Broad Channel (IND Rockaway Line)

Broad Channel
New York City Subway rapid transit station
Broad Channel station after the post-Hurricane Sandy renovation
Station statistics
Address	Noel Road & West Road Queens, NY 11693
Borough	Queens
Locale	Broad Channel
Coordinates	40°36′31″N 73°48′58″W / 40.608618°N 73.816°W / 40.608618; -73.816Coordinates: 40°36′31″N 73°48′58″W / 40.608618°N 73.816°W / 40.608618; -73.816
Division	B (IND, formerly LIRR Rockaway Beach Branch)
Line	IND Rockaway Line
Services	A  (all times)       S  (all times)
Transit connections	MTA Bus: Q52, Q53, QM16, QM17
Structure	At-grade
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	2
Other information
Opened	1880 (LIRR station)[1]
Closed	1950 (LIRR station)
Rebuilt	June 28, 1956 (1956-06-28) (as a Subway station)
Station code	199[2]
Accessibility	Same-platform wheelchair transfer available
Traffic
Passengers (2016)	91,208[3]  0.6%
Rank	421 out of 422
Station succession
Next north	Howard Beach–JFK Airport: A  (Terminal): S
Next south	Beach 67th Street (Far Rockaway): A  Beach 90th Street (Rockaway Park): A  S
Station service legend Symbol Description Stops all times Stops rush hours in the peak direction only
Location Show map of New York City Subway Show map of New York City Show map of New York Show map of the US

Broad Channel is a station on the IND Rockaway Line of the New York City Subway, located in the neighborhood of the same name at Noel and West Roads in the borough of Queens. It is served by the A train and the Rockaway Park Shuttle at all times, the latter of which originates/terminates here.

This is the only subway station serving the island of Broad Channel, which is located in Jamaica Bay. The island only has about 3,000 residents, and as a result, this is the least-used station in the subway system not counting the closed Cortlandt Street station. However, this station serves an important role. It is the transfer point between the Rockaway Park Shuttle, which runs to Rockaway Park–Beach 116th Street, and the A train, which runs through Brooklyn and Manhattan.

North of this station, two additional tracks are located within the right-of-way. One of the tracks is used to allow for Rockaway Park Shuttle trains to relay and to go back into service to the Rockaways, while the other track is called the Far Rockaway Test Track. The latter of the two tracks is used to test new subway cars to make sure that they are ready for acceptance into New York City Transit's fleet of subway cars.

History

Track layout
to Howard Beach Jamaica Bay Trestle Long track section approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) Test track Shuttle relay track Jamaica Bay Long track section approximately 1,000 feet (300 m) Jamaica Bay Hammels Wye to B 67 St – Far Rockaway Branch to B 90 St – Rockaway Park Branch

The station originally opened in 1880 as a New York, Woodhaven and Rockaway Railroad station (although some sources claim it opened in June 1881) and was acquired by the Long Island Rail Road, to become a station on the Rockaway Beach Branch.^[4]

As a Long Island Rail Road station it served as one of two junctions between the Far Rockaway and Rockaway Beach Branches. The other junction was at Hammels Station, although it was originally a junction for the Far Rockaway Branch and the Ocean Electric Railway. Hammels is now located where Hammels Wye is. Wooden shelter sheds were added to the station in 1921 and 1923.^[4] A fire on the trestle between this station and another one known as The Raunt, located to the north, forced the closure of both stations on May 23, 1950, as well as the entire Jamaica Bay trestle which stretches from Howard Beach to Hammels Wye.^[5][6][7]

By October 3, 1955, the Rockaway Beach Branch south of Ozone Park, and all of the Far Rockaway Branch west of Far Rockaway were purchased by the New York City Transit Authority. The Broad Channel station was completely reconstructed (as were the Howard Beach and Far Rockaway stations) with new concrete platforms, and a new station house. The contract for the new station was approved in December 1954.^{[8][9][10][11]} The station opened to subway service on June 28, 1956.^[7]

