Fordham Road – 190th Street (IRT Third Avenue Line)

Fordham Road – 190th Street
Former New York City Subway rapid transit station

Platforms at Fordham Road, showing right-of-way of the express track.
Station statistics
Address Third Avenue and Fordham Road
Borough Bronx
Locale Fordham, Fordham Plaza
Coordinates 40°51′39″N 73°53′27″W / 40.86083°N 73.89083°W / 40.86083; -73.89083Coordinates: 40°51′39″N 73°53′27″W / 40.86083°N 73.89083°W / 40.86083; -73.89083
Line IRT Third Avenue Line
Services None
Platforms 2 island platforms
Tracks 3
Other information
Opened July 1, 1901 (July 1, 1901)
Closed April 29, 1973 (April 29, 1973)
Former/other names Pelham Avenue
Fordham Square[1][2]
Station succession
Next north Bronx Park Terminal (Original; Botanical Garden Spur)
200th Street (local)
Gun Hill Road (express)
Next south 183rd Street (local)
Tremont Avenue – 177th Street (express)

Fordham Road – 190th Street was an express station on the demolished IRT Third Avenue Line in the Bronx. It was located at Fordham Road and Third Avenue, one block east of Webster Avenue, in the modern location of Fordham Plaza. Opened in 1901,[3][4] the station was closed in 1973 and demolished in 1977 along with the rest of the Third Avenue Line.[5][6] No trace of the station exists today.

History

An extension of the Third Avenue El to Fordham Square (now Fordham Plaza) was proposed in 1894.[1] The station opened on July 1, 1901 as part of a three station extension of the line north of Tremont Avenue – 177th Street.[3] It was originally called Pelham Avenue,[7] the former name of Fordham Road and Pelham Parkway. It served as a major transfer point to what is today the Metro-North Railroad's Harlem and New Haven Lines at the Fordham station, and St. John's College (now the main Rose Hill campus of Fordham University).[5][7][8] This station served as the terminus of the line until May 21, 1902, when it was extended to Bronx Park Terminal.[4][7] Between 1913 and 1916 under the Dual Contracts, a third track was added to the line to facilitate express service.[9] A second extension to Gun Hill Road along Webster Avenue was also built during the Dual Contracts,[9][10] opening in 1920.[9]

The station had three tracks and two island platforms, situated on the west side of Third Avenue. North of the station, the mainline curved from Third Avenue onto Webster Avenue, while the stub line towards Bronx Park ran along the western edge of the Fordham campus parallel to the Metro-North tracks. The split occurred at an at-grade junction at about East 194th Street.[11][12][13] The next local stop to the north was either Bronx Park (closed in 1951)[14] or 200th Street. The next express stop to the north was the terminus of the line at Gun Hill Road. The next stop to the south was 183rd Street for local trains and Tremont Avenue – 177th Street for express trains.[12]

In the 1970s, the city planned to close the elevated line, which was dilapidated and blamed for blight and ills in the borough.[6][11] The station closed on April 29, 1973.[5] The structure was demolished by 1977.[6] Service to the station and along the Third Avenue corridor was replaced by buses.[11]

Current status

From 1973 to 2013, the Bx55 limited bus replaced elevated service between The Hub and Gun Hill Road. In 2013, the Bx55 was eliminated, replaced by the Bx15 limited bus which terminates at Fordham Plaza.[11][12][15][16] Service to Gun Hill Road is provided by the Bx41 Select Bus Service route along Webster Avenue.[17]

Currently, the station site is occupied by Fordham Plaza, a major bus hub and commercial center. While the plaza has existed in some form since the 1910s,[18] the current plaza was constructed in the mid-1990s, and has been undergoing reconstruction since 2014.[8][12][19][20][21] The closest subway stop to the former station is Fordham Road on the IND Concourse Line six blocks west.[8]

References

  1. 1 2 "North End Rapid Transit; Residents of Fordham and West Farms Want the "L" Road to Extend Its Lines" (PDF). New York Herald. Fultonhistory.com. July 22, 1894. Retrieved 19 March 2016.
  2. ↑ "Harlem and the Bronx" (PDF). Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Fultonhistory.com. March 6, 1902. p. 7. Retrieved 19 March 2016.
  3. 1 2 "Elevated Road Extension: Line from 177th Street to Fordham Now in Operation.". The New York Times. July 1, 1901. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  4. 1 2 "Elevated Road Extension: Manhattan Company to Land Passengers in Bronx Park at the Botanical Gardens.". The New York Times. January 30, 1902. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  5. 1 2 3 Donovan, Aaron (July 29, 2001). "If You're Thinking of Living In/Belmont; Close-Knit Bronx Area With Italian Aura". The New York Times. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  6. 1 2 3 Blumenthal, Ralph (August 27, 1977). "Now That El's Gone, Bronx Hub Sees A Brighter Future". The New York Times. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  7. 1 2 3 "Harlem and the Bronx". Newspapers.com. Brooklyn Daily Eagle. February 19, 1902. p. 9. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  8. 1 2 3 "MTA Neighborhood Maps: Van Cortlandt Park / NY Botanical Garden" (PDF). Metropolitan Transit Authority (New York). 2015. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  9. 1 2 3 Sparberg, Andrew J. (1 October 2014). "13". From a Nickel to a Token: The Journey from Board of Transportation to MTA. Fordham University Press. pp. 111–116. ISBN 978-0-8232-6190-1.
  10. ↑ "Publiv Service Commission Fixes July 15 For Opening of the New Seventh and Lexington Avenue Subway Lines". The New York Times. May 19, 1918. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  11. 1 2 3 4 Seigel, Max H. (July 18, 1972). "City Plans to Raze 3d Ave. El in Bornx". The New York Times. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  12. 1 2 3 4 "The 3rd Avenue Corridor". The Bronx Journal. March 27, 2013. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  13. ↑ "Fordham Plaza Advisory Committee - April 4, 2008" (PDF). nycedc.com. New York City Department of Transportation, New York City Economic Development Corporation. April 4, 2008. Retrieved 14 November 2015.
  14. ↑ "City Auctions Two Plots: Property in Brooklyn and Bronx Is Sold for $155,000". The New York Times. June 28, 1952. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  15. ↑ Faison, Seth (November 18, 1992). "Bronx Bus Line Riders Get Glimpse of Future". The New York Times. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  16. ↑ "3d Avenue El Closes Saturday; Fleet of 60 Buses to Replace It". The New York Times. April 22, 1973. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  17. ↑ bx41 sbs starting in june 2013 in mta board meeting packet pages 7.6-7.16
  18. ↑ "The Real Estate Field". The New York Times. November 30, 1911. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  19. ↑ Miller, Stephen (August 28, 2014). "City Begins to Reclaim Space for Pedestrians at Fordham Plaza". Streetsblog. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  20. ↑ Kazis, Noah (August 3, 2010). "Fordham Plaza Overhaul Promises Big Improvements for Pedestrians". Streetsblog. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  21. ↑ "Fordham Plaza: Conceptual Design Study" (PDF). nyc.gov. New York City Department of Transportation, New York City Economic Development Corporation. 2010. Retrieved 24 September 2015.

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