The 42nd Street station was an elevated express station on the demolished

IRT Third Avenue Line The IRT Third Avenue Line, commonly known as the Third Avenue Elevated, Third Avenue El, or Bronx El, was an elevated railway in Manhattan and the Bronx, New York City. Originally operated by the New York Elevated Railway, an independent rai ...

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. It had two levels with the lower level (built first) having three tracks. The main line tracks were served by two

side platform A side platform (also known as a marginal platform or a single-face platform) is a platform positioned to the side of one or more railway tracks or guideways at a railway station, tram stop, or transitway. A station having dual side platforms, ...

s. A side platform connected to the southbound platform was used for shuttle service to Grand Central. The upper level was built as part of the

Dual Contracts The Dual Contracts, also known as the Dual Subway System, were contracts for the construction and/or rehabilitation and operation of rapid transit lines in the New York City, City of New York. The contracts were signed on March 19, 1913, by the ...

, and had one track and two side platforms over the two local tracks.

History

42nd Street station was built on August 26, 1878, by the

New York Elevated Railway Company New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...

, and was the penultimate station on the Third Avenue El until it was expanded to 67th Street almost a month later. West of this station, the original line became the Grand Central Shuttle, serving

Grand Central Depot Grand Central Terminal is a major commuter rail terminal in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, serving the Metro-North Railroad's Harlem, Hudson and New Haven Lines, and the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR). It is the most recent of three function ...

until 1899, when it was replaced by Grand Central Station, which was itself replaced by

Grand Central Terminal Grand Central Terminal (GCT; also referred to as Grand Central Station or simply as Grand Central) is a commuter rail terminal station, terminal located at 42nd Street (Manhattan), 42nd Street and Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York Ci ...

in 1913. From that point on, the next stop to the north was 47th Street for local trains and 106th Street for express trains. The next stop to the south was

34th Street 34th Street most commonly refers to 34th Street (Manhattan) 34th Street is a major crosstown street in the New York City borough of Manhattan. It runs the width of Manhattan Island from the West Side Highway on the West Side to FDR Drive on t ...

for local trains and 23rd Street for express trains. The express run from this stop to 106th Street was the longest express segment out of all New York City elevated lines, bypassing eight local stations. In 1904, Interborough Rapid Transit opened the Grand Central Subway station, which gained platforms for the

IRT Flushing Line The IRT Flushing Line is a rapid transit route of the New York City Subway system, named for its eastern terminal in Flushing, Queens. It is operated as part of the A Division. The Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT), a private operator, ...

in 1915, and new platforms for the expanded

IRT Lexington Avenue Line The IRT Lexington Avenue Line (also known as the IRT East Side Line and the IRT Lexington–Fourth Avenue Line) is one of the lines of the A Division (New York City Subway), A Division of the New York City Subway, stretching from Lower Manhatt ...

in 1918, the same year the original platforms at the station were converted for the

42nd Street Shuttle The 42nd Street Shuttle is a New York City Subway shuttle train service that operates in Manhattan. The shuttle is sometimes referred to as the Grand Central/Times Square Shuttle, since these are the only two stations it serves. The shuttle op ...

. By this time, the shuttle became obsolete and after the Grand Central El station was closed on December 6, 1923, the shuttle platform at 42nd Street was closed on December 23, 1923. When the

IRT Second Avenue Line The IRT Second Avenue Line, also known as the Second Avenue Elevated or Second Avenue El, was an elevated railway in Manhattan, New York City, United States, from 1878 to 1942. It was operated by the Interborough Rapid Transit Company until 1940 ...

was closed on June 13, 1942, a free transfer for Third Avenue Line passengers was made available to and from the subway services at Grand Central–42nd Street to replace the direct service to lower Manhattan that was lost. The station closed entirely on May 12, 1955, with the ending of all service on the Third Avenue El south of 149th Street.NYCTA Notice of Third Avenue Rail Closure for May 12, 1955
/ref>

References

* *

External links

42nd Street Station on the Third Avenue El (NYCSubway.org)
IRT Third Avenue Line stations Railway stations in the United States opened in 1878 1878 establishments in New York (state) 1955 disestablishments in New York (state) Former elevated and subway stations in Manhattan Third Avenue Railway stations in the United States closed in 1955 {{Manhattan-railstation-stub