Streets would both have had two express tracks and one local track;

9313-454: The construction of expensive apartments along Park Avenue, Madison Avenue, and Lexington Avenue. The H&M's Uptown Hudson Tubes had opened in 1908, stretching from New Jersey to 33rd Street and Sixth Avenue in Midtown Manhattan. Not long after the Uptown Hudson Tubes opened, there were proposals to extend the line to Grand Central. The H&M platforms would have been directly below the Broadway–Lexington Avenue Line's platforms, but above

9452-519: The cost of this part of the project is $ 30 million (equivalent to $ 38,562,000 in 2023). At Grand Central, the center track, track 3, was removed and the two existing platforms were connected, providing one wide island platform with an area of 22,000 square feet (2,000 m). This became the largest platform in the subway system. The existing platforms were extended further west to accommodate six-car trains, using existing employee facility rooms. New consolidated employee facility rooms were constructed at

9591-399: The crossing, temporarily roofed by Rafael Guastavino with a tiled dome (still standing). The Chapel of St. Columba was consecrated in 1911, but the death of Heins ended the contract with Heins & LaFarge. Some of the Cathedral trustees did not care for the original Romanesque-Byzantine design, preferring something more purely Gothic, and consequently they removed the project from LaFarge,

9730-431: The downtown stations are decorated traditionally with elements of Chinese culture. On the Tyne and Wear Metro , the station at Newcastle United 's home ground St James' Park is decorated in the clubs famous black and white stripes. Each station of the Red Line and Purple Line subway in Los Angeles was built with different artwork and decorating schemes, such as murals, tile artwork and sculptural benches. Every station of

9869-424: The end of 1899. The Rapid Transit Construction Company, organized by John B. McDonald and funded by August Belmont Jr. , signed the initial Contract 1 with the Rapid Transit Commission in February 1900, in which it would construct the subway and maintain a 50-year operating lease from the opening of the line. In 1901, the firm of Heins & LaFarge was hired to design the underground stations. Belmont incorporated

10008-452: The entire platform is screened from the track by a wall, typically of glass, with automatic platform-edge doors (PEDs). These open, like elevator doors, only when a train is stopped, and thus eliminate the hazard that a passenger will accidentally fall (or deliberately jump ) onto the tracks and be run over or electrocuted . Control over ventilation of the platform is also improved, allowing it to be heated or cooled without having to do

10147-510: The express tracks in either direction would have merged with each other north of 42nd Street and south of 30th Street. Joseph V. McKee wrote a letter to the IRT the next year, saying that overcrowding at the station during rush hours created life-threatening conditions. In response to McKee's complaint, the Transit Commission's chairman said the only ways to reduce overcrowding at the Grand Central–42nd Street station were to construct

10286-501: The fire. From September 19, 1966, to April 1967, service on the shuttle was limited in order to allow for the reconstruction of parts of the line. The entire project cost $ 419,000 (equivalent to $ 3,935,000 in 2023), and included the construction of a new mezzanine at Grand Central. As part of the project, the tiles damaged by the smoke from the fire were replaced with tiles in the city's colors of blue, white and orange, with black tiles interspersed. In addition, fluorescent lighting, which

10425-727: The first buildings at the State University of New York , Albany: the Auditorium and the Science and Administration Buildings. He held that position until his death in 1907. While serving in that capacity his office designed the Flushing Armory , Geneva Armory , Gloversville Armory , Medina Armory , Main Street Armory in Rochester, Oneonta Armory and Oswego Armory . LaFarge, a fellow of

10564-528: The following days. The new passageway connected the station's eastern mezzanine with the Flushing Line platform via ramp and a pair of elevators. This was part of a ramp that the Public Service Commission had hoped to use to connect the Steinway Tunnel to the 42nd Street Line. Also as part of the Dual Contracts, the construction of the Lexington Avenue Line, in conjunction with the construction of

