Subway tutorial

[mattR]

Can someone give me a quick tutorial on the NYC subway.

What is the differance btw number subways and lettered subways?

How do you know what direction they are going do they say north / south on the trains?

What time do the trains run? Intervals?

We are staying nearest E,M 4,6,6x lines at 356 E57st

[njhorseman]

The numbers and letter are holdovers from the days when there were three separate subway systems in NY City, The IRT, BMT and IND. IRT (Interborough Rapid Transit) used numbers, while BMT (Brooklyn Manhattan Transit) and IND (Independent) used letters to designate their train routes. You can learn a bit about their history here:

 

http://www.nycsubway.org/faq/briefhist.html

 

Trains don't say north-south or east-west. They have signage that indicates the names of their station of origin and station of destination.

 

You can get route maps and schedules for all the subway and bus lines here:

 

http://www.mta.info/

[smeyer418]

Can someone give me a quick tutorial on the NYC subway.

What is the differance btw number subways and lettered subways?

How do you know what direction they are going do they say north / south on the trains?

What time do the trains run? Intervals?

We are staying nearest E,M 4,6,6x lines at 356 E57st

there is really no difference between the lines. the just go to different places.

 

go to www.mta.info look at the maps http://www.mta.info/nyct/maps/submap.htm and put in the start and end points and they will tell you how to go on which trains etc....

 

The trains run like cars. the Northbound side is on the right side of the street and the southbound on the left...as you look north(and the opposite when you look south. The trains will have their destination and announce the next station. In Manhattan North is the way the street numbers go up and south they go down. Uptown is indicated on some stations(north) and downtown is south...ask any one will be happy to help. Stay away from the edge of the tracks as the subway approaches....as my mother told me...

 

On East west streets, its different 5th ave is the line between east and west. each 100 numbers is an avenue. so 6th avenue is west 100 and park ave(formerly 4th avenue) is 100 East. 356 east is between second and first avenue. The closest train station to 356 east 57 is either the lexington and 59th street stop on the lexington line(4,5,6,N Q, R) or lexinton and 53rd street on the E, M. The trains run mostly 24/7. during the day the trains run at frequent intervals(mostly 5-10 minUtes) late at night after 10 and before 6 am its 20 minutes or a half hour. Check service advisories as they are doing a lot of work- nights and weekends.

Good luck in Manhattan the subway is mostly the fastest way to get around...but the bus is good for sightseeing too.

 

BTW the letters and numbers are about the history of the subway. The numbered routes were part of the IRT(interboro Rapid Transit), the letter ones part of two different companies the BMT(brooklyn Manhattan Transit) and the IND(independent). They have all been merged....they once were private companies(before I was born)....

 

The numbered trains can ride on the lettered routes but don't because even though the tracks are the same size the tunnels aren't(the IRT ones are narrower hence not as wide trains) all the lettered ones cannot fit in the IRT's tunnels and all the lettered ones are the same width. Personally I prefer the lettered trains wide and not as pushy...

[njhorseman]

This Wikipedia article may also be of some help:

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City_Subway_nomenclature

[smeyer418]

This Wikipedia article may also be of some help:

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City_Subway_nomenclature

 

LOL my explanation is a lot shorter....

 

Sid :)

[trophy_23]

Can someone give me a quick tutorial on the NYC subway.

What is the differance btw number subways and lettered subways?

How do you know what direction they are going do they say north / south on the trains?

What time do the trains run? Intervals?

We are staying nearest E,M 4,6,6x lines at 356 E57st

 

 

As a first timer in NYC, I felt a bit overwhelmed at first at how it all worked. It didn't take very long to figure it out. Grab a good map as soon as you get to NYC or if you have a smart phone you can get a Subway App... It was helpful to look stuff up. The trains are clearly marked on the front 'E' or 'M', etc and you will hear announcements within the station stating " A WTC bound 'E' train is one stop away..." The trains going other direction are on a different level or the other side of the station, atleast from the stations I visited. I did notice that in some places the stations were a bit hard to find (not signed very well) and in others they seemed like the entrances were everywhere. You won't have much trouble, as a tourist, it certainly felt like a safe and efficient way to get around. Load up a metro card and use it for up to 4 people, keeps it simple and the more you load the bigger discount from what the attendant explained to us. Have fun!!

[mattR]

Thanks for the help:)

[Got2Cruise]

Matt, go to Hopstop.com You can get explicit directions how to travel by subway/bus/walking combination anywhere in NYC. Either print it out, or download to your smart phone. For the subway, have an idea how many stops until you reach your destination. Know which stop is directly before the one you are getting off. When you reach the next to last stop, start getting up and moving towards the doors. The doors don't stay open very long. Oh, yes, bring hand sanitizer to use immediately after holding on to poles. :D;)

 

One thing, I wanted to add, there are also local and express trains. It is better to take the Express because it makes less stops. The E is an Express.

[mi3stooges]

I was told that the directin that you are heading down into the subway station is the directin the train will go. I found this to be very helpful if you do not know N S E W!!!

[trophy_23]

I was told that the directin that you are heading down into the subway station is the directin the train will go. I found this to be very helpful if you do not know N S E W!!!

 

Not too sure on that. At the one station we used most (closest to hotel) you went down the stairs to the first platform (WTC bound) the train ran the opposite direction of the stairs, then down another level the train (Queens bound) ran opposite to that. Maybe it holds true for some lines.

[njhorseman]

I was told that the directin that you are heading down into the subway station is the directin the train will go. I found this to be very helpful if you do not know N S E W!!!

 

This is by no means universally true. At the very least there are many subway entrances that serve both uptown and downtown trains, as well as crosstown lines regardless of which way the station entrance faces. This is particularly the case at major stations serving multiple train lines such as the Times Square station, but the same can be said at many smaller stations as well.