The New York City Subway Lines Project:
The IND That Used To Be
The Independent Subway System was conceived in 1922 by then-Mayor John F. Hylan, a dedicated enemy of private transit interests (and Robert Moses), Construction began in 1925 under the authority of Jimmy Walker, and it opened for business in September of 1932. It was municipally operated for its entire lifespan.
CC - late 1930s, local. ran from 205 Street in the Bronx (now the D line) down 8th Avenue until terminating at Chambers Street, where the E train terminated until September 2001.
GG - opened in 1936, local. from 71st-Continental in Queens to Smith-9th in Brooklyn. Replaced by the G during the Great Renaming. During the 1939-40 World's Fair, the GG ran to the World's Fair site. During the 1940s, Robert Moses decided that the city would be better served by cars and replaced the trackage with what is now the Van Wyck Expressway.
E - Ran local from 169th Street to 71st Street in Queens, then semi-express following the current E (8th Avenue) line to West 4th in Manhattan, then following the current F train line through Manhattan and Brooklyn, terminating on Church Avenue in Brooklyn. At some point, the E started running along the current A tracks, and sometime after 1956, the E terminated in Rockaway Park. In 1967, the E was handling both Rockaway Park and Far Rockaway.
AA - 168th to Chambers Street local. Became the K during the Great Renaming.
HH - 1936-1946. Court Street Shuttle. Two lousy stops. The first stop was at Hoyt-Schermerhorn Streets, on the now-abandoned third tracks. The second was at Court Street Station, which is now the Transit Museum.
H - Rockaway Park Shuttle, replaced by the S. Also late night service from Euclid Avenue to both Rockaway terminals; one being replaced by the A Far Rockaway extension, the second by the Rockaway Park - Broad Channel S.
K - 168th to Chambers local. Terminated in 1989. The K also ran along BMT tracks in the 1970s, going from 57th Street (on today's B) following the current J to Broadway-East New York. Also see The MTA That Used To Be.
F - the 6th Avenue Line came into being in 1940. What would become the F ran from 169th Street in Queens to Church Street in Brooklyn, following what was the F line until December 2001. In 1954, an extension was built, connecting Church Street to the BMT Culver line, giving that name to the F and extending its run to Coney Island. The 179th Street terminal was opened in 1950.
A - the A train had reached Rockaway Blvd by 1939 and Euclid Avenue by 1948. In 1956, a ramp was completed (which included the current Grant Avenue station) which connected the subway to the former BMT Fulton Street elevated. This elevated line gave the A a new terminus at Lefferts Boulevard. The city bought the right-of-way down Cross Bay Boulevard in 1953 from the Long Island Railroad, and opened the line for subway service in 1956. The Cross Bay/Rockaway extension was treated as a separate division until 1975; during this time, the train crew would change at Euclid Avenue and the passengers would be required to pay an additional fare. This extension went through several name changes, becoming the CC, the E, and the H (q.v.) before finally becoming a split version of the A and the Rockaway Park shuttle in the late 1980s.
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