Fulton Street (IND Eighth Avenue Line)
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The Fulton Street station is a major
New York City Subway The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system in New York City serving the New York City boroughs, boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx. It is owned by the government of New York City and leased to the New York City Tr ...
station complex in
Lower Manhattan Lower Manhattan, also known as Downtown Manhattan or Downtown New York City, is the southernmost part of the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The neighborhood is History of New York City, the historical birthplace o ...
. It consists of four linked stations on the
IND Eighth Avenue Line The IND Eighth Avenue Line is a rapid transit line in the B Division of the New York City Subway. Opened in 1932, it was the first line of the Independent Subway System (IND); as such, New Yorkers originally applied the ''Eighth Avenue Subwa ...
, the
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 ...
, the
BMT Nassau Street Line The BMT Nassau Street Line is a rapid transit line of the B Division of the New York City Subway system in Manhattan. At its northern end, the line is a westward continuation of the BMT Jamaica Line in Brooklyn after the Jamaica Line crosses ...
and the
IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line The IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line (also known as the IRT Seventh Avenue Line or the IRT West Side Line) is a New York City Subway line. It is one of several lines that serves the A Division, stretching from South Ferry in Lower Manhatt ...
. The complex is served by the 2, 4, A, and J trains at all times. The 3, 5, and C trains stop here at all times except late nights, and the Z stops during rush hours in the peak direction. The Lexington Avenue Line station was built for the
Interborough Rapid Transit Company The Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) was the private operator of New York City's original underground subway line that opened in 1904, as well as earlier elevated railways and additional rapid transit lines in New York City. The IRT ...
(IRT) as part of the city's first subway line, and opened on January 16, 1905. The Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line station, built for the IRT 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 ...
, opened on July 1, 1918. The
Brooklyn–Manhattan Transit Corporation The Brooklyn–Manhattan Transit Corporation (BMT) was an urban transit holding company, based in Brooklyn, New York City, United States, and incorporated in 1923. The system was sold to the city in 1940. Today, together with the IND subway sy ...
(BMT)'s Nassau Street Line station was also built under the Dual Contracts and opened on May 29, 1931. The
Independent Subway System The Independent Subway System (IND; formerly the ISS) was a rapid transit rail system in New York City that is now part of the New York City Subway. It was first constructed as the IND Eighth Avenue Line, Eighth Avenue Line in Manhattan in 1932. ...
(IND)'s Eighth Avenue Line station, originally known as the Broadway–Nassau Street station, was the latest in the complex to be completed, opening on February 1, 1933. Several modifications have been made to the stations over the years, and they were connected within a single
fare control In rail transport, the paid area is a dedicated "inner" zone in a railway station or metro station, accessible via turnstiles or other barriers, to get into which, visitors or passengers require a valid ticket, checked smartcard or a pass. A s ...
area in 1948. The station was renovated during the 2000s and early 2010s, becoming part of the
Fulton Center Fulton Center is a subway and retail complex centered at the intersection of Fulton Street (Manhattan), Fulton Street and Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway in Lower Manhattan, New York City. The complex was built as part of a $1.4 billion proje ...
complex, which opened in 2014. The Lexington Avenue, Nassau Street, and Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line stations run north–south under
Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...
, Nassau Street, and William Street respectively. The Eighth Avenue Line station is underneath Fulton Street, running west–east between Broadway and Nassau Streets. The Lexington Avenue and Nassau Street Line stations both have two tracks and 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, while the Broadway–Seventh Avenue and Eighth Avenue Line stations both have two tracks and one
island platform An island platform (also center platform (American English) or centre platform (British English)) is a station layout arrangement where a single platform is positioned between two tracks within a railway station, tram stop or transitway inte ...
. The complex is connected to the nearby
Chambers Street–World Trade Center/Park Place/Cortlandt Street station The Chambers Street–World Trade Center/Park Place/Cortlandt Street station is a New York City Subway metro station, station complex on the IND Eighth Avenue Line, IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line, and BMT Broadway Line. Located on Church St ...
complex and the
World Trade Center Transportation Hub The World Trade Center station is a terminal station on the PATH system, within the World Trade Center complex in the Financial District of Manhattan, New York City. It is served by the Newark–World Trade Center line at all times, as wel ...
through the
Dey Street Passageway The Dey Street Passageway or Dey Street Concourse is a underground passageway in Manhattan, New York City, built as part of the Fulton Center project to rehabilitate the Fulton Street station (New York City Subway), Fulton Street station comple ...
, which is outside of the station's
fare control In rail transport, the paid area is a dedicated "inner" zone in a railway station or metro station, accessible via turnstiles or other barriers, to get into which, visitors or passengers require a valid ticket, checked smartcard or a pass. A s ...
area. The station was the fifth busiest in the system in 2019 with 27,715,365 passengers. __TOC__


