C (New York City Subway service)

Eighth Avenue Local

A train made of R160 cars in C service, ready to depart from Fulton Street, Manhattan, bound for Brooklyn.
Northern end 168th Street
Southern end Euclid Avenue
Stations 40
Rolling stock R32, R160
Depot 207th Street Yard

The C Eighth Avenue Local is a 19-mile-long (31 km)[1] rapid transit service in the B Division of the New York City Subway. Its route emblem, or "bullet", is colored vivid blue since it uses the IND Eighth Avenue Line in Manhattan.[2] The C operates at all times except late nights, making all stops between 168th Street in Washington Heights, Manhattan, and Euclid Avenue in East New York, Brooklyn via Central Park West / Eighth Avenue in Manhattan and Fulton Street in Brooklyn. During late night hours, the A train, which runs express along the entire C route during daytime hours, makes all stops.

History

A train made of R32 cars in C service awaits departure at 168th Street, bound for Brooklyn.

The C and CC services began operation on July 1, 1933 when the IND Concourse Line opened. The Independent Subway System (IND) used single letters to refer to express services and double letters to local services. The CC provided local service between Bedford Park Boulevard and Chambers Street/World Trade Center (known at the time as Hudson Terminal) during rush hours, and was extended to 205th Street during non-rush hours. The C ran express, from 205th Street to Bergen Street in Brooklyn during rush hours.[3][4]

Beginning August 19, 1933, C service was cut back from Bergen Street, but started operating during non-rush hours. At the same time, CC service was cut back from 205th Street during non-rush hours.[4]

On January 1, 1936, C service was extended to Jay Street – Borough Hall.[4]

On April 9, 1937, C service was extended to Hoyt–Schermerhorn Streets.[4]

After July 1, 1937, a few C trains continued to run to Bergen Street southbound in the AM rush hour and northbound in the PM rush hour. Also on the same date, weekend C service was discontinued, and CC service was extended to 205th Street to compensate.[3]

Beginning December 15, 1940, the D train entered service with the opening of the IND Sixth Avenue Line. It joined the C as the peak direction Concourse Express. CC trains now ran between Hudson Terminal and Bedford Park during rush hours and on Saturdays and during other times, the D made local stops in the Bronx, replacing CC service. On the same date, limited morning rush hour service began between 205th Street, Bronx and Utica Avenue, Brooklyn, making local stops on the IND Fulton Street Line.[4]

Beginning October 10, 1944, C trains no longer ran on Saturdays.[3]

On October 24, 1949, C express service was discontinued. Additional D service was added to offset this loss. The CC, which only ran during rush hours, began terminating at Broadway – Lafayette Street Mondays to Fridays, and on Saturdays CC service continued to operate to Hudson Terminal.[3][5]

On December 29, 1951, CC trains were discontinued on Saturdays.[3]

On October 30, 1954, CC trains returned to its previous terminal at Hudson Terminal.[3][6]

1967–1979 service bullet

1979–1985 service bullet

On August 30, 1976, the CC train replaced the E train as the local along Fulton Street and to Rockaway Park - Beach 116th Street. It became the only subway train to run through all four boroughs served by the subway. It ran from Bedford Park Boulevard in the Bronx, though Manhattan via Central Park West and Eighth Avenue, into Brooklyn via the Cranberry Street Tunnel, and then on the Fulton Street Line and Jamaica Bay Crossing to Rockaway Park in Queens. The Rockaway Park Shuttle service at this time was renamed "CC"; before then, it was named the HH. This shuttle was the only non-rush CC service.[3][4]

In May 1985, the IND practice of using double letters to indicate local service was discontinued. The CC service was renamed the C. The Rockaway Park Shuttle is renamed H.[3][4]

On December 12, 1988, the K train was discontinued, and the C train was expanded to run at all times except late nights. It ran from Bedford Park Boulevard to Euclid Avenue rush hours, 145th Street to Euclid Avenue middays, and from 145th Street to World Trade Center during evenings and weekends. The A ran express in Brooklyn when the C ran to Euclid Avenue, and ran local other times.[3][4]

On October 23, 1992, rush hour C service was cut back from Rockaway Park – Beach 116th Street to Euclid Avenue.

Beginning April 1995, C service was extended to 168th Street during middays and weekends. In November 1995, midday service was cut back to 145th Street.

