86th Street station (IRT Lexington Avenue Line)
86th Street is an express station on the IRT Lexington Avenue Line of the New York City Subway. Located at the intersection of Lexington Avenue and 86th Street on the Upper East Side, it is served by the 4 and 6 trains at all times, the 5 train at all times except late nights, and the <6> train during weekdays in peak direction.
86 Street | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Local downtown platform | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Station statistics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Address | East 86th Street & Lexington Avenue New York, NY 10028 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Borough | Manhattan | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Locale | Upper East Side | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Coordinates | 40.779469°N 73.955626°W | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Division | A (IRT) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Line | IRT Lexington Avenue Line | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Services | 4 5 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Transit connections | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Structure | Underground | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Levels | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Platforms | 4 side platforms (2 on each level) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tracks | 4 (2 on each level) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Other information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Opened | July 17, 1918[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Station code | 397[2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Accessible | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wireless service | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Opposite-direction transfer available | No | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Traffic | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Passengers (2019) | 13,537,308[4] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rank | 21 out of 424[4] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Station succession | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Next north | 125th Street (express): 4 96th Street (local): 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Next | 125th Street (local): 4 express platform not accessible northbound Next accessible station northbound: 125th Street (express): 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Next south | 77th Street (local): 4 59th Street (express): 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Next | station not accessible southbound Next accessible station southbound: 51st Street (local): 4 Grand Central–42nd Street (express): 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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History
86th Street opened on July 17, 1918 as part of an expansion of the IRT Lexington Avenue Line north of Grand Central–42nd Street.[1]
This station underwent three renovations. The first took place with the opening of a Gimbels department store directly above in the early 1970s. The renovation took place mostly in the fare control areas. The second renovation was completed by 1986 as part of a move to prevent the existing New York City Subway stations from falling apart after years of deferred maintenance; this is evidenced by the addition of the then standard orange platform edge in addition to the yellow platform edge that was originally there, as well as painting the I Beams red instead of the original blue and fixing all the other parts of the station.[6] The third renovation was completed by Fall 2004.[7] It consisted of repainting the I beams from red to dark blue, as well as the removal of train arrival devices on the upper level that gave notices of approaching express trains on the lower level, among other things; the latter was replaced with countdown clocks, on both levels, which performed the same function.[8][9]
Station layout
G | Street level | Exit/entrance |
B1 | Fare control for northbound platforms | |
Side platform | ||
Northbound local | ← ← | |
Southbound local | ||
Side platform | ||
Fare control for southbound platforms | ||
B2 | Side platform | |
Northbound express | ← ← | |
Southbound express | ||
Side platform |
This underground station has two levels. Each level has two tracks and two side platforms. The upper level serves local trains while the lower level, located approximately 48 feet (15 m) below ground, serves express trains.[10] There is no express service during late nights and the lower level is closed during that period.[11] Four staircases connect the levels on each side.
There are no crossovers or crossunders between the platforms, making this one of only three express stations in the system where free transfers between opposite directions are not possible (the others are Nostrand Avenue on the IND Fulton Street Line, and Bergen Street, whose lower level is closed, on the IND Culver Line). Each platform has its original Dual Contracts trim line consisting mostly of yellows and browns. Small "86" tablets in a circle run along this trim line.[12] The name tablets have "86TH STREET" in a white serif font on a reddish-brown background with a light-brown inner border and green outer border.[13] Teal columns run along all four platforms at regular intervals.[14]