History


First subway


Construction and opening

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 the
New York State Legislature The New York State Legislature consists of the Bicameralism, two houses that act as the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York: the New York State Senate and the New York State Assem ...
passed the Rapid Transit Act. The subway plans were drawn up by a team of engineers led by
William Barclay Parsons William Barclay Parsons Jr. (April 15, 1859 – May 9, 1932) was an American civil engineer. He founded Parsons Brinckerhoff, one of the largest American civil engineering firms. Early life Parsons was born on April 15, 1859 in New York City, ...
, the Rapid Transit Commission's chief engineer. The Rapid Transit Construction Company, organized by
John B. McDonald John B. McDonald (November 7, 1844 – March 17, 1911) was an Irish people, Irish-born contractor who is best known for overseeing construction of Early history of the IRT subway, New York City's first subway line from 1900 to 1904. Early life J ...
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 Heins & LaFarge was a New York City–based architectural firm founded by Philadelphia-born architect George Lewis Heins (1860–1907) and Christopher Grant LaFarge (1862–1938), the eldest son of the artist John La Farge. They were the architec ...
was hired to design the underground stations. Belmont incorporated the
Interborough Rapid Transit Company The Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) was the private operator of New York City's original underground subway line that opened in 1904, as well as earlier elevated railways and additional rapid transit lines in New York City. The IRT ...
(IRT) in April 1902 to operate the subway. Several days after Contract 1 was signed, the Board of Rapid Transit Railroad Commissioners instructed Parsons to evaluate the feasibility of extending the subway south to South Ferry, and then to
Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
. On January 24, 1901, the Board adopted a route that would extend the subway from City Hall to the
Long Island Rail Road The Long Island Rail Road , or LIRR, is a Rail transport, railroad in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, stretching from Manhattan to the eastern tip of Suffolk County, New York, Suffolk County on Long Islan ...
(LIRR)'s
Flatbush Avenue Flatbush Avenue is a major avenue in the New York City Borough (New York City), Borough of Brooklyn. It runs from the Manhattan Bridge south-southeastward to Jamaica Bay, where it joins the Marine Parkway–Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge, which ...
terminal station (now known as Atlantic Terminal) in Brooklyn, via the
Joralemon Street Tunnel The Joralemon Street Tunnel (, ), originally the Brooklyn–Battery Tunnel, is a pair of tubes carrying the IRT Lexington Avenue Line () of the New York City Subway under the East River between Bowling Green (New York City), Bowling Green Park ...
under the
East River The East River is a saltwater Estuary, tidal estuary or strait in New York City. The waterway, which is not a river despite its name, connects Upper New York Bay on its south end to Long Island Sound on its north end. It separates Long Island, ...
. Contract 2, which gave the IRT a 35-year lease, was executed between the commission and the Rapid Transit Construction Company on September 11, 1902. Construction began at State Street in Manhattan on November 8, 1902. The section of the Contract 2 subway tunnel under the southernmost section of Broadway, between
Battery Park The Battery, formerly known as Battery Park, is a public park located at the southern tip of Manhattan#Manhattan Island, Manhattan Island in New York City facing New York Harbor. The park is bounded by Battery Place on the north, with Bowling ...
and City Hall, was awarded to Degnon-McLean Contracting Company. By the beginning of January 1905, the station was nearly complete, but heavy snow delayed the installation of the entrances. The IRT Lexington Avenue Line station opened on January 16, 1905, as part of a one-stop southward extension from
Brooklyn Bridge The Brooklyn Bridge is a cable-stayed suspension bridge in New York City, spanning the East River between the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn. Opened on May 24, 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge was the first fixed crossing of the East River. It w ...
, the previous southernmost express station on the original IRT line. Only the northbound platform (on the eastern side of the station) was in use initially. The station was to serve express trains, and thus the platforms were designed to accommodate eight cars. The platforms had entrances at Fulton and Dey Streets, with three token booths at each end, to alleviate overcrowding. The Rapid Transit Commission had not approved the station's opening; in considering whether to permit the station's operation, the commission found that advertising agents Ward & Gow had installed
slot machine A slot machine, fruit machine (British English), poker machine or pokie (Australian English and New Zealand English) is a gambling machine that creates a game of chance for its customers. A slot machine's standard layout features a screen disp ...
s in the Fulton Street station just before it opened. The commission ordered the machines' removal on January 19, saying that the machines violated a ban on advertising in subway stations. The southbound platform opened on June 12, 1905, when the subway was extended one stop south to
Wall Street Wall Street is a street in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs eight city blocks between Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway in the west and South Street (Manhattan), South Str ...
. The station's completion resulted in increased real-estate values in the area. The slot machines were reinstalled in May 1906, following a legal dispute over whether the slot machines should be allowed.


Early modifications

To address overcrowding, in 1909, the
New York Public Service Commission The New York Public Service Commission is the public utilities commission of the New York state government that regulates and oversees the electric, gas, water, and telecommunication industries in New York as part of the Department of Public Ser ...
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 $ million in ) spent on platform lengthening, $500,000 (equivalent to $ million in ) was spent on building additional entrances and exits. It was anticipated that these improvements would increase capacity by 25 percent. The northbound platform at the Fulton Street station was extended to the south, while the southbound platform was extended to the south. The northbound platform extension required underpinning adjacent buildings, while the southbound platform extension was largely in the basements of adjacent properties and involved extensive reconstruction of these buildings. On January 23, 1911, ten-car express trains began running on the East Side Line, and the next day, ten-car express trains began running on the West Side Line. Staircases from the southbound platform to
195 Broadway 195 Broadway, also known as the Telephone Building, Telegraph Building, or Western Union Building, is an early skyscraper on Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Manhattan in New York City. T ...
, at the northwest corner of Broadway and Dey Street, opened in 1916.


Dual Contracts expansion

After the original IRT opened, the city began planning new lines. In April 1912, the
New York Public Service Commission The New York Public Service Commission is the public utilities commission of the New York state government that regulates and oversees the electric, gas, water, and telecommunication industries in New York as part of the Department of Public Ser ...
gave the
Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company The Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company (BRT) was a public transit holding company formed in 1896 to acquire and consolidate railway lines in Brooklyn and Queens, New York City, United States. It was a prominent corporation and industry leader using ...
(BRT) the right to operate the proposed
Clark Street Tunnel Clark is an English language surname with historical links to England, Scotland, and Ireland, ultimately derived from the Latin ''clericus'' meaning "scribe", "secretary" or a scholar within a religious order, referring to someone who was educated ...
under the
East River The East River is a saltwater Estuary, tidal estuary or strait in New York City. The waterway, which is not a river despite its name, connects Upper New York Bay on its south end to Long Island Sound on its north end. It separates Long Island, ...
, between Old Slip in Lower Manhattan and Clark Street in
Downtown Brooklyn Downtown Brooklyn is the third-largest central business district in New York City (after Midtown Manhattan, Midtown and Lower Manhattan), and is located in the northwestern section of the borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn. The neighb ...
. The next month, the Old Slip–Clark Street route was assigned to the IRT instead; the plans called for a station at Fulton Street. The BRT was allowed to extend its Centre Street Line south to a new
Montague Street Tunnel The Montague Street Tunnel () is a rail tunnel of the New York City Subway under the East River between the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn, connecting the BMT Broadway Line and BMT Nassau Street Line with the BMT Fourth Avenue Line. The R ...
. Both this extension and the IRT's Clark Street Tunnel were to have stations at Fulton Street in Lower Manhattan. These routes were finalized in 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 ...
between the
government of New York City The government of New York City, headquartered at New York City Hall in Lower Manhattan, is organized under the New York City Charter and provides for a mayor-council system. The mayor is elected to a four-year term and is responsible for the ...
, the BRT, and the IRT, which were signed in 1913.


Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line

As part of the Dual Contracts, the New York City Public Service Commission planned to split the original IRT system into three segments: two north-south lines, carrying through trains over the
Lexington Avenue Lexington Avenue, often colloquially abbreviated as "Lex", is an avenue on the East Side (Manhattan), East Side of Manhattan in New York City. The avenue carries southbound one-way traffic from East 131st Street (Manhattan), 131st Street to Gra ...
and Broadway–Seventh Avenue Lines, and an east–west shuttle under 42nd Street. This would form a roughly H-shaped system. The Dual Contracts entailed building the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line south of
Times Square–42nd Street Time is the continued sequence of existence and events, and a fundamental quantity of measuring systems. Time or times may also refer to: Temporal measurement * Time in physics, defined by its measurement * Time standard, civil time specificat ...
. South of the
Chambers Street station Chambers Street may refer to: Streets * Chambers Street, Edinburgh, Scotland * Chambers Street (Manhattan), New York City, U.S. * Chamber Street, once known as Chambers Street, London Borough of Tower Hamlets, England New York City Subway station ...
, the line was to split into two branches, one of which would travel under Park Place and William Street to the Clark Street Tunnel in Brooklyn. The Brooklyn branch was to have a station at William and Fulton Streets. Before the Dual Contracts were signed, many business owners on William Street had opposed the construction of a subway line there, claiming that the subway's construction could damage buildings because the street was only wide. The
New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York is the intermediate appellate court in New York State. The state is geographically divided into four judicial departments of the Appellate Division. The full title of each is, u ...
, approved the William Street subway in February 1913. The William Street subway was to be a two-track line; the Public Service Commission originally planned to place one track above the other but, by July 1914, had decided to build both tracks on one level. The tunnel was to measure wide, except the stations on Fulton Street and
Wall Street Wall Street is a street in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs eight city blocks between Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway in the west and South Street (Manhattan), South Str ...
, which were to measure wide. The Public Service Commission began soliciting bids for the William Street portion of the line in September 1914. Smith, Hauser, & McIsaac submitted a low bid of $2.254 million (equivalent to $ million in ). The awarding of the contract was delayed by a dispute over whether gas mains should be carried on temporary overpasses above the tunnel's excavation site. Another dispute arose over the locations of subway entrances. The Fulton Street station was supposed to have entrances along the sidewalk on William Street, but local business and civic groups argued that the subway entrances, despite being only wide, would occupy much of the sidewalk. By March 1916, two business owners on the street had agreed to add subway entrances in their buildings to the Fulton Street station. Prior to the start of construction, the city government agreed to pay for any damage caused by the project. The contractors underpinned every building along the tunnel because most of the buildings had shallow foundations that extended only to a shallow layer of
quicksand Quicksand (also known as sinking sand) is a colloid consisting of fine granular material (such as sand, silt or clay) and water. It forms in saturated loose sand when the sand is suddenly agitated. When water in the sand cannot escape, it crea ...
, rather than to the
bedrock In geology, bedrock is solid rock that lies under loose material ( regolith) within the crust of Earth or another terrestrial planet. Definition Bedrock is the solid rock that underlies looser surface material. An exposed portion of bed ...
below. Discussions of the station's exits continued through early 1918. The line was nearly completed by late 1917, but the signals and station finishes were incomplete due to
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
–related material shortages. The Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line's Fulton Street station opened on July 1, 1918, and was initially served by a shuttle between
Chambers Street Chambers Street may refer to: Streets * Chambers Street, Edinburgh, Scotland * Chambers Street (Manhattan), New York City, U.S. * Chamber Street, once known as Chambers Street, London Borough of Tower Hamlets, England New York City Subway station ...
and
Wall Street Wall Street is a street in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs eight city blocks between Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway in the west and South Street (Manhattan), South Str ...
on the line's Brooklyn branch. On August 1, 1918, the new "H" system was implemented, joining the two halves of the Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line and sending all West Side trains south from Times Square; through trains on the Brooklyn branch began operating to Upper Manhattan and the Bronx. The Lexington Avenue Line also opened north of
Grand Central–42nd Street Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor Places * Grand, Oklahoma, USA * Grand, Vosges, village and commune in France with Gallo-Roman amphitheatre * Grand County (disambiguation), s ...
, and all services at the original station on Broadway were sent through that line.


Nassau Street Line

Also as part of the Dual Contracts, the BRT (after 1923, the
Brooklyn–Manhattan Transit Corporation The Brooklyn–Manhattan Transit Corporation (BMT) was an urban transit holding company, based in Brooklyn, New York City, United States, and incorporated in 1923. The system was sold to the city in 1940. Today, together with the IND subway sy ...
or BMT) was assigned to construct and operate the Nassau Street Line. Most of the BMT's Dual Contracts lines were completed by 1924, except for the Nassau Street Line. BMT chairman Gerhard Dahl was persistent in requesting that the city build the line, saying in 1923 that the BMT was willing to operate the line as soon as the city completed it. At the time, the BMT was planning to construct two stations on the Nassau Street Line, including one at Fulton Street, where the BMT planned to place the northbound platform above the southbound platform due to the street's narrowness. However, mayor
John Hylan John Francis Hylan (April 20, 1868January 12, 1936), also known as "Red Mike" Hylan, was the 96th Mayor of New York City (the seventh since the consolidation of the five boroughs), from 1918 to 1925. From rural beginnings in the Catskills, Hylan ...
refused to act during his final two years in office.
New York City Board of Transportation The New York City Board of Transportation or the Board of Transportation of the City of New York (NYCBOT or BOT) was a city transit commission and operator in New York City, consisting of three members appointed by the Mayor of New York City, m ...
(BOT) chairman John H. Delaney believed that the line was unnecessary because both of its planned stations would be extremely close to existing subway stations. Meanwhile, the BMT claimed that the city's failure to complete the line was overburdening other BMT lines. By January 1925, the BMT was asking its passengers to pressure Hylan into approving the remainder of the Nassau Street Line. Work did not commence until after James Walker succeeded Hylan as mayor at the end of 1925. The city government agreed to build the Nassau Street Line in May 1927, after the BMT sued the city for $30 million (equivalent to $ million in ). At the time, the city wanted to take over the BMT's lines but could not do so until all Dual Contracts lines were completed. The BOT received bids for the construction of the line that July, but it rejected every bid the next month because of concerns over the lowest bidder's ability to complete the work. That September, contractors again submitted bids to the BOT; some bidders offered to build the entire line, while others only offered to construct the segments of the line to the north or south of Liberty Street. The BOT awarded construction contracts for the line's construction two months later. The Marcus Contracting Company was hired to build the portion north of Liberty Street, including the Fulton Street station, for $4.7 million (equivalent to $ million in ). Moranti and Raymond were hired to build the portion to the south for $5.7 million (equivalent to $ million in ). The
New York City Board of Estimate The New York City Board of Estimate was a governmental body in New York City responsible for numerous areas of municipal policy and decisions, including the city budget, land-use, contracts, franchises, and water rates. Under the amendments eff ...
approved the contracts in January 1928, allowing the builders to construct the line using the
cut-and-cover A tunnel is an underground or undersea passageway. It is dug through surrounding soil, earth or rock, or laid under water, and is usually completely enclosed except for the two Portal (architecture), portals common at each end, though ther ...
method, despite merchants' requests that the line be constructed using tunneling shields. When the construction contracts were awarded, work had been projected to be completed in 39 months. The line was constructed below the active IRT Lexington Avenue Line, next to buildings along the narrow Nassau Street, and the project encountered difficulties such as quicksand. Nassau Street is only wide, and the subway floor was only below building foundations. As a result, 89 buildings had to be underpinned to ensure that they would stay on their foundations. Construction was done at night so as to not disturb workers in the
Financial District A financial district is usually a central area in a city where financial services firms such as banks, insurance companies, and other related finance corporations have their headquarters offices. In major cities, financial districts often host ...
. By early 1929, sixty percent of the work had been finished. The project was 80 percent complete by April 1930, and Charles Meads & Co. was awarded a $252,000 contract to install the Fulton Street station's finishes the next month. The plans had been changed so that the southbound platform was above the northbound platform. Later that year, a federal judge ruled that the city government did not have to pay the BMT $30 million in damages for failing to construct the Nassau Street Line. The total construction cost was $10.072 million (equivalent to $ million in ) for of new tunnels, or , which was three times the normal cost of construction at the time. The
Nassau Street Loop The Nassau Street Loop, also called the Nassau Loop, was a service pattern of the Brooklyn–Manhattan Transit Corporation (BMT) inaugurated in 1931 when the BMT Nassau Street Line was completed, providing a physical link that allowed a train to o ...
opened on May 29, 1931. The loop ran from the line's previous terminus at
Chambers Street Chambers Street may refer to: Streets * Chambers Street, Edinburgh, Scotland * Chambers Street (Manhattan), New York City, U.S. * Chamber Street, once known as Chambers Street, London Borough of Tower Hamlets, England New York City Subway station ...
, running through the Fulton Street and Broad Street stations before merging with the
Montague Street Tunnel The Montague Street Tunnel () is a rail tunnel of the New York City Subway under the East River between the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn, connecting the BMT Broadway Line and BMT Nassau Street Line with the BMT Fourth Avenue Line. The R ...
to Brooklyn. The completion of the line relieved congestion on several BMT lines to southern Brooklyn, which previously had to operate to
Midtown Manhattan Midtown Manhattan is the central portion of the New York City borough of Manhattan, serving as the city's primary central business district. Midtown is home to some of the city's most prominent buildings, including the Empire State Building, the ...
using the Broadway Line. The BMT's Fulton Street station was originally served by trains from the Jamaica Line and the Culver Line.