The station and the adjacent segment of the Rockaway Line suffered serious damage during Hurricane Sandy in 2012, and was out of service for several months. Due to its location in the middle of Jamaica Bay, the station was filled with debris, with its trackbed damaged.^[12][13] During its temporary closure, the station received new ADA-tactile strips, platform edge rubbing boards, and cosmetic and mechanical work. Service was restored to the station on May 30, 2013, and to celebrate the re-opening, a vintage R1 subway car formed the first train.^[14]

Station layout

M	Mezzanine	Crossover
P Platform level	Side platform, doors will open on the right
	Northbound	← toward Inwood–207th Street (Howard Beach–JFK Airport) ← termination track
	Southbound	→ toward Far Rockaway–Mott Avenue (Beach 67th Street) → → ( during PM rush hours) toward Rockaway Park–Beach 116th Street (Beach 90th Street) →
	Side platform, doors will open on the right
G	Street level station house	Exit/ Entrance, station agent, MetroCard vending machines, fare control

Noel Road entrance

This station has two tracks and two side platforms, each measuring 12 feet (3.7 m) wide and over 660 feet (200 m) long.^[8] The northern parts of the platforms are sheltered with canopies and windscreens.^[8]

Exit

A station house is located above both platforms, containing a crossover, waiting area and fare control.^[8][15] The single street staircase outside of fare control goes down to West Road by the intersection of Noel Road next to the Rockaway-bound platform.^{[8][16][17]:9[note 1]} This platform also has a set of exit-only turnstiles leading directly to this staircase so riders exiting the station on this side do not have to go through the station house. The station house is heated, while the platforms feature passenger-activated heaters;^[19]:35 these heaters, and the doors separating the station house and staircases, were not originally part of the station.^[20][21] The station house used to have 1950s-era signage at its front entrance reading, but now only has modern MTA entrance signs.^[17]

At the north end of the station is a power substation, located at West Road and East 6th Road adjacent to the Rockaway-bound platform.^[8][15][17] A second exit-only staircase is located here, but is closed.^[15][22]

Track layout

This view shows the crossovers that lead to the tail tracks on the right, and to the track used to test new trains on the left.

Just to the north, the Rockaway Line gains two extra non-revenue tracks straddling the two revenue tracks.^[23] The western track is a test track, installed in 2001 and called the Far Rockaway Test Track,^{[24][25][26]:13-29-13-32[27]:1–3[28]:30–31} while the eastern track is used to relay shuttle trains.^[19][29] The western track extends around 10,000 feet (3,000 m) or nearly 2 miles,^[24] while the eastern track is long enough for one full-length train (600 feet (180 m) and ends at a bumper block.^[23] The test track was installed in 2001 by New York City Transit's Maintenance of Way Department to ensure that new cars have undergone necessary acceleration and braking tests before being put into revenue service. This was because NYCT needed to recover a greater amount of braking energy and reduce power demand peaks with the introduction of AC-motored cars with the capability for regenerative braking. A kinetic energy storage system with KESS technology was installed, and as a result, the voltage regulation of the track improved. The system provides voltage support to the revenue tracks as well as reinforcing the voltage of the test track during the testing of new trains.^[25]

Continuing north, the Rockaway Line crosses Jamaica Bay before reaching Howard Beach; the distance of 3.5 miles (5.6 km) between the two stations is the longest between any two in the New York City Subway system.^[24] To the south, the Rockaway Line continues to the Rockaway peninsula, where it splits at Hammels Wye to allow service to both Far Rockaway–Mott Avenue and Rockaway Park–Beach 116th Street.^[19][23] Punch boxes are located at the ends of both platforms, to allow train operators to select the correct route. The switches are then accordingly switched by the local tower operator.^[23]:xix[30]