10703-449: The former USSR there is currently only one such station: Arsenalna in Kyiv . In Jerusalem, two planned underground heavy rail stations, Jerusalem–Central and Jerusalem–Khan , will be built this way. In Moscow, there were such stations, but they have since been rebuilt: Lubyanka and Chistiye Prudy are now ordinary pylon stations, and Paveletskaya-Radialnaya is now a column station. In

10842-459: The installation of a two-speed, reversible escalator from the ground floor of the building from the south side of 42nd Street between Pershing Square and Lexington Avenue to the station mezzanine. The construction of the escalator, which required digging into solid rock, cost about $ 135,000 (equivalent to $ 1,531,673 in 2023). The bank also installed teller windows into the mezzanine that would be open during rush hours, and installed slot machines in

10981-517: The latter of which was built as part of the East Side Access project. This will replace the current escalators from the existing mezzanine directly to the Flushing Line platforms, and is estimated to cost $ 75–150 million (equivalent to $ 99,536,000 to $ 199,072,000 in 2023). The connection to the LIRR station opened on January 25, 2023. Further circulation improvements are planned as part of a replacement of

11120-409: The limited number of narrow passages limits the throughput between the halls. The pylon station was the earliest type of deep underground station. One variation is the so-called London-style station. In such stations the central hall is reduced to the size of an anteroom, leading to the inclined walkway or elevators. In some cases the anteroom is also the base of the escalators. In the countries of

11259-408: The line's local tracks. Service on the express tracks began two weeks later, on August 1, when the "H system" was put into place, with through service beginning on the new east and west side trunk lines, and the institution of the 42nd Street Shuttle along the old connection between the sides. The shuttle station was not ready in time, and therefore wooden flooring was temporarily laid over sections of

11398-527: The location of the switch connecting tracks 1 and 3. The P-4 staircase at the western end of the station leading to Madison Avenue from the existing northern platform was removed and the P-3 staircase leading there from the existing southern platform was considerably widened. By December 2016, the project was delayed, with construction set to start in December 2019 and be completed by September 2022. A construction contract

11537-457: The long axis of the station. Stations can be double-span with a single row of columns, triple-span with two rows of columns, or multi-span. The typical shallow column station in Russia is triple-span, assembled from concrete and steel, and is from 102 to 164 metres in length with a column spacing of 4–6 m. Along with the typical stations, there are also specially built stations. For example, one of

11676-430: The lower level platforms at 149th Street were 480 feet (150 m) long. On March 17, 1964, construction began on a $ 1 million (equivalent to $ 9,824,000 in 2023) project to replace three elevators serving the Flushing Line platform with two sets of 4 foot (1.2 m)-wide escalators, on two levels leading to the station mezzanine. The project was estimated to be completed in 22 months, and work began on March 17, with

11815-528: The main mezzanine and the two Lexington Avenue Line platforms, as was required to receive Federal funding. In 1985, work began on a $ 23 million (equivalent to $ 65,157,000 in 2023) renovation of the Lexington Avenue Line station. As part of the project, new ceilings, floors, lighting, architectural graphics, entrances, and two escalators were installed. In a report published in 1991, the New York City Department of City Planning recommended closing

11954-420: The main mezzanine were placed into service. The NYCTA installed them for $ 1,235,000 (equivalent to $ 14,012,000 in 2023). The 40 foot (12 m) high escalators covered a distance of 78.833 feet (24.028 m) at a speed of 120 feet (37 m) per minute during rush hours, and at a speed of 90 feet (27 m) during other times, and could accommodate 20,000 people per hour. Both escalators traveled upwards in

12093-609: The modification in June 1913, and the modified route under 40th Street was adopted that November. The commission voted in favor of the original diagonal route in February 1914, at which point the Grand Union Hotel was condemned via eminent domain . The condemnation proceedings for the hotel cost $ 3.5 million (equivalent to $ 106,465,000 in 2023). The commission also acquired an easement from New York Central in February 1915 for $ 902,500 (equivalent to $ 27,181,875 in 2023). To pay for