IND expansion

Mayor Hylan's original plans for the
Independent Subway System The Independent Subway System (IND; formerly the ISS) was a rapid transit rail system in New York City that is now part of the New York City Subway. It was first constructed as the IND Eighth Avenue Line, Eighth Avenue Line in Manhattan in 1932. ...
(IND), proposed in 1922, included building over of new lines and taking over nearly of existing lines, which would compete with the IRT and BMT. On December 9, 1924, the BOT gave preliminary approval for the construction of the
IND Eighth Avenue Line The IND Eighth Avenue Line is a rapid transit line in the B Division of the New York City Subway. Opened in 1932, it was the first line of the Independent Subway System (IND); as such, New Yorkers originally applied the ''Eighth Avenue Subwa ...
. This line consisted of a corridor connecting
Inwood, Manhattan Inwood is a neighborhood in the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan, at the northern tip of Manhattan Island, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is bounded by the Hudson River to the west, Spuyten Duyvil ...
, to
Downtown Brooklyn Downtown Brooklyn is the third-largest central business district in New York City (after Midtown Manhattan, Midtown and Lower Manhattan), and is located in the northwestern section of the borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn. The neighb ...
, running largely under Eighth Avenue but also paralleling
Greenwich Avenue Greenwich Avenue, formerly Greenwich Lane, is a southeast-northwest avenue located in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. It extends from the intersection of 6th Avenue and 8th Street at its southeast end to ...
and
Sixth Avenue Sixth Avenue, also known as Avenue of the Americas, is a major thoroughfare in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The avenue is commercial for much of its length, and traffic runs northbound, or uptown. Sixth Avenue begins four blocks b ...
in Lower Manhattan. The BOT announced a list of stations on the new line in February 1928, with a station under Fulton Street at Broadway in Manhattan. Work on the line had commenced in 1925, and the main section of the Eighth Avenue Line, from
Chambers Street Chambers Street may refer to: Streets * Chambers Street, Edinburgh, Scotland * Chambers Street (Manhattan), New York City, U.S. * Chamber Street, once known as Chambers Street, London Borough of Tower Hamlets, England New York City Subway station ...
north to 207th Street, was opened to the public on September 10, 1932. The Broadway/Nassau Street station was part of a three-stop extension of the IND Eighth Avenue Line from Chambers Street in Lower Manhattan to Jay Street–Borough Hall in
Downtown Brooklyn Downtown Brooklyn is the third-largest central business district in New York City (after Midtown Manhattan, Midtown and Lower Manhattan), and is located in the northwestern section of the borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn. The neighb ...
. The station, under Fulton Street between Broadway and William Street, would be the southernmost IND station in Manhattan. The two-track extension was to connect the quadruple-tracked main portion of the Eighth Avenue Line with the proposed Culver and Fulton Street lines in Brooklyn. The Mason-Hangar Company received a $22.28 million contract for the construction of this segment in May 1927 (equivalent to $ million in ), and construction of the extension began in June 1928. The IND's Brooklyn extension was 82 percent completed by December 1930. Although most work on the line had been finished by December 1932, city controller Charles W. Berry then requested $1.57 million for the line's completion (equivalent to $ million in ). The
Cranberry Street Tunnel Cranberries are a group of evergreen dwarf shrubs or trailing vines in the subgenus ''Oxycoccus'' of the genus ''Vaccinium''. Cranberries are low, creeping shrubs or vines up to long and in height; they have slender stems that are not t ...
, extending the express tracks east under Fulton Street to Jay Street, was opened for the morning rush hour on February 1, 1933, with a stop at Broadway/Nassau Street. The Broadway/Nassau station was initially served by express trains during the daytime on weekdays and Saturdays; local trains only served the station when express trains were not operating. It had ten entrances from the street, as well as direct connections to the IRT and BMT stations at Fulton Street. The opening of the Broadway/Nassau station eliminated an "outstanding drawback" to
Upper Manhattan Upper Manhattan is the northern section of the New York City borough of Manhattan. Its southern boundary has been variously defined, but some of the most common usages are 96th Street, 110th Street (the northern boundary of Central Park), 1 ...
residents' usage of the Eighth Avenue Line, as the IND previously did not have a direct connection to Manhattan's Financial District. On the other hand, the station's convoluted layout confused some riders when it opened.


20th-century improvements


1940s to 1960s

The city government took over the BMT's operations on June 1, 1940, and the IRT's operations on June 12, 1940. Transfer passageways between the four stations were placed inside
fare control In rail transport, the paid area is a dedicated "inner" zone in a railway station or metro station, accessible via turnstiles or other barriers, to get into which, visitors or passengers require a valid ticket, checked smartcard or a pass. A s ...
on July 1, 1948. The rearrangement of turnstiles allowed free transfers in the existing passageways between the Eighth Avenue, Nassau Street, and Broadway–Seventh Avenue platforms. Passengers transferring to and from the Lexington Avenue Line had to receive a paper transfer. On August 25, 1950, the railings of the Lexington Avenue and Eighth Avenue Line stations were rearranged to allow direct transfers, and the paper transfers were discontinued. The
New York City Transit Authority The New York City Transit Authority (also known as NYCTA, the TA, or simply Transit, and branded as MTA New York City Transit) is a New York state public-benefit corporations, public-benefit corporation in the U.S. state of New York (state), New ...
(NYCTA), the BOT's successor, announced plans in 1956 to add fluorescent lights to the Fulton Street station. The NYCTA also asked the city government in 1958 to provide $66,700 for a
moving walkway A moving walkway – also known as an autowalk, moving pavement, moving sidewalk, travolator, or travelator – is a slow-moving conveyor mechanism that transports people across a horizontal or inclined plane, over a short to medium distance. T ...
connecting the IND and IRT platforms at Fulton Street. The moving walkway, measuring long, would have been the first in the New York City Subway system. The NYCTA publicly announced plans for the moving walkway in August 1960; the agency's chairman Charles L. Patterson claimed that the moving walkway would ease congestion in the passageways between each platforms. In late 1959, contracts were awarded to extend the platforms at Fulton Street on the Lexington Avenue Line, as well as nine others on the same line, to to accommodate ten-car trains. Work on the platform extension at Fulton Street began in April 1960 and was still underway two years later. The platform-lengthening project was substantially completed by November 1965. During the 1964–1965 fiscal year, the platforms at Fulton Street on the Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line, along with those at four other stations on the line, were lengthened to to accommodate a ten-car train of 51-foot IRT cars.


