C (New York City Subway service)
| Eighth Avenue Local | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| Northern end | 168th Street |
| Southern end | Euclid Avenue |
| Stations | 40 |
| Rolling stock | R32 |
| Depot | 207th Street Yard |
The C Eighth Avenue Local is a rapid transit service in the B Division of the New York City Subway. Its route emblem, or "bullet", is colored vivid blue since it uses the IND Eighth Avenue Line in Manhattan.[1] The C operates at all times except late nights, making all stops between 168th Street in Washington Heights, Manhattan, and Euclid Avenue in East New York, Brooklyn via Central Park West / Eighth Avenue in Manhattan and Fulton Street in Brooklyn. During late night hours, the A train, which runs express along the entire C route during daytime hours, makes all stops.
History
.svg)
1967–1979 service bullet |
1979–1985 service bullet |
The C and CC services began operation on July 1, 1933 over the then-new IND Concourse Line. The CC local provided continuous service between Bedford Park Boulevard and Hudson Terminal during rush hours., and was extended to 205th Street during non-rush hours. The C ran express, from 205th Street to Bergen Street in Brooklyn during rush hours.[2][3]
Beginning August 19, 1933, C service was cut back from Bergen Street, but started operating during non-rush hours. At the same time, CC service was cut back from 205th Street during non-rush hours.[3]
On January 1, 1936, C service was extended to Jay Street – Borough Hall.[3]
On April 9, 1937, C service was extended to Hoyt–Schermerhorn Streets.[3]
After July 1, 1937, A few C trains continued to run to Bergen St southbound in the AM rush hour and northbound in the PM rush hour. Also on the same date, weekend C service was discontinued, and CC service was extended to 205th Street to compensate.[2]
Beginning December 15, 1940, the D train entered service with the opening of the IND Sixth Avenue Line. It joined the C as the peak direction Concourse Express. CC trains now ran between Hudson Terminal and Bedford Park during rush hours and on Saturdays and during other times, the D made local stops in the Bronx, replacing CC service. On the same date, limited morning rush hour service began between 205th Street, Bronx and Utica Avenue, Brooklyn, making local stops on the IND Fulton Street Line.[3]
Beginning October 10, 1944, C trains no longer ran on Saturdays.[2]
On October 24, 1949, C service was discontinued and during rush hours, CC trains terminated at Broadway – Lafayette Street, and on Saturdays CC service continued to operate to Hudson Terminal.[2]
On December 29, 1951 CC trains were discontinued on Saturdays.[2]
On October 30, 1954, CC trains returned to its previous terminal at Hudson Terminal.[2]
On August 30, 1976, the CC train replaced the E train as the local along Fulton Street and to Rockaway Park. It became the only subway train to run through all four boroughs served by the subway. It ran from Bedford Park Boulevard in the Bronx, though Manhattan via Central Park West and Eighth Avenue, into Brooklyn via the Cranberry Street Tunnel, and then on the Fulton Street Line and Jamaica Bay Crossing to Rockaway Park in Queens. The Rockaway Shuttle service at this time was relettered "CC"; this was the Only non-rush CC service.[2][3]
In May 1985, the IND practice of using double letters to indicate local service was discontinued. The CC service was renamed the C. The Rockaway Park Shuttle is renamed H.[2][3]
On December 12, 1988, the K train was discontinued, and the C train was extended to run at all times except late nights. It ran local to Euclid Avenue midday and rush hours (the A ran express in Brooklyn during this time), and to World Trade Center during evenings and weekends. During rush hours, it ran to Bedford Park Boulevard and other times, to 145th Street.[2][3]
On October 23, 1992, rush hour C service was cut back from Rockaway Park – Beach 116th Street to Euclid Avenue.
Beginning April 1995, C service ran to 168th Street – Washington Heights during midday and weekends. In November 1995, midday service was cut back to 145th Street.
On March 1, 1998, the B and C, which were the two local services along Central Park West, switched northern terminals, ending the connection between the C and The Bronx. The C now terminates at 168th Street whenever it operates.[3]
Starting in April 1999, C trains ran local to Euclid Avenue on the weekends and A trains ran express in Brooklyn at all times except late nights.[2]
In the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks, C service was suspended until September 24, 2001. Local service along Central Park West was replaced by the A and D, and the E was extended from Canal Street to Euclid Avenue replacing C service in Brooklyn.[2]
On January 23, 2005, a fire at the Chambers Street signal room crippled A and C service. C service was suspended until February 2. Initial assessments suggested that it would take several years to restore normal service, but the damaged equipment was replaced with available spare parts, and normal service resumed on April 21.[4][5][2]
Maintenance and rider issues
In August 2012, the Straphangers Campaign rated the C train the worst of the city's subway services for the fourth straight year. No other service has ranked worst for more than three years in a row. The group found that the C performed worst in three of the six categories in its annual State of the Subways Report Card: amount of scheduled service, interior cleanliness, and breakdown rate. It also ranked next-to-worst in car announcement quality, after the 7, but performed above average in regularity of service and crowding.[6][7]The New York Times called the C the "least loved of New York City subway lines", citing its fleet of R32s, which, at about 50 years of age, are the oldest cars in the system.[6] For the summers of 2011 and 2012, R46s ran on this service while the R32s were moved to the A train to save their older air conditioning units from having to work underground at all times. For the summers of 2013 and 2014, some R160s operated this service while some R32s operated the J/Z for the same reason.
Route
Service pattern
The following table shows the lines used by the C service:
| Line | From | To | Tracks |
|---|---|---|---|
| IND Eighth Avenue Line | 168th Street | Canal Street | local |
| Chambers Street | High Street | all | |
| IND Fulton Street Line | Jay Street – MetroTech | Euclid Avenue | local |
Stations
For a more detailed station listing, see the articles on the lines listed above.
| Station service legend | |
|---|---|
 |
Stops all times |
 |
Stops all times except late nights |
 |
Stops weekdays only |
 |
Stops rush hours/weekdays in the peak direction only |
| Time period details | |
References
- ↑ "mta.info - Line Colors". mta.info.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 2.10 2.11 "NYCT Line by Line History". erictb.info.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 "IND Subway Services". thejoekorner.com.
- ↑
- ↑ "Remembering a fire at Chambers St.". Second Ave. Sagas.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Grynbaum, Michael M. (26 August 2011). "For Often-Late Cars of Subway’s C Train, Retirement Must Wait". The New York Times. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
- ↑ "State of the Subways 2012 table". Straphangers Campaign. Retrieved 1 August 2012.
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to C (New York City Subway service). |
- MTA NYC Transit – C Eighth Avenue Local
- "C Subway Timetable, Effective December 7, 2014" (PDF). New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved 2015-01-02.
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