Lexington Avenue–63rd Street (New York City Subway)

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Lexington Avenue–63rd Street
NYC Subway F service

New York City Subway station
Station information
Line IND 63rd Street Line
Services F all times (all times)
Transfers 4 all times 5 all except late nights 6 all times <6>weekdays until 8:45 p.m., peak direction at 59th Street (IRT Lexington Avenue Line)
N all times R all except late nights W weekdays until 9:30 p.m. at Lexington Avenue–59th Street (BMT Broadway Line)
Platforms 2 island platforms (1 on each of 2 levels, half of each in revenue service)
Tracks 4 (2 on each of 2 levels)
2 in revenue service (1 on each level)
Other
Borough Manhattan
Opened October 29, 1989
Accessible Handicapped/disabled access
Next north Roosevelt Island: F all times
Next south 57th Street (6th Avenue): F all times
57th Street (Broadway): no regular service

Lexington Avenue–63rd Street is a two-level station shared by the BMT and IND 63rd Street Lines of the New York City Subway. Located at the intersection of Lexington Avenue and 63rd Street, it is served by the F train at all times. Manhattan-bound trains use the upper level, and Queens-bound trains the lower level. The station's walls are on the north side. Tiles are red. There are a total of ten escalators, six staircases and two elevators. Two additional staircases from upper to lower level are at opposite end of platforms, behind the elevator.

It takes quite a lot of time to go from street to platform. From the street, there are two short escalators from the northwest corner, a staircase from the southwest corner, and a short elevator hidden around the corner from the escalators. From the fare control, there are three long escalators to an intermediate level, and then two long escalators to a lower mezzanine. Here, the bank splits and there are two separate tubes of two escalators each to each platform. The platform elevator has its own two turnstiles, and makes three stops (mezzanine, upper platform, lower platform).

The station may look like a typical one track, one side platform station, but on each level behind the station walls would reveal much more to the station. The walls taken down would expand the "side" platform into an island platform, also revealing an unused track. This track is intended to be used for the connection between the BMT 63rd Street Line and the unbuilt Second Avenue Subway. When the station was built, it was decided to build a wall to separate the two tracks, as the IND (southern) tracks have always been used, while the BMT (northern) tracks have never seen regular service, only to be used for non-rush hour train storage. When the Second Avenue Subway is complete, the walls are intended to be taken down, and Q trains will use the unused northern tracks, in conjunction to F trains using the southern tracks.

When the 63rd Street Connector opened in 2001, a free out-of-system transfer to the Lexington Avenue-59th Street station was installed. This was to provide a transfer to the IRT Lexington Avenue Line for Sixth Avenue customers because V trains (which replaced the F on the 53rd Street Line) did not operate during nights and weekends.

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