1970s to 1990s

A passageway from the Lexington Avenue Line station to the
World Trade Center World Trade Centers are the hundreds of sites recognized by the World Trade Centers Association. World Trade Center may also refer to: Buildings * World Trade Center (1973–2001), a building complex that was destroyed during the September 11 at ...
was completed in 1977. Late the next year, the MTA announced that it would modernize the Broadway–Nassau/Fulton Street station. The improvements included new finishes on the walls and floors; acoustical, signage, and lighting improvements; replacement of old mechanical equipment; and new handrails. In 1979, the
New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the Government of New York City, New York City agency charged with administering the city's Historic preservation, Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting Ne ...
designated the space within the boundaries of the original IRT Lexington Avenue Line station, excluding expansions made after 1904, as a city landmark. The station was designated along with eleven others on the original IRT. By that time, the Lexington Avenue Line station was one of the 69 most deteriorated stations in the subway system. The
Urban Mass Transportation Administration The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) is an agency within the United States Department of Transportation (DOT) that provides financial and technical assistance to local public transportation systems. The FTA is one of ten modal administration ...
gave a $66 million grant to the New York City Transit Authority. Part of the grant was to be used for the renovation of several subway stations, including Fulton Street's IRT platforms, in 1982. The MTA attempted to replicate the original design of the Lexington Avenue Line platforms, even obtaining marble
wainscoting Panelling (or paneling in the United States) is a millwork wall covering constructed from rigid or semi-rigid components. These are traditionally interlocking wood, but could be plastic or other materials. Panelling was developed in antiquity t ...
from a Georgia quarry. The renovation, designed by Lee Harris Pomeroy, was finished in 1987. In addition, to speed up passenger flow, dozens of platform conductors were assigned to direct crowds on the Lexington Avenue Line platforms during the late 1980s. During the early 1990s, the MTA removed some advertisements from the Lexington Avenue Line platforms to reduce what an MTA spokesman described as "the perception of chaos". The MTA also removed three of the station's high entry-exit turnstiles to increase passenger flow. The
New York State Legislature The New York State Legislature consists of the Bicameralism, two houses that act as the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York: the New York State Senate and the New York State Assem ...
agreed to give the MTA $9.6 billion for capital improvements in April 1993. Some of the funds would be used to renovate nearly one hundred New York City Subway stations, including the BMT platforms at Fulton Street and the IND platform at Broadway–Nassau Street. In 1994, amid a funding shortfall, the administration of mayor
Rudy Giuliani Rudolph William Louis Giuliani ( , ; born May 28, 1944) is an American politician and Disbarment, disbarred lawyer who served as the 107th mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001. He previously served as the United States Associate Attorney ...
proposed delaying the IND station's renovation. That October, the MTA announced it had indefinitely postponed plans for renovating the IND's Broadway–Nassau Street station. Ultimately, the BMT and IND platforms were both renovated during the 1990s. Additionally, in January 1994, Automated Fare Collection turnstiles went into service at the Broadway–Nassau/Fulton Street station, making it one of the first stations in the system to receive these turnstiles. In late 1996, as part of a pilot program to reduce overcrowding, the MTA placed orange decals on the Lexington Avenue Line platforms with the words "Step Aside" and employed platform attendants during rush hours. Additionally, to reduce dwell times, the MTA started enforcing a policy that required conductors to close their doors after 45 seconds. This trial was shortly expanded to other stations. These policies reduced dwell times by about six seconds per train, allowing the MTA to operate an extra train during rush hours.


21st-century renovation


Fulton Center plans and IRT renovation

After several pieces of transit infrastructure in Lower Manhattan were destroyed or severely damaged during the
September 11, 2001, attacks The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Hijackers in the September 11 attacks#Hijackers, Nineteen terrorists hijacked four com ...
, officials proposed a $7 billion redesign of transit in the neighborhood. Plans for a massive transit hub in Lower Manhattan, which was to incorporate the Fulton Street station, were first announced in January 2002. At the time, a
Straphangers Campaign The Straphangers Campaign is a New York City-based transit interest group that advocates on behalf of riders of public transport. The organization is part of the NYPIRG (New York Public Interest Research Group). The Straphangers Campaign's main ...
survey had ranked the station as one of the worst in the system; the complex was extremely hard to navigate because its four stations were built by different companies at different times. By April 2003, the MTA had released preliminary plans for a $750 million transit hub at Fulton Street, connecting six subway stations and constructing a new head house and the
Dey Street Passageway The Dey Street Passageway or Dey Street Concourse is a underground passageway in Manhattan, New York City, built as part of the Fulton Center project to rehabilitate the Fulton Street station (New York City Subway), Fulton Street station comple ...
. That December, the
Federal Transit Administration The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) is an agency within the United States Department of Transportation (DOT) that provides financial and technical assistance to local public transportation systems. The FTA is one of ten modal administration ...
allocated $750 million to the Fulton Street Transit Center (later the
Fulton Center Fulton Center is a subway and retail complex centered at the intersection of Fulton Street (Manhattan), Fulton Street and Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway in Lower Manhattan, New York City. The complex was built as part of a $1.4 billion proje ...
). The project was to include a domed station building at Fulton Street and Broadway. The transit center was to be financed using money from the September 11 recovery fund. By May 2006, the budget for Fulton Center had grown, and the project had been delayed. Further delays and costs were incurred in February 2007. The MTA downsized the original plans for the transit center due to cost overruns, and the agency partially funded the project using 2009 federal stimulus money. Despite delays with the Fulton Center project, the MTA began renovating the IRT platforms. The rehabilitation of the Seventh Avenue Line platform started in 2005 and was completed by November 2006. The Lexington Avenue Line station at the western end of the complex began refurbishment in 2008. Historical features, such as the tiling, were preserved.


Fulton Center approval

In January 2009, the MTA received $497 million in additional stimulus money, bringing the total cost of the Fulton Street Transit Center to $1.4 billion. By then, a reporter for ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' wrote that the station's ramps, passageways, and stairs were so confusing that "The Fulton Street subway station might be a good spot for
M. C. Escher Maurits Cornelis Escher (; ; 17 June 1898 â€“ 27 March 1972) was a Dutch graphic artist who made woodcuts, lithography, lithographs, and mezzotints, many of which were Mathematics and art, inspired by mathematics. Despite wide popular int ...
to set up an easel, if the surrealist artist were still alive and sketching." This intricate system of ramps was replaced by two new mezzanines. Work on the IND mezzanine commenced in January 2010; the reconstruction of the transfer mezzanine over the Fulton Street IND platform resulted in traffic flow changes. The Eighth Avenue Line station adopted the "Fulton Street" name in December 2010 to become unified with the other platforms in the station complex. The eastern mezzanine and parts of the western mezzanine had opened by 2011, and the western mezzanine was completed by 2012. New entrances were also opened as part of the project. In October 2012, a new entrance on Dey Street opened for the Dey Street underpass to Cortlandt Street, and an ADA-accessible elevator was installed for the southbound Lexington Avenue Line platform. The Fulton Building, at the southeast corner of Broadway and Fulton Street, was also built as part of the project; work on that building lasted for another two years. The Fulton Center project was completed with the opening of the Fulton Building in November 2014, and the entire complex was made ADA-accessible. In 2024, following several violent incidents in the subway system, the city government installed scanners in the Fulton Street station as part of a pilot program to detect weapons.