12232-410: The morning rush hour and northbound trains in the evening rush hour. The lower level would be designed to allow trains to reverse direction around after rush hour and allow trains to be placed into service. This was intended to increase capacity in the station, reduce the impact of delays to service, and help relieve passenger congestion at the station, which was expected to increase with the demolition of

12371-618: The morning rush hour on weekdays, and downward during the evening rush hour. During middays and weekends, the two escalators handled two-way traffic. The escalators were lit with fluorescent lighting, which would later be installed throughout the Grand Central station complex. The Flushing Line platforms at Grand Central, and all other stations on the Flushing Line with the exception of Queensboro Plaza , were extended in 1955–1956 to accommodate 11-car trains. The New York City Transit Authority (NYCTA) submitted its $ 587 million (equivalent to $ 6,659,941,000 in 2023) 1955 to 1959 Capital Program to

12510-583: The nearby Grand Hyatt New York hotel at the southeast corner of the station, destruction of 40% of the Hyatt's basement to expand the subway mezzanine, and the thinning of columns on platforms and mezzanines to increase space. A new elevator was added within the existing Hyatt entrance, and the existing staircase was replaced. This would directly result in additional capacity for the station, since 4,000 to 6,000 more subway passengers per hour would be able to use it. These improvements would cost over $ 200 million (equivalent to $ 257,408,000 in 2023). The MTA mandated

12649-522: The new entrance because it would cause crowding, but the New York City Board of Transportation pushed to allow the corridor anyway. Chrysler eventually built and paid for the building's subway entrance. Work on the new entrance started in March 1930, and it opened along with the Chrysler Building two months later. By then, the station had direct connections to 14 nearby buildings. As part of a pilot program,

12788-425: The new extension would be ready by January 1911. However, by 1914, the H&M had not started construction of the Grand Central extension yet, and it wished to delay the start of construction further. By 1920, the H&M had submitted seventeen applications in which they sought to delay construction of the extensions; in all seventeen instances, the H&M had claimed that it was not an appropriate time to construct

12927-587: The northern side of 42nd Street, and the exit at the eastern end would be on the northwestern corner of that street and Second Avenue. Najibullah Zazi and alleged co-conspirators were arrested in September 2009 as part of an al-Qaeda Islamist plan to engage in suicide bombings on trains in the New York City Subway system, including near the Grand Central station and the Times Square–42nd Street station during rush hour that month. Zazi pled guilty. There

13066-516: The one at 72nd Street and Broadway. After Heins died in 1907, LaFarge decided to pursue a solo practice and in 1908 was replaced as architect in charge of the IRT project by Squire J. Vickers . In 1904, they were commissioned to design the Roman Catholic Cathedral of St James in Seattle by Bishop Edward J. O’Dea, whose diocese had purchased property on Seattle’s First Hill and demanded

13205-662: The original stations the polychrome faience panels (from Grueby Faience Company , Boston, and the Atlantic Terra Cotta Company of Staten Island and New Jersey) were designed by the firm, using several tile patterns . The partners' control house for the IRT is at Bowling Green station under Manhattan's Bowling Green at the corner of the Battery in the Dutch Renaissance manner reminiscent of New Amsterdam . A few Heins & LaFarge subway entrances survive, including

13344-477: The other station upgrades, were completed in 2020. As part of the 2015–2019 MTA Capital Program, the 42nd Street Shuttle became ADA accessible, the center track was removed, and the trains became six cars long. Although the Grand Central shuttle platforms were served by elevators, the shuttle as a whole was inaccessible because the platforms at Times Square were not accessible. The whole project will cost $ 235.41 million (equivalent to $ 298,865,000 in 2023), while

