5 (New York City Subway service)

The 5 Lexington Avenue Express is a rapid transit service of the New York City Subway. It is colored green on station signs, route signs, and the official subway map, since it uses IRT Lexington Avenue Line in Manhattan.

Rush hour and midday service operates between Dyre Avenue in Eastchester, Bronx and Flatbush Avenue – Brooklyn College in Midwood, Brooklyn, operating local in the Bronx, express in Manhattan and Brooklyn. During rush hours in the peak direction, the 5 operates express in the Bronx and also operates between Nereid Avenue in Wakefield, Bronx and Brooklyn. During evenings and weekends, the 5 terminates at Bowling Green in Manhattan instead of Brooklyn. During late nights, the 5 operates as a shuttle between Dyre Avenue and East 180th Street, with passengers using the 2 and 4 trains for service to the rest of the Bronx, Manhattan and Brooklyn.

Limited rush hour service also operates between either Dyre Avenue or Nereid Avenue in the Bronx and either Utica Avenue in Crown Heights, Brooklyn or New Lots Avenue in New Lots, Brooklyn instead of Flatbush Avenue due to space limitations along the Nostrand Avenue segment south of Franklin Avenue, and to allow trains to lay up at the Livonia Yard in East New York.

Dyre Avenue Shuttle

The East 180th Street – Dyre Avenue Shuttle or Dyre Avenue Shuttle was established as a new subway service and full-time shuttle in 1941 between the former East 180th Street station of the New York, Westchester and Boston Railway and Dyre Avenue, which was the last station on the NYW&B within New York City. Passengers had to make a walking transfer between the Dyre Avenue Line and the IRT White Plains Road Line at East 180th Street as the two lines did not share a common station and there was no track connection between the lines.

In 1957 a flyover connection opened between the East 180th Street station of the White Plains Road Line and the Dyre Avenue Line, enabling through service by trains of the 2 from Manhattan to Dyre Avenue. At the same time, the former NYW&B station was closed and off-hours Dyre Avenue Shuttles rerouted to the White Plains Road Line station. These shuttles were initially labeled 2 like the full-time service but were later signed 9, a number used decades later for skip-stop service on the IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line.

The off-hours Dyre Avenue shuttle still operates, but those trains are signed as 5, the same as the through service.

Service history

The section from East 180th Street to Dyre Avenue was once the mainline of the New York, Westchester and Boston Railway, a standard gauge electric commuter railroad built by the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad. Upon its closure in 1937, the entire property was put up for sale.

In 1940, the City of New York purchased the section and began integrating the line into the system. The railroad north of the city line to White Plains and Port Chester was quickly dismantled. The section below East 180th Street to Greens Farm Junction was once used to interchange with the New Haven (and later Penn Central and Conrail) to bring subway cars and other equipment on and off the system. This section has since been removed, isolating this part of the subway from interchange.

Beginning 1934, trains normally ran from 241st Street or East 180th Street to Atlantic Avenue. During rush hours, they were extended to Utica Avenue.

From 1938 to 1950, weekend trains ran to Utica Avenue. Over the years, they were extended to New Lots Avenue every once in a while.

Beginning May 3, 1957, limited rush hour trains ran to Flatbush Avenue. This was discontinued on April 8, 1960.

From May 24, 1976 to 1980, midday trains terminated at Bowling Green.

Beginning July 10, 1983, all rush hour service ran to Flatbush Avenue, with limited service to/from Utica or New Lots Avenue.

On January 18, 1988, midday trains terminated at Bowling Green.

In 1995, rush hour service to 241st Street was cut back to Nereid Avenue.

In 2000, there was a plan to switch the peak direction rush hour express service between East 180th Street and 149th Street – Grand Concourse by having the 2 run express and the 5 run local. This plan was canceled due to complaints of possible delays on both services.^[1]

On May 27, 2005, use of the 5 diamond to indicate peak direction service to Nereid Avenue was discontinued.

On June 29, 2009, 5 trains were extended to Flatbush Avenue during midday hours.

From March 29 to September 3, 2010, rush hour peak direction 5 express service was suspended due to rehabilitation of East 180th Street and signal replacements along the IRT White Plains Road Line. PM northbound express service was suspended again on March 28, 2011 to allow for the second phase of the signal replacement project. Normal service was restored on August 8.

Route

Service pattern

The following table shows the lines used by the 5 service, with shaded boxes indicating the route at the specified times:

Stations

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

References

External links

• MTA NYC Transit – 5 Lexington Avenue Express (normal circle service)
• MTA NYC Transit – 5 Eastern Parkway/Lexington Avenue/Bronx Thru Express (rush hour diamond service)
• MTA NYC Transit – 5 train timetablePDF (317 KB) – Effective December 4, 2011