Delancey Street–Essex Street (New York City Subway)
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Delancey Street–Essex Street    |
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New York City Subway station |
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| Station information | |
| Services | F  (all times)J (all times)M  (weekdays until 7:30 p.m.)Z  (rush hours, peak direction) |
| Other | |
| Borough | Manhattan |
Delancey Street–Essex Street is a New York City Subway station complex shared by the BMT Nassau Street Line and the IND Sixth Avenue Line, located at the intersection of Essex and Delancey Streets on the Lower East Side of Manhattan.
The complex is on three levels, with the BMT platforms on the upper level, the IND mezzanine below, and the IND platforms on the lowest level. The full-time entrance is on the north side of Delancey Street, on either side of Essex Street. It is located just west of the Williamsburg Bridge, in an area that in recent years has become a popular nightlife destination. The entire station complex is recently renovated.
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[edit] BMT Nassau Street Line platforms
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| Station information | |
| Line | BMT Nassau Street Line |
| Services | J (all times) M (weekdays until 7:30 p.m.)Z (rush hours, peak direction) |
| Platforms | 1 island platform, 1 side platform |
| Tracks | 3 (2 in revenue service) |
| Other | |
| Opened | September 16, 1908[1] |
| Next north | Marcy Avenue: J M Z |
| Next south | Bowery: J M Z |
| Broadway-Lafayette Street (6th Avenue): no regular service | |
Essex Street on the BMT Nassau Street Line has three tracks, one side platform, and one island platform. Southbound trains use the side platform. The other two tracks are on the island platform. The middle track, which was formerly the peak-direction express track, is now used for northbound trains over the Williamsburg Bridge. After a 2004 reconfiguration, the former northbound local track was taken out of service, although it can be used for special reroutes from the Broadway-Lafayette Street station. This connection has not been used in revenue service since 1982.
The island platform is a lot longer than the typical Eastern Division train, which consists of eight 60 feet long cars. As a result, the signals are placed on the platforms rather than in the tunnels.
Next to the former Brooklyn-bound local track is a closed trolley terminal. There are about three to four tracks against a wall and eight turning loops, which were used for trolley service from 1908 to 1948 that traveled over the Williamsburg Bridge to different parts in Brooklyn.
[edit] IND Sixth Avenue Line platforms
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| Station information | |
| Line | IND Sixth Avenue Line |
| Services | F (all times) |
| Platforms | 2 side platforms |
| Tracks | 2 |
| Other | |
| Opened | January 1, 1936 |
| Next north | Lower East Side–Second Avenue: F |
| Next south | East Broadway: F |
Delancey Street on the IND Sixth Avenue Line has two tracks and two side platforms. The station has a part-time booth on the south side of Delancey Street and has two street staircases. Crossovers connect both platforms to the Essex Street station on the BMT Nassau Street Line. There were formerly exits at both the north (Rivington Street) and south (Broome Street) ends of the station. Twelve staircases, six on each side, led to the Rivington and Broome Street exits. They were all removed. Only the staircase at the southeast corner of Rivington and Essex Streets remains, but it is only used for storage. This staircase is easily identifiable, as it is adjacent to the rear of the Essex Street Market building. The tile band (purple with black border) and station name tablets have been replaced, replicating the style of the original design. In a departure from the norm of recent restorations, every other column at platform level has a large "D" for the station name.
There are two large wall-sized pieces of artwork, one on each wall where the staircase exits and transfers are located. The artist for both glass mosaics is Ming Fay (2004).
The artwork on the downtown side is titled Shad Crossing and details two giant shad fish swimming, along with another wall mosaic of blue waters. In the late 19th century, these shad were found along the Hudson River when new immigrants came to New York, many of whom settled on the Lower East Side. The new staircase to the relocated full-time booth also has another painting of a shad wrapped around the bottom of the stairs.
The uptown side is titled Delancey Orchard and has a cherry orchard tree mosaic, which symbolized the tree owned by the Delancey family in the 18th century. Along all staircases leading from the F platforms to either fare control are miniature versions of these paintings.