13483-565: The other trunk would run via the new Seventh Avenue Line up Broadway. It was predicted that the subway extension would lead to the growth of the Upper East Side and the Bronx . To reduce the 400-foot (120 m) transfer between the eastern end of the original line's station and the new Lexington Avenue Line station, a new shuttle station was to be built to the east. The construction of the narrow island platform station required building two new trackways extending east under 42nd Street. Although

13622-483: The passageway. In March, members of the Metallic Lathers Union Local 46 sought to halt construction on the project, which was 80 percent complete, as the union objected to having the work done by city employees who made less than union workers. The rebuilt passageway opened on March 18, 1946. As part of a pilot program, the New York City Board of Transportation installed three-dimensional advertisements at

13761-415: The planked walkway were removed. The project cost $ 45,800 (equivalent to $ 715,605 in 2023) and was intended to ease congestion. As part of the project, the upper passageway was moved to within fare control to allow passengers to go between the subway mezzanine and the entrance to Grand Central Terminal at the shuttle without paying a fare. This was accomplished by moving the turnstiles at the eastern end of

13900-520: The planned location of the station on the Steinway tunnel line. The original plan for what became the Lexington Avenue Line north of 42nd Street was to continue it south through Irving Place and into what is now the BMT Broadway Line at Ninth Street and Broadway . Contracts awarded on July 21, 1911, included Section 6 between 26th Street and 40th Street ; at the time, the IRT had withdrawn from

14039-415: The platform was constructed, it was never used. The Lexington Avenue Line was to run diagonally under the former Children's Hospital on the north side of 42nd Street east of Park Avenue. The route would connect the original subway under Park Avenue, on the west, to the new line under Lexington Avenue, on the east, at a point between 43rd and 44th Streets. This alignment also ran under the Grand Union Hotel at

14178-451: The project, a steep stairway to the Commodore passageway was to be reconstructed, and some stairways were to be relocated to reduce congestion. The construction of the passageway was intended to allow all stairways from the Lexington Avenue platforms to be used to access the 42nd Street Shuttle and Flushing Line platforms, and to improve passenger circulation. Elevators were installed to connect

14317-414: The removal of one of the elevators from service. Following the completion of the first set of escalators in fourteen months, the other two elevators would go out of service. This project was completed on April 3, 1966, with the completion of an escalator that traveled 50 foot (15 m) and had a capacity of 18,600 people an hour. The shuttle station suffered a severe fire on April 21, 1964, which destroyed

14456-481: The same for the tunnels. The doors add cost and complexity to the system, and trains may have to approach the station more slowly so they can stop in accurate alignment with them. Metro stations, more so than railway and bus stations, often have a characteristic artistic design that can identify each stop. Some have sculptures or frescoes. For example, London's Baker Street station is adorned with tiles depicting Sherlock Holmes . The tunnel for Paris' Concorde station

14595-434: The shuttle's operation, but the wooden platform was placed over that track later the same day to allow shuttles to use former northbound express track 3, due to high demand for the shuttles on the former local tracks, numbered 1 and 4. The cost of the extension from Grand Central was $ 58 million (equivalent to $ 1,174,885,000 in 2023). The construction and opening of the Lexington Avenue Line north of Grand Central resulted in

14734-540: The southeast corner of 42nd Street and Park Avenue. The Public Service Commission had to acquire an easement from the New York Central Railroad , the owner of the Children's Hospital site, but the commission was unwilling to pay New York Central's asking price for the easement. Consequently, in April 1913, the plan was modified so that the line made an S-curve under 40th Street. The Public Service Commission voted on

14873-768: The spans may be replaced with a monolithic vault (as in the Moskovskaya station of the Samara Metro or Sibirskaya of the Novosibirsk Metro ). In some cases, one of the rows of columns may be replaced with a load-bearing wall. Such a dual hall, one-span station, Kashirskaya , was constructed to provide a convenient cross-platform transfer. Recently, stations have appeared with monolithic concrete and steel instead of assembled pieces, as Ploshchad Tukaya in Kazan . The typical shallow column station has two vestibules at both ends of

