149th Street–Grand Concourse station

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources:  –  ·  ·  · scholar · JSTOR (November 2015) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

149 Street–Grand Concourse  ​​
New York City Subway station complex
Street entrance
Station statistics
Address	East 149th Street & Grand Concourse Bronx, NY 10451
Borough	The Bronx
Locale	Mott Haven, Melrose
Coordinates	40°49′05″N 73°55′39″W / 40.8181°N 73.9275°W / 40.8181; -73.9275Coordinates: 40°49′05″N 73°55′39″W / 40.8181°N 73.9275°W / 40.8181; -73.9275
Division	A (IRT)[1]
Line	IRT Jerome Avenue Line IRT White Plains Road Line
Services	2  (all times)​    4  (all times)​    5  (all except late nights)
Transit	NYCT Bus: Bx1, Bx2, Bx19
Levels	2
Other information
Station code	603[2]
Accessible	not ADA-accessible; currently undergoing renovations for ADA access
Traffic
2019	3,931,908[4]  1%
Rank	123 out of 424[4]
showLocation Show map of New York City SubwayShow map of New York CityShow map of New YorkShow all
showStreet map Wikimedia | © OpenStreetMap
showStation service legend Symbol Description Stops all times except late nights Stops all times

149th Street–Grand Concourse is a New York City Subway station complex shared by the IRT Jerome Avenue Line and the IRT White Plains Road Line. It is located at East 149th Street and Grand Concourse in Mott Haven and Melrose in the Bronx. The complex is served by the 2 and 4 trains at all times, and by the 5 train at all times except late nights.

Station layout[]

G	Street level	Exit/entrance
B1	Mezzanine	Fare control, station agent, Metrocard vending machines
B2	Northbound local	← toward Woodlawn (161st Street–Yankee Stadium)
	Island platform
	Peak-direction express	← PM rush toward Woodlawn (161st Street–Yankee Stadium) → (No service: Burnside Avenue) → AM rush toward Utica Avenue (125th Street) →
	Island platform
	Southbound local	→ toward Utica Avenue (New Lots Avenue late nights) (138th Street–Grand Concourse) →
B3	Mezzanine	Transfer between platforms
B4	Side platform
	Northbound	← toward 241st Street (Third Avenue–149th Street) ← toward Dyre Avenue or Nereid Avenue (Third Avenue–149th Street)
	Southbound	← toward Flatbush Avenue via Seventh (135th Street) → ← toward Flatbush Avenue via Lexington weekdays, Bowling Green evenings/weekends (138th Street–Grand Concourse) →
	Side platform

Exits[]

There are two exit stairs each to the southwest and southeast corners of 149th Street and Grand Concourse.^[5]

Elevators[]

When the station was first opened, the only way to exit the station was through two elevators. The elevators had four levels: one at the northbound lower level platform, one at the level of a pedestrian overpass connecting the two lower level platforms at their southern ends, one at the mezzanine of the upper level platforms (added when those platforms were opened),^{[citation needed]} and one at a street-level headhouse.^[6][7]

In 1920, a project to extend the Mott Avenue station platforms 230 feet (70 m) to the west to provide a connection with a proposed station on the New York Central Railroad was completed.^[8]

When the elevators were opened up for service, they were considered state-of-the-art at the time, holding up to 20 people. However, the elevators and areas near the elevators were closed in 1975 due to security reasons. The MTA initially stated in February 2014 that there were no plans to reopen them as the station itself "was not a main station". In 2013, several local institutions and groups of riders protested in support of restoring elevator access to the station.^[9]

All platforms are planned to receive full ADA accessibility as part of the MTA's 2015-2019 Capital Program.^{[10][11][12]: 90} In December 2015, the MTA initially agreed to repair both elevators in addition to installing another one across the street. It was estimated that $45 million would go towards this previous elevator installation and repair plan.^[13][14][15]

The MTA currently plans to rebuild one of the two original elevators so that it operates from the headhouse to the pedestrian overpass above the lower level platforms, and build two new elevators with three stops; one will have stops at both Manhattan-bound platforms and the overpass, and the other will have stops at both northbound platforms and the overpass. A new fare control area will be built somewhere in the overpass level.^[16] It is estimated that "over $50 million" will go towards the current installation and repair plan.^[17] Construction on new elevators and the refurbishment of the existing elevator started in August 2020 after a "preliminary design stage,"^[18] and substantial completion is projected for July 2023.^[19]

Unbuilt New York Central Railroad station[]