Station layout

The station consists of three levels; all of the platforms, except for the IND Eighth Avenue Line platform, are oriented roughly on a north–south axis. Most transfers are made through the IND platform, which runs east–west three stories below ground level, beneath the other three stations. The stacked-staggered configuration of the BMT Nassau Street Line platforms splits the IND mezzanine levels into halves. The eastern half stretches from Nassau Street to William Street, from the southbound Nassau Street Line platform to the Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line platform. Similarly, the western half of the mezzanine stretches from Nassau Street to Broadway, from the northbound Nassau Street Line to the Lexington Avenue Line platforms. Transferring passengers have to use the third-basement-level IND platform to navigate between both halves of the mezzanine, since the Nassau Street Line's platforms bisect the mezzanine on both the first and second basement levels. Originally, a network of passageways and ramps loosely connected the various lines with each other, causing congestion during peak hours. The transfer mezzanine, also known as the IND mezzanine, was built as part of the Fulton Center project in the 2010s. This mezzanine replaced these ramps and made several adjacent entrances redundant.


Artwork

There are various artworks at the Fulton Street station. The ''Sky Reflector-Net'', atop the Fulton Center building at the southeast corner of Fulton Street and Broadway, was installed in 2014 and commissioned as part of the
MTA Arts & Design MTA Arts & Design, formerly known as Metropolitan Transportation Authority Arts for Transit and Arts for Transit and Urban Design, is a commissioned art program directed by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority for the transportation systems ...
program. The ''Sky Reflector-Net'' uses hundreds of aluminum mirrors to provide natural sunlight from a
skylight A skylight (sometimes called a rooflight) is a light-permitting structure or window, usually made of transparent or translucent glass, that forms all or part of the roof space of a building for daylighting and ventilation purposes. History O ...
to an underground area as much as four stories deep. The complex also features digital signage with art, which is displayed as part of the MTA's Digital Art program. The connection from the Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line platform to the Eighth Avenue Line platform contains the artwork ''Marine Grill Murals'', salvaged from the Marine Grill restaurant in the
Hotel McAlpin Herald Towers, formerly the Hotel McAlpin, is a residential Condominium (living space), condominium building on Herald Square, along Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway between 33rd and 34th Street (Manhattan), 34th Streets, in the Midtown Manhatta ...
at
Herald Square Herald Square is a major commercial intersection in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, formed by the intersection of Broadway, Sixth Avenue (officially Avenue of the Americas), and 34th Street. Named for the now-defunct ''New ...
. The six murals in the station are part of a set of glazed
terracotta Terracotta, also known as terra cotta or terra-cotta (; ; ), is a clay-based non-vitreous ceramic OED, "Terracotta""Terracotta" MFA Boston, "Cameo" database fired at relatively low temperatures. It is therefore a term used for earthenware obj ...
mosaics created by Fred Dana Marsh in 1912 for the Marine Grill and were discarded in 1990 when the Marine Grill was demolished. The murals were subsequently salvaged from a
dumpster A dumpster is a movable waste container designed to be brought and taken away by a special collection vehicle, or to a bin that a specially designed garbage truck lifts, empties into its hopper, and lowers, on the spot. The word is a generic trade ...
. Each mural measures tall by wide and is shaped like a
lunette A lunette (French ''lunette'', 'little moon') is a crescent- or half-moon–shaped or semi-circular architectural space or feature, variously filled with sculpture, painted, glazed, filled with recessed masonry, or void. A lunette may also be ...
. Of the 16 original murals, 12 depicted two sets of six related scenes, while the other four depicted separate motifs. The
New York Landmarks Conservancy The New York Landmarks Conservancy is a non-profit organization "dedicated to preserving, revitalizing, and reusing" historic structures in New York (state), New York state. It provides technical and financial skills to owners of historic propert ...
preserved six of the murals, which were reinstalled at the Fulton Street station in 2001 for $200,000. Prior to the Fulton Center project, the mezzanine above the IND platform showcased an artwork by
Nancy Holt Nancy Holt (April 5, 1938 – February 8, 2014) was an American artist most known for her public sculpture, installation art, concrete poetry, and land art. Throughout her career, Holt also produced works in other media, including film and photog ...
, ''Astral Grating'', which was installed in 1987 in conjunction with Lee Harris Pomeroy Architects. The artwork consisted of light fixtures on the ceiling, made of welded steel. The light fixtures signified five constellations, namely
Aries Aries may refer to: *Aries (astrology), an astrological sign *Aries (constellation), a constellation in the zodiac Arts, entertainment and media * ''Aries'' (album), by Luis Miguel, 1993 * ''Aries'' (EP), by Alice Chater, 2020 * "Aries" (song), ...
,
Auriga Auriga is a constellation in the northern celestial hemisphere. It is one of the 88 modern constellations; it was among the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd-century astronomer Ptolemy. Its name is Latin for '(the) charioteer', associating i ...
,
Canis Major Canis Major is a constellation in the southern celestial hemisphere. In the second century, it was included in Ptolemy's 48 constellations, and is counted among the 88 modern constellations. Its name is Latin for "greater dog" in contrast to C ...
, Cygnus, and
Piscis Austrinus Piscis Austrinus is a constellation in the southern celestial hemisphere. The name is Latin for "the southern fish", in contrast with the larger constellation Pisces, which represents a pair of fish. Before the 20th century, it was also known as ...
. The work was uninstalled and placed in storage when Fulton Center was built. ''Astral Grating'' was the first artwork created by a female artist to be installed in the subway system through the MTA Arts & Design program.