On March 1, 1998, the B and C, which both ran local along Central Park West, switched northern terminals, ending the connection between the C and The Bronx. Instead of alternating between three different terminals depending on the time of day, the C now terminates at 168th Street whenever it operates.[4]

Starting in April 1999, C trains were extended to Euclid Avenue on evenings and weekends; the C now ran local in Brooklyn, and the A ran express in Brooklyn at all times except late nights.[3]

In the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks, World Trade Center station was temporarily unusable as a terminal for the E. C service was suspended until September 24, 2001. Local service along Central Park West was replaced by the A and D, and the E was extended from Canal Street to Euclid Avenue replacing C service in Brooklyn.[3]

On January 23, 2005, a fire at the Chambers Street signal room crippled A and C service. C service was suspended until February 2. Initial assessments suggested that it would take several years to restore normal service, but the damaged equipment was replaced with available spare parts, and normal service resumed on April 21.[3][7][8]

Maintenance and rider issues

In August 2012, the Straphangers Campaign rated the C train the worst of the city's subway services for the fourth straight year. No other service has ranked worst for more than three years in a row. The group found that the C performed worst in three of the six categories in its annual State of the Subways Report Card: amount of scheduled service, interior cleanliness, and breakdown rate. It also ranked next-to-worst in car announcement quality, after the 7, but performed above average in regularity of service and crowding.[9][10] The New York Times called the C the "least loved of New York City subway lines", citing its fleet of R32s, which are the oldest cars in the system at 52 years old.[9] For the summers of 2011 and 2012, R46 cars ran on this service while R32s were moved to the A to save their older air conditioning units from having to work underground at all times.[1] Since 2013, some R160A cars have operated on this service, first during the summer months, then permanently; some of the R32s were transferred to the J/Z for the same reason. By May 2015, half of the C train fleet utilized R160As.[1]

Route

Service pattern

The following table shows the lines used by the C:

Line From To Tracks
IND Eighth Avenue Line 168th Street Canal Street local
Chambers Street High Street all
IND Fulton Street Line Jay Street – MetroTech Euclid Avenue local

Stations

For a more detailed station listing, see the articles on the lines listed above.

Station service legend
Stops all times
Stops all times except late nights
Stops weekdays only
Stops rush hours/weekdays in the peak direction only
Time period details
Stations Subway transfers Connections
Manhattan
Eighth Avenue Line
168th Street A 
1  (IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line)
163rd Street – Amsterdam Avenue
155th Street
145th Street A 
B  D  (IND Concourse Line)
135th Street B 
125th Street A  B  D  M60 Select Bus Service to LaGuardia Airport
116th Street B 
Cathedral Parkway – 110th Street B 
103rd Street B 
96th Street B 
86th Street B  M86 Select Bus Service
81st Street – Museum of Natural History B 
72nd Street B 
59th Street – Columbus Circle A  B  D 
1  (IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line)
50th Street E  (IND Queens Boulevard Line) Station is ADA-accessible in the southbound direction only.
42nd Street – Port Authority Bus Terminal A  E 
1  2  3  (IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line),
7  <7> (IRT Flushing Line),
N  Q  R  (BMT Broadway Line),
S  (42nd Street Shuttle)
at Times Square – 42nd Street		 Port Authority Bus Terminal
M34A Select Bus Service
34th Street – Penn Station A  E  M34 / M34A Select Bus Service
Amtrak, LIRR, NJ Transit at Pennsylvania Station
23rd Street E 
14th Street A  E 
L  (BMT Canarsie Line)
West Fourth Street – Washington Square A  E 
B  D  F  M  (IND Sixth Avenue Line)		 PATH at 9th Street
Spring Street E 
Canal Street A  E 
Chambers Street A  E 
2  3  (IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line at Park Place)		 PATH at World Trade Center
Fulton Street A 
2  3  (IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line)
4  5  (IRT Lexington Avenue Line)
J  Z  (BMT Nassau Street Line)
Connection to N  R  (BMT Broadway Line) at Cortlandt Street via Dey Street Passageway
Brooklyn
High Street A 
Fulton Street Line
Jay Street – MetroTech A  F 
N  R  (BMT Fourth Avenue Line)
Hoyt–Schermerhorn Streets A 
G  (IND Crosstown Line)
Lafayette Avenue
Clinton–Washington Avenues
Franklin Avenue S  (BMT Franklin Avenue Line)
Nostrand Avenue A  B44 Select Bus Service, LIRR Atlantic Branch at Nostrand Avenue
Kingston–Throop Avenues B15 bus to JFK Airport
Utica Avenue A 
Ralph Avenue
Rockaway Avenue
Broadway Junction A 
J  Z  (BMT Jamaica Line)
L  (BMT Canarsie Line)
Liberty Avenue
Van Siclen Avenue
Shepherd Avenue
Euclid Avenue A 

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Review of the A and C Lines" (PDF). Metropolitan Transportation Authority (New York). December 11, 2015. Retrieved 19 January 2016.
  2. ↑ "mta.info - Line Colors". mta.info.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 "NYCT Line by Line History". erictb.info.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "IND Subway Services". thejoekorner.com.
  5. ↑ "IND Faster Service Will Start Sunday". New York Times. October 20, 1949. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  6. ↑ "Bronx to Coney Ride In New Subway Link". New York Times. October 18, 1954. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  7. ↑ "LONG REPAIR SEEN". The New York Times. 25 January 2005.
  8. ↑ "Remembering a fire at Chambers St.". Second Ave. Sagas.
  9. 1 2 Grynbaum, Michael M. (26 August 2011). "For Often-Late Cars of Subway's C Train, Retirement Must Wait". The New York Times. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  10. ↑ "State of the Subways 2012 table". Straphangers Campaign. Retrieved 1 August 2012.

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