15012-459: The station improvements in exchange for allowing the tower's construction. In 2015, SL Green gave $ 220 million (equivalent to $ 282,791,000 in 2023) toward the building's construction, of which two-thirds of the money would be used for station redesign; this marked the largest private investment to date to the New York City Subway system. The subway entrance in One Vanderbilt, as well as some of

15151-470: The station is typically positioned under land reserved for public thoroughfares or parks . Placing the station underground reduces the outside area occupied by the station, allowing vehicles and pedestrians to continue using the ground-level area in a similar way as before the station's construction. This is especially important where the station is serving high-density urban precincts, where ground-level spaces are already heavily utilised. In other cases,

15290-566: The station to reduce platform crowding for $ 6,000 (equivalent to $ 168,000 in 2023). As part of the project, a passageway would be constructed connecting the existing mezzanine immediately to the west of Vanderbilt Avenue on the north side of 42nd Street over the express tracks with the southbound platform with a new stairway approximately 64 feet (20 m) to the west of the existing eastern stairway. The Lexington Avenue Line station opened on July 17, 1918, with service initially running between Grand Central–42nd Street and 167th Street via

15429-523: The station's construction cost, the Public Service Commission approved the construction of a 25-story building on the Grand Union Hotel site. The structure was not erected as proposed; it would later become the Pershing Square Building , which opened in 1923. In 1912, in coordination with plans for the new station, a new passageway was planned to replace existing entrances at the corner of Vanderbilt Avenue and 42nd Street. There were plans to build

15568-467: The station's public address system would be upgraded. On October 26, 1981, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) held a public hearing over the agency's planned use of eminent domain to acquire 3,600 square feet (330 m) of the basement of the Grand Hyatt to construct a passageway to connect the station's northern and main mezzanines as part of the station renovation. In addition, as part of

15707-404: The station, and with new stairways, including an entrance to the building at the southwestern corner of Madison Avenue and 42nd Street was also authorized. In Fiscal Year 1915, the eastern mezzanine was extended to connect with a building at the northeastern corner of 42nd Street and Vanderbilt Avenue. In March 1916, the Public Service Commission authorized the IRT to build a new mezzanine passage at

15846-526: The station, most often combined with below-street crossings. For many metro systems outside Russia, the typical column station is a two-span station with metal columns, as in New York City, Berlin, and others. In Chicago, underground stations of the Chicago 'L' are three-span stations if constructed with a centre platform. In the Moscow Metro , approximately half of the stations are of shallow depth, built in

15985-476: The station. The improvements entailed multiple new entrances and exits, including two staircases to the southeast corner of Lexington Avenue and 42nd Street, as well as an underground entrance directly from One Vanderbilt to the 42nd Street Shuttle platforms. Three new staircases from the mezzanine to the southbound Lexington Avenue Line platform, and one new staircase to the northbound platform, were added. The project also involved reconfiguration of columns supporting

16124-401: The station. This is resolved with elevators, taking a number of people from street level to the unpaid ticketing area, and then from the paid area to the platform. In addition, there will be stringent requirements for emergencies, with backup lighting , emergency exits and alarm systems installed and maintained. Stations are a critical part of the evacuation route for passengers escaping from

16263-408: The street level, and inside several buildings along 42nd Street and Park Avenue . The station had more entrances inside buildings than any other IRT station, with 14 such entrances in 1930. Present-day exits include: Exits directly to the street include: Metro station A metro station or subway station is a train station for a rapid transit system, which as a whole is usually called

16402-556: The subway station. The connection to the subway station would run underneath the sidewalk adjacent to the Hotel Commodore. The new entrance was expected to reduce crowding at the existing northern entrances to the station through the Hotel Commodore at 42nd Street and 43rd Street. In 1928, to alleviate overcrowding on the Lexington Avenue Line, a consulting engineer for the New York State Transit Commission proposed

