Mount Vernon East station
The Mount Vernon East station is a commuter rail stop on the Metro-North Railroad's New Haven Line, located in Mount Vernon, New York. The station is the first station north of the junction where the New Haven Line splits from the Harlem Line and is the northernmost station on the line before it changes from third rail power to overhead catenary power, which takes place between the Mount Vernon East and Pelham stations. Some New Haven Railroad-era overhead catenary poles can still be found southwest of the Gramatan Avenue bridge.[4] After Pelham, the New Haven Line joins the Northeast Corridor at New Rochelle.
Mount Vernon East | |||||||||||||
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A New York City-bound train arrives at Mount Vernon East station. | |||||||||||||
Location | 1 East First Street, Mount Vernon, New York | ||||||||||||
Coordinates | 40.911942°N 73.831678°W | ||||||||||||
Owned by | Metropolitan Transportation Authority | ||||||||||||
Platforms | 2 side platforms | ||||||||||||
Tracks | 4 | ||||||||||||
Connections | ![]() | ||||||||||||
Construction | |||||||||||||
Parking | 283 spaces | ||||||||||||
Disabled access | Yes | ||||||||||||
Other information | |||||||||||||
Fare zone | 12 | ||||||||||||
History | |||||||||||||
Opened | December 20, 1972[1] | ||||||||||||
Electrified | 700V (DC) third rail | ||||||||||||
Previous names | Mount Vernon (December 20, 1972–c. 1997)[2] | ||||||||||||
Traffic | |||||||||||||
Passengers (2018) | 2,876 | ||||||||||||
Rank | 20 of 124[3] | ||||||||||||
Services | |||||||||||||
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It contains stained glass artwork named Tranquility by Marjorie Blackwell from 2001,[5] and the station itself is dedicated to Fred Wilkinson.
History
Prior to being acquired by Penn Central Railroad, the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad had two stations in Mount Vernon. The main station, Prospect Avenue, which was actually located west of the Park Avenue Bridge rather than east of it, and another at Columbus Avenue, which also included a connecting station for the New York, Westchester and Boston Railway,[6] one of five NYW&B stations within the city. Mount Vernon's main New Haven Railroad station contained a series of sidetracks on the north side of East First Street between Park and Fulton Avenues. Penn Central closed the two stations and replaced them with the Mount Vernon station on December 20, 1972. The new station was built with two high-level 850 feet (260 m) side platforms, allowing the new M2 cars to platform at the station. The two old stations, including Columbus Avenue, which caught fire on March 31, 1957[7] were subsequently demolished.[8]
After the station became a Metro-North station, it was moved and rebuilt across the Park Avenue Bridge to Elm Avenue across from Portugal Place, in spite of the fact that Metro-North still gives the address as being at East First Street. Today, the site of the old Mount Vernon New Haven Railroad Station is occupied by August Petrillo Plaza, a Westchester County Bee-Line Bus System and local taxi hub.
This station stood in for the Rockville Centre station during the filming of the 2004 movie Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.[9]
Station layout
This station has two high-level side platforms, each 10-cars long.[10]:18
M | Mezzanine | Crossover between tracks |
P Platform level |
Side platform, doors will open on the right ![]() | |
Track 3 | ← New Haven Line toward Grand Central (Fordham) | |
Track 1 | ← New Haven Line express trains do not stop here | |
Track 2 | New Haven Line express trains do not stop here → | |
Track 4 | New Haven Line toward Stamford (Pelham) → | |
Side platform, doors will open on the right ![]() | ||
Street level | Exit/entrance and parking |
Petrillo Plaza bus connections
The following bus routes serve the Petrillo Plaza area, along the site of the former New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad Depot at Mount Vernon. The site was named for former Mayor August Petrillo.
Route | Stop location | Terminal1 | Terminal2 | via | notes |
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Bee-Line Bus | |||||
7 |
Yonkers Getty Square Riverdale Avenue |
New Rochelle Transit Center (Platform C) |
Yonkers Avenue, Lincoln Avenue | ||
40 |
Wakefield, Bronx 233rd Street and White Plains Road at 233rd Street ( 2 5 trains) |
Valhalla (Westchester Medical Center) |
Hillside Avenue, White Plains Road |
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41 |
Wakefield, Bronx 233rd Street and White Plains Road at 233rd Street ( 2 5 trains) |
Valhalla (Westchester Medical Center) |
Hillside Avenue, White Plains Road |
| |
42 |
Wakefield, Bronx 233rd Street and White Plains Road at 233rd Street ( 2 5 trains) |
New Rochelle Transit Center (Platform B) |
West First Street, Pelhamdale Avenue |
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52 |
Pelham Bay Park, Bronx Bruckner Boulevard at Pelham Bay Park ( 6 <6> trains) |
Bronxville Bronxville (Metro-North station) |
Gramatan Avenue, South Fifth Avenue | No Sunday service. | |
53 |
to Mount Vernon High School | East 3rd Street, Fifth Avenue (Pelham), Pelhamdale Avenue |
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54 |
Mount Vernon Local |
Sandford Boulevard and Fulton Avenue and South 11th Avenue |
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55 |
Eastchester, Bronx Dyre Avenue and Light Street at Dyre Avenue ( 5 train) |
Cross County Shopping Center Macy's |
Terrace Avenue, South Columbus Avenue | ||
91 |
Yonkers Yonkers (Metro-North station) |
Rye Playland | Yonkers Avenue, South Fulton Avenue, Sandford Boulevard, Pelhamdale Avenue, Boston Post Road, New England Thruway | Limited-stop service, Nonstop from New Rochelle to Playland. | |
References
- "Penn Central to Consolidate Two Stations". The Hartford Courant. December 19, 1972. p. 52. Retrieved September 15, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- Mount Vernon East station (Road and Rail Pictures)
- METRO-NORTH 2018 WEEKDAY STATION BOARDINGS. Market Analysis/Fare Policy Group:OPERATIONS PLANNING AND ANALYSIS DEPARTMENT:Metro-North Railroad. April 2019. p. 6.
- DanTD (April 21, 2011). Mount Vernon East-11,000 Volts (photograph). Retrieved March 29, 2012.
- Mount Vernon East; Marjorie Blackwell; Tranquility, 2001 (MTA; Arts for Transit and Urban Design)
- Columbus Avenue NHRR and NYW&B station; October 1937 (TrainsAreFun)
- "Railroad Depot Razed by Blaze". New York Daily News. April 1, 1957. p. 5. Retrieved September 13, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- "Pennsy Will Open Station At Mt. Vernon Tomorrow". The New York Times. December 19, 1972. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
- Site about the film Archived March 9, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
- "Metro-North Railroad Track & Structures Department Track Charts Maintenance Program Interlocking Diagrams & Yard Diagrams 2015" (PDF). Metro-North Railroad. 2015. Retrieved January 28, 2019.