Lewis BarbaraThe New York City subway is by far the best way to get around the city. It may seem dirty and ugly, but few New Yorkers would trade their 24-hour, long, and fairly reliable subway system for a more attractive-looking one.
It is also noteworthy that the New York City subway is the largest in the world in terms of the number of lines (28) and stations (472). At the same time, the leader in passenger traffic is the Tokyo subway, which carries almost 3.2 billion passengers annually, and the Shanghai subway is first in total length of lines – 494 kilometers.
Each New York City subway line is identified by either a letter or a number. Never mind the colors. Unless you limit your use of the subway to the Midtown area, relying on colors is a sure way to get lost.
Virtually all lines in Manhattan run north or south, and the direction is always clearly indicated on the platforms and in the train announcements. In general, “Bronx direction” and “Queens direction” are identical to the north direction (“Uptown”), while “Brooklyn direction” is identical to the south direction (“Downtown”). Direction is also indicated above the station entrance (e.g. “Uptown, Bronx and Queens” or “Downtown and Brooklyn”), so be careful when you enter the station. If no direction is given, then this entrance can be used for both northbound and southbound routes.
Manhattan’s “tourist” lines
The Lexington Avenue line (Routes 4, 5, 6) is actually the only line on the East Side north of 23rd Street. It provides access to the Metropolitan Museum of Art (Routes 4, 5, or 6 to the 86th Street station or 6 to the 77th Street station), the Guggenheim Museum (Routes 4, 5, or 6 to the 86th Street station), and other East Side museums. Also to the Statue of Liberty (Routes 4, 5 to Bowling Green Station), Chinatown (Route 6 to Canal Street Station), and Yankee Stadium (Route 4 to 161st Street – Yankee Stadium Station).
The Seventh Avenue line (Routes 1, 2, 3) serves Broadway north of 42nd Street and Seventh Avenue south of 42nd Street. It provides access to the West Village, Chelsea, and Tribeca neighborhoods as well as ferries to Staten Island or the Statue of Liberty (route 1 to South Ferry Station) and Columbia University (route 1 to 116th Street Station).
The Eighth Avenue Line (Routes A, C, E) serves Eighth Avenue between 14th and 116th Streets, then St. Nicholas Avenue, Broadway, and Fort Washington Avenue (Ft. Washington Av.), starting at the 125th Street station in Harlem. It provides access to the Museum of Natural History (route C to 81st Street Station), Central Park West (route C makes stops along Central Park West Avenue), the Cloisters Museum (route A to 190th Street Station), John F. Kennedy Airport (route A to Howard Beach Station or E to Jamaica Station).
The Sixth Avenue Line (Routes B, D, F, M) runs along 6th Avenue from West 4th Street to 57th Street (or 47th to 50th Streets on all routes except the F). It provides access to the Museum of Modern Art, Rockefeller Center, Radio City Music Hall and St. Patrick’s Cathedral (47th to 50th Streets), and the Coney Island to Stillwell Avenue station. The Grand Street station on the B and D routes is the best all-purpose stop in Chinatown. In addition, the D route converges with the Eighth Avenue line from the 59th Street – Columbus Circle station to the 145th Street station and is suitable for getting to Harlem or Yankee Stadium (161st Street – Yankee Stadium station).
The Broadway line (routes N, Q, R) runs down Broadway south of 42nd Street and along 7th Avenue north of Times Square. The N, Q, R trains take you to Chinatown (Canal Street station), SoHo/Noho, NYU, Union Square, the Empire State Building (34th Street station), Times Square (42nd Street station), Carnegie Hall (57th Street station), Central Park (57th Street – 5th Avenue station) and the southern end of the Upper East Side. The R and W trains also run south to the Financial District and the South Ferry – Whitehall Street station.