Ridership

Broad Channel is a small island with fewer than 3,000 residents,^[31] and as a result, it has historically been one of the least-used stations in the system. In 1985, the station had only 224 paying daily riders on a typical weekday not counting farebeaters (people not paying their fare) making it one of the least used stations in the system.^[32] The station has the second-lowest ridership in the subway system as of 2015, with 91,766 annual riders,^[3] or 310 riders per weekday.^[33] In terms of annual ridership, it was only trailed by Cortlandt Street, a station that is closed to be rebuilt as a result of damage from the September 11 attacks. Overall, Broad Channel is the least used of any fully operating subway station in the city,^[34] although on weekdays it has on average 5 more riders than the Beach 105th Street station.^[33] However, it is the only transfer point between the A train and the Rockaway Park Shuttle, and some 2,700 daily riders use it in this capacity.^[19][20] As a result, the platforms are sometimes packed.^[34]

Nearby points of interest include a visitor center and trails for the Gateway National Recreation Area's Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge.^[16][17] The Refuge is one of the most significant bird sanctuaries in the Northeastern United States, and it is home to more than 330 bird species, making it one of the best places in New York City to observe migrating birds. The visitor center is the start of many guided tours of the refuge and it is home to exhibits that discuss the history of Jamaica Bay, the wide array of wildlife that can be found there, and the impact of human activity.^[35]

Gallery

• 
  A view of the northbound platform at Broad Channel facing to the south.
• 
  A view of the southern end of the station during the renovation of the line.
• 
  The renovation of the station is almost complete. This is a view of the platforms looking north.
• 
  A vintage R1 subway car leading the first trip onto the Rockaway Line on May 30, 2013 after having been closed due to damage from Hurricane Sandy

Notes

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Broad Channel (IND Rockaway Line).

• nycsubway.org – IND Rockaway: Broad Channel
• Station Reporter — Rockaway Park Shuttle
• The Subway Nut - Broad Channel Pictures
• Entrance from Google Maps Street View
• Platforms from Google Maps Street View

	Former services
Preceding station		LIRR		Following station
The Raunt toward Grand Street		Rockaway Beach Branch		Beach Channel toward Rockaway Park

New York City Subway stations, by service
	Inwood–207th Street Dyckman Street 190th Street 181st Street 175th Street 168th Street 163rd Street–Amsterdam Avenue* 155th Street* 145th Street 135th Street* 125th Street 116th Street* Cathedral Parkway–110th Street* 103rd Street* 96th Street* 86th Street* 81st Street–Museum of Natural History* 72nd Street* 59th Street–Columbus Circle 50th Street* 42nd Street–Port Authority Bus Terminal 34th Street–Penn Station 23rd Street* 14th Street West Fourth Street–Washington Square Spring Street* Canal Street Chambers Street–World Trade Center Fulton Street High Street Jay Street–MetroTech Hoyt–Schermerhorn Streets Lafayette Avenue* Clinton–Washington Avenues* Franklin Avenue* Nostrand Avenue Kingston–Throop Avenues* Utica Avenue Ralph Avenue* Rockaway Avenue* Broadway Junction Liberty Avenue* Van Siclen Avenue* Shepherd Avenue* Euclid Avenue Grant Avenue 80th Street 88th Street Rockaway Boulevard Lefferts branch 104th Street 111th Street Ozone Park–Lefferts Boulevard Rockaways branches Aqueduct Racetrack Aqueduct–North Conduit Avenue Howard Beach–JFK Airport Broad Channel Far Rockaway branch Beach 67th Street Beach 60th Street Beach 44th Street Beach 36th Street Beach 25th Street Far Rockaway–Mott Avenue Rockaway Park branch Beach 90th Street Beach 98th Street Beach 105th Street Rockaway Park–Beach 116th Street
	Broad Channel Beach 90th Street Beach 98th Street Beach 105th Street Rockaway Park–Beach 116th Street
See also Lists by borough (The Bronx Brooklyn Manhattan Queens) Accessible Closed Terminals Transfer Commons category Note: Temporary reroutes on the 2, 5, and M trains are not reflected here. Stations with asterisks are served by that service during off-peak hours only. See linked articles for more information.