16541-435: The subway to run under several streets in lower Manhattan before running under Fourth Avenue , 42nd Street , and Broadway . A previous proposal had called for the entire length of the subway to use Broadway, but the "awkward alignment...along Forty-Second Street", as the commission put it, was necessitated by objections to using the southernmost section of Broadway. All lawsuits concerning the route alignment were resolved near

16680-463: The subway was nearly complete, but the IRT Powerhouse and the system's electrical substations were still under construction, delaying the system's opening. The Grand Central–42nd Street station opened on October 27, 1904, as one of the original 28 stations of the New York City Subway from City Hall to 145th Street on the Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line . The Grand Central shuttle platforms predate

16819-551: The surviving architect of the team. They hired a new architect Ralph Adams Cram , whose nave and west front would be continued in French Gothic style . The other prime commission in New York City was the Fourth Presbyterian Church (1893–94), now Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church , at West End Avenue and West 91st Street on the Upper West Side , a tribute to their joint master. The rusticated masonry façade with

16958-474: The talks, and the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company (BRT) was to operate on Lexington Avenue. The IRT submitted an offer for what became its portion of the Dual Contracts on February 27, 1912. Soon after the IRT submitted its offer for the Dual Contracts, construction was halted on Section 6. The contracts were formalized in early 1913, specifying new lines or expansions to be built by the IRT and

17097-991: The terminal itself, as the construction of Grand Central Terminal was completed in 1913. After the first subway line was completed in 1908, the station was served by local and express trains along both the West Side (now the Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line to Van Cortlandt Park–242nd Street ) and East Side (now the Lenox Avenue Line ). West Side local trains had their southern terminus at City Hall during rush hours and South Ferry at other times, and had their northern terminus at 242nd Street. East Side local trains ran from City Hall to Lenox Avenue (145th Street) . Express trains had their southern terminus at South Ferry or Atlantic Avenue and had their northern terminus at 242nd Street, Lenox Avenue (145th Street), or West Farms ( 180th Street ). To address overcrowding, in 1909,

17236-400: The then-nearly-complete tunnel. The Manhattan trolley loop was near the Grand Central station. The Flushing Line platform was the first Dual Contracts improvement to be completed at Grand Central, opening on June 22, 1915. On August 31, 1916, a passageway connecting the Flushing Line platform with the rest of the subway station was opened with an inspection tour; it was opened to the public in

17375-408: The trackways at Times Square and Grand Central. The shuttle was heavily used, and the crowding conditions were so bad that the shuttle was ordered closed the next day. The shuttle reopened September 28, 1918. Track 2 at the Grand Central station was covered over by a wooden platform. A New York Times columnist later said that former southbound express track 2 was still usable for the first few hours of

17514-529: The train carriages. Access from the street to ticketing and the train platform is provided by stairs , concourses , escalators , elevators and tunnels. The station will be designed to minimise overcrowding and improve flow, sometimes by designating tunnels as one way. Permanent or temporary barriers may be used to manage crowds. Some metro stations have direct connections to important nearby buildings (see underground city ). Most jurisdictions mandate that people with disabilities must have unassisted use of

17653-619: The tube. This time, the Rapid Transit Commissioners declined this request for a delay, effectively ending the H&M's right to build an extension to Grand Central. In August 1925, Eastern Offices Inc. signed an agreement to lease land from the New York Central for 21 years to construct the Graybar Building . As part of the agreement, passageways were to be constructed to connect the building with Grand Central Terminal and

17792-409: The wall where riders could exchange a quarter for a subway token and ten cents in change. Also in 1954, the New York City Transit Authority (NYCTA) installed fluorescent directional signs at the Grand Central–42nd Street station, the first station in the system to receive these illuminated signs. On August 9, 1954, two new 4 foot (1.2 m)-wide escalators connecting the Flushing Line platform and