Each upper-level platform has one same-level fare control area in the center. The southbound side has a turnstile bank, token booth, two staircases going up to the southwest corner of East 86th Street and Lexington Avenue, and two more that are built inside a Best Buy store on the northwest corner of the same intersection.[15] The northbound fare control has an unstaffed turnstile bank and two staircases going up to the southeast corner of East 86th Street and Lexington Avenue. An additional staircase and an elevator rise to the northeast corner. The elevator and staircase replace two narrow staircases formerly located inside a now-demolished shopping arcade at that corner. The elevator and staircase installations are part of the construction of a luxury residential tower at 147 East 86th Street.[16][17]
As of 2019, only the northbound local platform is ADA-accessible, since there is no elevator from the local platform to the express platform and no elevators on the southbound side. Accessibility of the entire station was proposed in August 2019 as part of the MTA's "Fast Forward" program.[18]
The 2004 artwork here is called Happy City by Peter Sis. It consists of four different glass and etched stone mosaic murals in the shapes of huge eyes surrounded by various animals and objects. They are located at each stop of the four staircases near the fare control areas that go down to the lower level express platforms.[19]
This station was added to the National Register of Historic Places on March 30, 2005.[20]
Exits
Exit location[21] | Exit type | Number of exits | Platform served |
---|---|---|---|
NW corner of Lexington Avenue and 86th Street | Staircase | 2 | Southbound |
SW corner of Lexington Avenue and 86th Street | Staircase | 2 | Southbound |
NE corner of Lexington Avenue and 86th Street | Staircase | 1 | Northbound |
SE corner of Lexington Avenue and 86th Street | Staircase | 2 | Northbound |
Notable places nearby
- Central Park[21]
- Church of St. Ignatius Loyola[21]
- Cooper–Hewitt, National Design Museum[21]
- Metropolitan Museum of Art[21]
- 225 East 86th Street
- National Academy of Design[21]
- Neue Galerie New York[21]
- 1040 Fifth Avenue
- Regis High School[21]
- Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum[21]
References
- "Lexington Av. Line to be Opened Today" (PDF). The New York Times. July 17, 1918. p. 13. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 21, 2020.
- "Station Developers' Information". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved June 13, 2017.
- "NYC Subway Wireless – Active Stations". Transit Wireless Wifi. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
- "Facts and Figures: Annual Subway Ridership 2014–2019". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2020. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
- "NPS Focus". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. Retrieved November 6, 2011.
- http://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?65601
- Jeremiah Cox. "86 Street (4,5,6) - The SubwayNut". subwaynut.com.
- "Learn More about Countdown Clocks..." Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved October 31, 2011.
- "Countdown Clocks Station List". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved October 31, 2011.
- Metropolitan Transportation Authority. "Second Avenue Subway March 2014 Public Workshop Follow-Up Report, page 23" (PDF). Retrieved April 21, 2016.
- Dougherty, Peter (2006) [2002]. Tracks of the New York City Subway 2006 (3rd ed.). Dougherty. OCLC 49777633 – via Google Books.
- Cox, Jeremiah (August 15, 2008). "Close-up of 86 in the trimline". subwaynut.com. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
- Cox, Jeremiah (August 12, 2011). "A name tablet". subwaynut.com. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
- Cox, Jeremiah (August 15, 2008). "Passengers get off a downtown 6 train". subwaynut.com. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
- Cox, Jeremiah (August 12, 2011). "One of the entrances inside the storefront of Best Buy". subwaynut.com. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
- Zimmer, Amy (March 21, 2016). "MTA's Deal With Developer to Alter 86th St. Subway Station Angers Locals". DNAinfo New York. Archived from the original on May 16, 2018. Retrieved May 16, 2018.
- Weaver, Shaye (June 16, 2017). "Developer to Create 'Obstacle Course' With New UES Subway Entrances: Locals". DNAinfo New York. Archived from the original on May 16, 2018. Retrieved May 16, 2018.
- Berger, Paul. "MTA Has a Target List of Accessible Stations but Stalls Release". WSJ. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
- "Fast Forward Station Groupings List". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved August 2, 2019 – via Wall Street Journal.
- "Fast Forward Station Groupings List". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved August 2, 2019 – via Wall Street Journal.
- "MTA - Arts & Design | NYCT Permanent Art". web.mta.info. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
- "National Register of Historical Places - NEW YORK (NY), New York County". www.nationalregisterofhistoricplaces.com. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
- "MTA Neighborhood Maps: Upper East Side" (PDF). mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2016. Retrieved December 30, 2016.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to 86th Street (IRT Lexington Avenue Line). |
- nycsubway.org – IRT East Side Line: 86th Street
- nycsubway.org — Happy City Artwork by Peter Sis (2004)
- MTA's Arts For Transit — 86th Street (IRT Lexington Avenue Line)
- 86th Street northbound entrance from Google Maps Street View
- 86th Street southbound entrance from Google Maps Street View
- Platforms from Google Maps Street View