Exits

Due to the highly fragmented nature of the Fulton Street station, most of its entrances are only signed as serving certain routes, even though all exits technically provide access to all routes. Prior to the completion of Fulton Center, many of the station's entrances had been constructed piecemeal within various buildings, and these entrances were not easily visible from the street. The entire station complex is
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, ...
via a series of elevators between the platforms and mezzanines. The Fulton Street station is close to several attractions such as
St. Paul's Chapel St. Paul's Chapel is a chapel building of Trinity Church (Manhattan), Trinity Church, an Episcopal Church (United States), Episcopal parish, located at 209 Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway, between Fulton Street (Manhattan), Fulton Street and V ...
and the
World Trade Center World Trade Centers are the hundreds of sites recognized by the World Trade Centers Association. World Trade Center may also refer to: Buildings * World Trade Center (1973–2001), a building complex that was destroyed during the September 11 at ...
. On Broadway, five entrances are signed as serving the Eighth Avenue Line and southbound Lexington Avenue Line platforms (the , trains). At Broadway and Fulton Street, two stairs go up to the northwestern corner and one goes to
195 Broadway 195 Broadway, also known as the Telephone Building, Telegraph Building, or Western Union Building, is an early skyscraper on Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Manhattan in New York City. T ...
near the southwestern corner. One stair each goes up to the northwestern corner of Broadway's intersections with Dey and Cortlandt Streets. Additionally, one entrance, a stair at the northeast corner of Maiden Lane and Broadway at the southern end of the Lexington Avenue Line station, is signed as serving the Eighth Avenue Line and northbound Lexington Avenue Line platforms. The entrances on Broadway originally had cast-iron hoods with leaf patterns; similar hoods still exist at the Wall Street/Broadway and Borough Hall stations. The original entrances at the northwest and northeast corners of Fulton Street and Broadway were replaced in 1933 when the IND station opened. Prior to the completion of Fulton Center, there was no access from ground level to the southern ends of the Lexington Avenue Line platforms. Four Broadway entrances are signed as providing access to several routes in the complex. There is a stair and elevator at the southwest corner of Dey Street and Broadway; they are signed as providing access to all services except the northbound Lexington Avenue Line platform, and are also signed as an entrance as the separate
Cortlandt Street station Cortlandt Street may refer to: Streets * Cortlandt Street (Manhattan), street in Lower Manhattan, most of which became part of the World Trade Center in the 1970s Subway stations * Cortlandt Street (BMT Broadway Line), a New York City Subway stati ...
on the . The two stations are connected outside of fare control via the
Dey Street Passageway The Dey Street Passageway or Dey Street Concourse is a underground passageway in Manhattan, New York City, built as part of the Fulton Center project to rehabilitate the Fulton Street station (New York City Subway), Fulton Street station comple ...
, which measures long by wide and opened in May 2016. Two entrances are signed as serving all routes in the complex, as well as the at Cortlandt Street: the Fulton Center building at the southeast corner of Fulton Street and Broadway, as well as an entrance through the
Corbin Building The Corbin Building (also known as 13 John Street and 192 Broadway) is a historic office building at the northeast corner of John Street and Broadway in the Financial District of Manhattan in New York City. It was built in 1888–1889 as a ...
on John Street east of Broadway. The Fulton Center building has stairs, escalators, and elevators, while the Corbin Building contains escalators. Seven entrances are signed as serving the Eighth Avenue Line and Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line platforms (the , trains). At Fulton and William Streets are five entrances: two stairs to the northeastern corner, one to the southeastern corner, and one stair and one elevator to the southwestern corner. There are also two part-time entrances inside the office building at 110 William Street; one is on William Street and the other is on John Street. When the Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line station was built in 1918, it had been designed to allow a subway entrance to be built inside any building on William Street between Ann Street to the north and John Street to the south. As such, there was formerly an entrance in a building on the east side of William Street south of Ann Street. Another exit, at the northeast corner of William and Fulton Streets, was removed before 1930. Six entrances are signed as serving the Eighth Avenue Line platform and either of the Nassau Street Line platforms (the , trains). Four stairs, one each on either eastern corner of Nassau and Fulton Streets and on either eastern corner of John and Nassau Streets, serve the Eighth Avenue Line and northbound Nassau Street Line platforms. The John and Nassau Streets entrances are open only during rush hours. Two stairs, one on either western corner of Nassau and Fulton Streets, serve the Eighth Avenue Line and northbound Nassau Street Line platforms. There were originally also two stairs from the northbound Nassau Street Line platform to the southwest corner of John and Nassau Streets and one stair to the northwest corner of the same intersection. From the north end of the Nassau Street Line station was an exit to Ann Street, as well as a passageway that led north to stairs on the northeast and southeast corners of Nassau and Beekman Streets. The exit to Ann Street connected the southbound platform with a structure known as the Hilton Building, where there were two stairs. The John Street and Beekman Street exits closed around 1988, while the Ann Street exit had closed by 1992.


IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line platform

The Fulton Street station on the
IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line The IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line (also known as the IRT Seventh Avenue Line or the IRT West Side Line) is a New York City Subway line. It is one of several lines that serves the A Division, stretching from South Ferry in Lower Manhatt ...
has two tracks and one
island platform An island platform (also center platform (American English) or centre platform (British English)) is a station layout arrangement where a single platform is positioned between two tracks within a railway station, tram stop or transitway inte ...
. It is situated underneath William Street between John Street to the south and Ann Street to the north. The 2 train stops here at all times, while the 3 train stops here at all times except late nights. The station is between to the north and to the south. The platform is long. It has a relatively narrow width of , causing congestion during rush hours. The station has two
mezzanine A mezzanine (; or in Italian, a ''mezzanino'') is an intermediate floor in a building which is partly open to the double-height ceilinged floor below, or which does not extend over the whole floorspace of the building, a loft with non-sloped ...
s, separated at Fulton Street. The north mezzanine is open at all times, while the south mezzanine is open part-time. Prior to the construction of Fulton Center, the mezzanine had low ceilings and several bends, which caused congestion. Brooklyn-bound trains use track K2, while uptown trains use track K3; these designations come from track chaining and are not used by the public. File:Fulton Street IRT Broadway-7th Avenue Line Mosaic Name Tablet.jpg, Mosaic name tablet File:Fulton Street IRT Broadway-7th Avenue Line Platform Elevator, December 2024.jpg, Elevator from the platform


BMT Nassau Street Line platforms

The Fulton Street station on the BMT Nassau Street Line has two tracks and 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 in a
split platform A split platform, stacked platform, or separate platform is a railway station, station that has a railway platform, platform for each track, split onto two or more levels. This configuration allows a narrower station plan (or footprint) horizon ...
configuration, with downtown trains on the upper level and uptown trains on the lower level. It is situated underneath Nassau Street between John Street to the south and Ann Street to the north. The J train stops here at all times, while the Z train stops here during rush hours in the peak direction. The station is between to the north and to the south. The platforms measure long. The northbound platform is about wide, while the southbound platform ranges from wide. The station is constructed on two levels because of the extreme narrowness of Nassau Street, which forced contractors to avoid buildings' foundations while they constructed the station, as well as a curve at Fulton Street. Nassau Street is only wide at this point, so both levels' western and eastern walls are right next to the foundations of adjacent buildings. Since the platforms on both levels are to the left of the tracks, the most direct entrances are on the left side of each platform. Northbound trains are more directly accessed via entrances on the west side of Nassau Street, and southbound trains are more directly accessed via entrances on the east side of Nassau Street. The IND platform passes underneath both levels of this station; the two platforms are connected to each other and to the other stations in the complex via the IND platform. The walls of the Nassau Street Line station were originally decorated with orange tile bands, similar to those used at IND stations. By the 1990s, the walls had been redecorated with Greek key bands, as well as mosaics with the letter "F" and the station's name. File:Fulton Street BMT Nassau Street Line Mosaics.jpg, Full-name and "F" mosaics below trim line


