W (New York City Subway service)
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The W Broadway Local is a rapid transit service of B Division of the New York City Subway. It is colored yellow on the route sign and on station signs and the subway map, as it is a service provided on the BMT Broadway Line through midtown Manhattan. The W, which runs weekdays only from 6:00 am to 9:30 pm, is an entirely local service, stretching the length of the BMT Astoria Line and Broadway Line from Ditmars Boulevard–Astoria in Astoria, Queens south to Whitehall Street–South Ferry in Lower Manhattan. The service passes under the East River in the 60th Street Tunnel.[1]
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[edit] Service history
The W was introduced on July 22, 2001, when the Manhattan Bridge north tracks were closed for reconstruction. The B had run full-time from Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue to Manhattan via the BMT West End Line and north tracks onto the IND Sixth Avenue Line, but had to be split in 2001. A similar split had been made from 1986 to 1988, when a part-time orange diamond B ran only north of 34th Street, and a full-time (though only in Brooklyn at nights) yellow B ran from Coney Island across the south side of the bridge and up the BMT Broadway Line into Queens. This old pattern was effectively restored in 2001, but instead of having two B services, the Brooklyn service became the W. This route began at Coney Island and ran up the West End Line (local), BMT Fourth Avenue Line (express), Manhattan Bridge south tracks, Broadway Line (express, switching to local for 49th Street), and BMT Astoria Line (express during rush hours in the peak direction) to Ditmars Boulevard–Astoria. Evening service ended at 57th Street in Manhattan (using the express tracks and bypassing 49th Street), late night service at 36th Street in Brooklyn, and weekend service at Atlantic Avenue–Pacific Street in Brooklyn.
The Astoria express service was unpopular with residents, and was discontinued on January 15, 2002; around that time, evening service was extended from 57th Street to Astoria. When all Coney Island service but the W was temporarily suspended on September 8, 2002 due to reconstruction of the terminal, the W becamea a full time Coney Island-Astoria service. Late night and weekend service was sent via the Montague Street Tunnel and the local tracks of the Fourth Avenue and Broadway Lines; the N was cut back to Brooklyn at those times. When all four tracks on the Manhattan Bridge were restored on February 22, 2004, the W was changed to its current service pattern as a weekday local between Whitehall Street–South Ferry and Astoria. The Brooklyn portion of the W was replaced by the D, extended over the north side of the bridge and down the West End Line.
[edit] Stations
Every station is served by the W on weekdays from 6:00 am to 9:30 pm only.
| Station |  |
Subway transfers | Connections |
|---|---|---|---|
| BMT Astoria Line (Queens) | |||
| Ditmars Boulevard–Astoria | N | ||
| Astoria Boulevard | N | M60 to LaGuardia Airport | |
| 30th Avenue | N | ||
| Broadway | N | ||
| 36th Avenue | N | ||
| 39th Avenue | N | ||
| Queensboro Plaza | 7 <7>(1a2a3c) N | ||
| BMT Broadway Line (Manhattan) | |||
| Lexington Avenue–59th Street | F N R 4 5 6 <6>(1a2a) | Roosevelt Island Tramway | |
| Fifth Avenue | N R | ||
| 57th Street | N Q R | ||
| 49th Street | * |
N R | |
| Times Square–42nd Street | 1 2 3 7 <7>(1a2a3c) A C E N Q R S | Port Authority Bus Terminal | |
| 34th Street | |
B D F V N Q R | Pennsylvania Station; 33rd Street (PATH) |
| 28th Street | R | ||
| 23rd Street | R | ||
| 14th Street–Union Square | |
4 5 6 <6>(1a2a) L N Q R | |
| Eighth Street | R | ||
| Prince Street | R | ||
| Canal Street | 6 <6>(1a2a) J M(12) N Q R Z(1a) | ||
| City Hall | R | ||
| Cortlandt Street | * |
R | |
| Rector Street | R | ||
| Whitehall Street–South Ferry | R | Staten Island Ferry | |
- *49th Street is accessible northbound only. Cortlandt Street is accessible southbound only.
