The Seventh Avenue station is a station on the

IND Sixth Avenue Line The IND Sixth Avenue Line is a rapid transit line of the B Division of the New York City Subway in the United States. It runs mainly under Sixth Avenue in Manhattan, and continues south to Brooklyn. The B, D, F, and M trains, which use th ...

and the

IND Queens Boulevard Line The IND Queens Boulevard Line, sometimes abbreviated as QBL, is a line of the B Division of the New York City Subway in Manhattan and Queens, New York City, United States. The line, which is underground throughout its entire route, contains 23 ...

of the

New York City Subway The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system owned by the government of New York City and leased to the New York City Transit Authority, an affiliate agency of the state-run Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). Opened on October ...

. Located at the intersection of Seventh Avenue and 53rd Street in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

, it is served by the D and E trains at all times, and the B train weekdays. The station is announced as Seventh Avenue–53rd Street, in the style of other stations that orient east-west along 53rd Street (such as Fifth Avenue/53rd Street and Lexington Avenue–53rd Street), as well as to prevent confusion with Seventh Avenue along the

BMT Brighton Line The BMT Brighton Line, also known as the Brighton Beach Line, is a rapid transit line in the B Division of the New York City Subway in Brooklyn, New York City, United States. Local service is provided at all times by the Q train, but is joined ...

in Brooklyn, which is also served by the B.

History

The Seventh Avenue station was designed as an interchange point between service of the

and the

. The northern half of the station opened on August 19, 1933 with the opening of the IND Queens Boulevard Line to

Roosevelt Avenue Roosevelt Avenue and Greenpoint Avenue are main thoroughfares in the New York City boroughs of Queens and Brooklyn. Roosevelt Avenue begins at 48th Street and Queens Boulevard in the neighborhood of Sunnyside. West of Queens Boulevard, the ro ...

in Queens.* * * The southern half of the station opened on December 15, 1940 with the opening of the IND Sixth Avenue Line north of West Fourth Street to 59th Street–Columbus Circle. In 1990, Utah tourist Brian Watkins was killed at the Seventh Avenue station while trying to protect his family from a robbery. The murder was described as "probably the tipping point in New York’s history of violence and mayhem", marking a low point in the record murder year of 1990 and leading to an increased police presence in New York. Eight people were indicted: the first trial found four of the eight defendants guilty of murder, and a second trial found three of the remaining four defendants to also be guilty. One defendant was later cleared of murder charges. In 2019, the

Metropolitan Transportation Authority The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is a public benefit corporation responsible for public transportation in the New York City metropolitan area of the U.S. state of New York. The MTA is the largest public transit authority in th ...

announced that the station would become

ADA-accessible The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 or ADA () is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. It affords similar protections against discrimination to Americans with disabilities as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, ...

as part of the agency's 2020–2024 Capital Program. The announcement occurred after a

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the ...

woman fell down a staircase trying to carry her 1-year-old daughter on a stroller down a flight of stairs; the baby survived the fall, but the mother died.

Station layout

This is a two-level station, with two tracks on each level and two

island platform An island platform (also center platform, centre platform) is a station layout arrangement where a single platform is positioned between two tracks within a railway station, tram stop or transitway interchange. Island platforms are popular o ...

s, one over the other. The lower level serves trains headed railroad north (to

Central Park West Eighth Avenue is a major north–south avenue on the west side of Manhattan in New York City, carrying northbound traffic below 59th Street. It is one of the original avenues of the Commissioners' Plan of 1811 to run the length of Manhattan, ...

for trains from the

, to

Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

for trains from the

IND Eighth Avenue Line The IND Eighth Avenue Line is a rapid transit line in New York City, United States, and is part of the B Division of the New York City Subway. Opened in 1932, it was the first line of the Independent Subway System (IND), and the ''Eighth Avenu ...

). The upper level is the reverse, serving trains headed railroad south (toward

Lower Manhattan Lower Manhattan (also known as Downtown Manhattan or Downtown New York) is the southernmost part of Manhattan, the central borough for business, culture, and government in New York City, which is the most populated city in the United States with ...

). Each level allows

cross-platform interchange A cross-platform interchange is a type of interchange between different lines at a metro (or other railway) station. The term originates with the London Underground; such layouts exist in other networks but are not commonly so named. In the U ...

between the two lines. The

BMT Broadway Line The BMT Broadway Line is a rapid transit line of the B Division of the New York City Subway in Manhattan. , it is served by four services, all colored : the on the express tracks and the on the local tracks during weekdays (the N and Q train ...

passes overhead near the west end of the station; this crossing is visible in the ceiling and supporting columns. The station serves two distinct subway lines that do not interconnect. On the

, uptown trains (heading west through the station) merge with the

along Central Park West, while downtown trains (heading east through the station) run along the

. On the

, uptown trains (heading east through the station) go to

via the

53rd Street Tunnel The IND Queens Boulevard Line, sometimes abbreviated as QBL, is a line of the B Division of the New York City Subway in Manhattan and Queens, New York City, United States. The line, which is underground throughout its entire route, contains 23 ...

, while downtown trains (headed west through the station) merge with the Eighth Avenue Line south of 50th Street. There is no way for trains to travel between Central Park West and Queens, or between the Sixth Avenue Line and the lower section of the Eighth Avenue Line. West of the station, the southbound Sixth Avenue Line track (internally labeled as track B3) rises above both Queens Boulevard Line tracks (D3 southbound and D4 northbound), which in turn are above the northbound Sixth Avenue Line track (B4).

Exits

This station has two main exits: one at the westbound end of the station at Broadway, and one in the middle of the station at Broadway. The westbound exit has staircases leading to the northeast and southeast corners of 53rd Street and Broadway. The middle exit has staircases leading to the northeast and southeast corners of 53rd Street and Seventh Avenue.

References

External links

* * Station Reporter �
B Train
* Station Reporter �

* Station Reporter �

Seventh Avenue entrance from Google Maps Street View

Broadway entrance from Google Maps Street View

Upper platform from Google Maps Street View
{{DEFAULTSORT:7th Avenue (IND Queens Boulevard Line) IND Sixth Avenue Line stations IND Queens Boulevard Line stations 1933 establishments in New York City New York City Subway transfer stations New York City Subway stations in Manhattan New York City Subway stations located underground Railway stations in the United States opened in 1933 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan) Midtown Manhattan