IRT Lexington Avenue Line platforms

The Fulton Street station on the IRT Lexington Avenue Line has two tracks and 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. It is situated underneath
Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...
between Cortlandt Street to the south and Fulton Street to the north. The 4 train stops here at all times, while the 5 train stops here at all times except late nights. The station is between to the north and to the south. The platforms were originally long, like at other Contract 2 stations, but were lengthened during the 1959 expansion of the station. As with other stations built as part of the original IRT, the station was constructed using a
cut-and-cover A tunnel is an underground or undersea passageway. It is dug through surrounding soil, earth or rock, or laid under water, and is usually completely enclosed except for the two Portal (architecture), portals common at each end, though ther ...
method. The tunnel is covered by a U-shaped trough that contains utility pipes and wires. The bottom of this trough contains a foundation of
concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of aggregate bound together with a fluid cement that cures to a solid over time. It is the second-most-used substance (after water), the most–widely used building material, and the most-manufactur ...
no less than thick. Each platform consists of concrete slabs, beneath which are drainage basins. The original platforms contain circular, cast-iron Doric-style columns away from the platform edge, spaced every , while the platform extensions contain
I-beam An I-beam is any of various structural members with an - (serif capital letter 'I') or H-shaped cross section (geometry), cross-section. Technical terms for similar items include H-beam, I-profile, universal column (UC), w-beam (for "wide flang ...
columns near the platform edge. Additional columns between the tracks, spaced every , support the jack-arched concrete station roofs. There is a gap between the trough wall and the platform walls, which are made of -thick brick covered over by a tiled finish. The platform widths range from . There are
fare control In rail transport, the paid area is a dedicated "inner" zone in a railway station or metro station, accessible via turnstiles or other barriers, to get into which, visitors or passengers require a valid ticket, checked smartcard or a pass. A s ...
areas at platform level. The walls along the platforms near the fare control areas consist of a pink marble
wainscot Panelling (or paneling in the United States) is a millwork wall covering constructed from rigid or semi-rigid components. These are traditionally interlocking wood, but could be plastic or other materials. Panelling was developed in antiquity to ...
ing on the lowest part of the wall, with bronze air vents along the wainscoting, and white glass tiles above. The platform walls are divided at intervals by pink marble
pilaster In architecture, a pilaster is both a load-bearing section of thickened wall or column integrated into a wall, and a purely decorative element in classical architecture which gives the appearance of a supporting column and articulates an ext ...
s, or vertical bands. In the original portion of the station, each pilaster is topped by blue-and-green tile plaques, which contain the letter "F" surrounded by a buff-yellow and blue-green Greek key carving. Above these "F" plaques are faience mosaics that depict the '' Clermont'', the steamboat built by
Robert Fulton Robert Fulton (November 14, 1765 – February 24, 1815) was an American engineer and inventor who is widely credited with developing the world's first commercially successful steamboat, the (also known as ''Clermont''). In 1807, that steamboat ...
. These mosaics are topped by blue faience
swag Swag, SWAG, or Swagg may refer to: Terms and slang * Swag (motif) or festoon, a wreath or garland or a carving depicting foliage and ribbons ** Swag, fabric dressing for a window valance * Swag, stolen goods, in 1800s thieves cant * Swag (pr ...
s and are connected by a faience cornice with scrolled and foliate detail. This decorative design is extended to the fare control areas adjacent to the original portions of the station. White-on-blue tile plaques with the words "Fulton Street" and floral motifs are also placed on the walls. On the northern end of the southbound platform, a granite wall separates it from the basement of 195 Broadway. Within the granite wall are bronze sliding gates and a long window separated by bronze mullions. The sliding gates used to provide access to the station before being replaced by turnstiles.


IND Eighth Avenue Line platform

The Fulton Street station (formerly the Broadway–Nassau Street station) on the IND Eighth Avenue Line has two tracks and one
island platform An island platform (also center platform (American English) or centre platform (British English)) is a station layout arrangement where a single platform is positioned between two tracks within a railway station, tram stop or transitway inte ...
. It is situated underneath Fulton Street between Broadway to the west and William Street to the east. The A train stops here at all times, while the C train stops here at all times except late nights. The station is between to the north and to the south. The platform is about wide throughout the length of the station. The Fulton Street station has curved walls, with a purple tile band and wall tiles reading "FULTON". An alternating pattern of "BWAY" and "NASSAU" was the original tiling. The purple tile band is part of a color-coded tile system used throughout the IND. The tile colors were designed to facilitate navigation for travelers going away from Lower Manhattan. The purple tiles at the Fulton Street station were also used at the
Chambers Street station Chambers Street may refer to: Streets * Chambers Street, Edinburgh, Scotland * Chambers Street (Manhattan), New York City, U.S. * Chamber Street, once known as Chambers Street, London Borough of Tower Hamlets, England New York City Subway station ...
to the north and the High Street station to the south. The tiles change color at
Canal Street Canal Street may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Canal Street (Manchester), Manchester, England * Canal Street, Oxford, Jericho, Oxford, England United States * Canal Street (Buffalo), a street and district at the western terminus of the Er ...
to the north and
Jay Street Jay Street may refer to: ;Transportation *Jay Street – MetroTech (New York City Subway), a New York City Subway station complex at Jay, Lawrence and Willoughby Streets in Brooklyn consisting of: **Jay Street – MetroTech (IND Fulton Street Line) ...
to the south. According to a document detailing the IND's color-coding scheme, the Broadway–Nassau Street station's tile band was only two tiles high (as was the case at local stations), rather than three tiles high (as at express stations). The mezzanine is split in half by the BMT Nassau Street line directly above. Therefore, the IND platform is also used by passengers transferring between from IRT Lexington and northbound BMT Nassau trains to IRT Seventh Avenue and southbound BMT Nassau trains. File:Fulton Street NYC Subway IND 8th Avenue Line Tiles.jpg, Tile caption below trim line File:Fulton Street NYC Subway IND 8th Avenue Line Elevator.jpg, One of three elevators from the IND platform


Ridership

The Fulton Street station has historically ranked among the New York City Subway's ten busiest stations. The Fulton Street station recorded 19.502 million entries in 1963, which had declined to 15.805 million in 1973. During the 2000s, an estimated 225,000 people either entered, exited, or transferred at the station on an average day. By 2011, the Fulton Street station was the 11th-busiest in the system; at the time, an average of 63,203 riders entered the station every weekday. In 2019, the station had 27,715,365 boardings, making it the fifth most-used station in the -station system. This amounted to an average of 94,607 passengers per weekday. Due to the
COVID-19 pandemic in New York City The first case of the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City was confirmed on March 1, 2020, though later research showed that the novel coronavirus had been circulating in New York City since January, with cases of community transmission confirme ...
, ridership dropped drastically in 2020, with only 8,855,302 passengers entering the station that year. However, it was still the system's fifth most-used station.


Notes


References


Further reading

*


External links

* * * * * nycsubway.org â€
Marine Grill Murals, 1913 Artwork by Fred Dana Marsh (2000)
* nycsubway.org â€
Astral Grating Artwork by Nancy Holt (1987)
* MTA's Arts For Transit â€

{{World Trade Center BMT Nassau Street Line stations Broadway (Manhattan) Financial District, Manhattan IND Eighth Avenue Line stations IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line stations IRT Lexington Avenue Line stations New York City Subway stations in Manhattan New York City Subway transfer stations