17931-649: The west end of the station. Six-car local trains began operating in October 1910. On January 23, 1911, ten-car express trains began running on the Lenox Avenue Line, and the following day, ten-car express trains were inaugurated on the West Side Line. On May 17, 1910, the New York State Public Service Commission received a letter from the New York Central Railroad announcing plans to create

18070-513: The work the wooden passenger walkway, which had an average width of 15 feet (4.6 m) was replaced by a 37 feet (11 m) wide passageway with concrete flooring. This walkway had been "temporary" when it was put into place in August 1918. The new 350 feet (110 m)-long passageway covered most of the trackways used by downtown trains of the Original Subway prior to 1918. The iron railings along

18209-482: Was 12 times brighter than the old lighting, was installed. Track 2 between the shuttle station and Times Square–42nd Street was removed in 1975. The NYCTA announced plans on November 24, 1977, to improve and install new escalators across the subway system, including six new escalators, the reconditioning of three escalators, and the modification of 22 escalators to have automatic treadle operation, which would reduce energy and maintenance costs as they would be activated by

18348-557: Was awarded on March 7, 2019, with an estimated completion date of March 2022. The new platforms were opened on September 7, 2021. A new mezzanine below the existing mezzanine, known as the Short Loop connection, has been proposed to provide a direct connection from the subway station to the Grand Central Terminal's lower-level Metro-North platforms, and to the concourse of the Long Island Rail Road 's Grand Central Madison station ,

18487-651: Was celebrated on June 2, 1895, and the completed church was dedicated in 1913. The firm designed other Catholic churches, including the Church of the Blessed Sacrament in Providence, Rhode Island ., and Holy Trinity Church in West Point, New York . La Farge has been called "America's leading church architect". In 1899, Heins was appointed New York State architect by Governor Theodore Roosevelt , and he designed interiors for

18626-436: Was completed in 1907 and solemnly dedicated on December 22, 1907. Unhappily, under the weight of two feet of wet snow the dome collapsed on the afternoon of February 2, 1916, dropping 400 tons of masonry eighty feet into the empty cathedral, shattering every window and leaving a gaping hole that exposed it to the elements. The cathedral reopened on March 18, 1917, but with a flat roof over the crossing. The central repositioning of

18765-481: Was expected to be completed in 40 months after the start of work. On November 28, 1955, in an attempt to reduce congestion between the Flushing Line platform and the mezzanine, the NYCTA made the three elevators at the western end of the Flushing Line platform to the mezzanine up-only between 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. on weekdays. The NYCTA announced plans in 1956 to add fluorescent lights to the Flushing Line and shuttle platforms at

18904-450: Was expected to cost $ 12.5 million (equivalent to $ 52,476,000 in 2023), of which the Federal government would provide $ 10 million (equivalent to $ 41,981,000 in 2023), the state would provide $ 1 million (equivalent to $ 4,198,000 in 2023), and private developers would pay $ 1.5 million (equivalent to $ 6,297,000 in 2023) through a tax abatement plan. It qualified for the program due to

19043-434: Was financed using state and Federal funds and designed by Gruzen Samton Architects, would focus on improving the appearance of the station, and would be constructed in phases. The renovation would restore the 1914 mosaic tiles on the walls of the Lexington Avenue Line platforms, cover existing columns with tile with new mosaics, create a v-shaped light installation on the vaulted ceiling of the Flushing Line platform, and install

19182-420: Was reconfigured. Grand Central–42nd Street is the second busiest station in the 423-station system, with 45,745,700 passengers in 2019; only the Times Square–42nd Street and 42nd Street–Port Authority Bus Terminal station complex has more riders. Planning for a subway line in New York City dates to 1864. However, development of what would become the city's first subway line did not start until 1894, when

19321-403: Was spent on building additional entrances and exits. It was anticipated that these improvements would increase capacity by 25 percent. At the Grand Central station, the northbound platform was extended 135 feet (41 m) west, while the southbound platform was extended 125 feet (38 m) west. Small portions of the walls and roof were also reconstructed, and a new signal tower was constructed at

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