There are some remaining signs on the walls that point to a never-built station of the New York Central Railroad lines (now part of Metro-North Railroad).^[20] The station had been approved in 1908 and would have been located at 149th Street and Park Avenue, one block east.^[21]

IRT Jerome Avenue Line platforms[]

149 Street–Grand Concourse
New York City Subway station (rapid transit)
View from southbound platform
Station statistics
Division	A (IRT)[22]
Line	IRT Jerome Avenue Line
Services	4  (all times)
Structure	Underground
Platforms	2 island platforms cross-platform interchange
Tracks	3
Other information
Opened	June 2, 1917; 104 years ago (1917-06-02)
Station code	390[2]
Accessible	not ADA-accessible; currently undergoing renovations for ADA access
Opposite- direction transfer	Yes
Station succession
Next north	Burnside Avenue (express): no regular service 161st Street–Yankee Stadium (local): 4
Next south	138th Street–Grand Concourse (local): 4  125th Street (express): 4
showTrack layout Legend to Burnside Av to 161 St to 138 St to 125 St
showStation service legend Symbol Description Stops all times except rush hours in the peak direction Stops all times Stops rush hours in the peak direction only

149th Street–Grand Concourse is an express station on the IRT Jerome Avenue Line that has three tracks and two island platforms, with the center track used during rush hours in the peak direction. This station is on the upper level of the two-level station complex, with a free transfer to the IRT White Plains Road Line on the lower level.

The station was opened on June 2, 1917, and was the southern terminus of the Jerome Avenue Line^[23] until it was extended through Mott Haven Avenue into the Upper East Side extension of the IRT Lexington Avenue Line.^[23][24]

IRT White Plains Road Line platforms[]

149 Street–Grand Concourse  ​
New York City Subway station (rapid transit)
View from northbound platform
Station statistics
Division	A (IRT)[25]
Line	IRT White Plains Road Line
Services	2  (all times) ​   5  (all times except late nights)
Structure	Underground
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	2
Other information
Opened	July 10, 1905; 116 years ago (1905-07-10)
Station code	435[2]
Accessible	not ADA-accessible; currently undergoing renovations for ADA access
Accessibility	Same-platform wheelchair transfer available
Opposite- direction transfer	Yes
Former/other names	Mott Avenue
Station succession
Next north	Third Avenue–149th Street: 2  ​5
Next south	138th Street–Grand Concourse (Jerome): 5  135th Street (Lenox): 2
showTrack layout Legend to 3 Av–149 St from 138 St–GC to 138 St–GC to 135 St
showStation service legend Symbol Description Stops all times except late nights Stops all times
Mott Avenue Control House
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Seen in November 2014
MPS	New York City Subway System MPS
NRHP reference No.	80002590[26]
Added to NRHP	May 6, 1980

149th Street–Grand Concourse on the IRT White Plains Road Line has two tracks and two side platforms. There is a high rounded ceiling that is visible at the west end of the station and is similar in design to those of 168th Street and 181st Street stations on the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line. The IRT White Plains Road Line platforms are located on the lower level of this two level complex.^[27]

Originally opened as Mott Avenue on July 10, 1905, 149th Street–Grand Concourse was the first subway station to be opened in the Bronx. The original headhouse is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.^[26] Today, all of the original mosaic "Mott Avenue" name tablets have been covered over with metal "149 St–Grand Concourse" signs. Only one name tablet, located on the downtown platform between the last two staircases at the northern end, remained uncovered and survived intact until a few years into the 21st century when a serious water leak after very heavy rainfall caused individual tiles to separate from the wall and fall off. There were no known plans by the MTA to repair or restore this name tablet. In late 2011, the MTA covered this name tablet with a metal "149 St–Grand Concourse" sign.

South of the station, there are track connections to the IRT Jerome Avenue Line. The line splits and makes a sharp turn to merge with the Jerome Avenue Line just south of the upper level station. Due to high usage levels and the sharp turn of the connection, it often causes delays on the 5 train. The White Plains Road Line continues straight under the Harlem River and merges with the IRT Lenox Avenue Line at 142nd Street Junction.^[28]

From the station's 1905 opening until 2002, there were no columns between the northbound and southbound tracks, allowing an unobstructed view across the station. Thin supports for a communications conduit have since been installed.

References[]

External links[]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to 149th Street – Grand Concourse (New York City Subway).

• nycsubway.org – IRT White Plains Road Line: 149th Street/Grand Concourse (Mott Avenue)
• nycsubway.org – IRT Woodlawn Line: 149th Street/Grand Concourse