Franklin Street station (IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line)

Franklin Street
New York City Subway station (rapid transit)
Northbound platform
Station statistics
Address	Franklin Street & Varick Street New York, NY 10013
Borough	Manhattan
Locale	Tribeca
Coordinates	40°43′08″N 74°00′25″W / 40.719°N 74.007°W / 40.719; -74.007Coordinates: 40°43′08″N 74°00′25″W / 40.719°N 74.007°W / 40.719; -74.007
Division	A (IRT)[1]
Line	IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line
Services	1  (all times) ​   2  (late nights)
Transit	NYCT Bus: M20 NJT Bus: 120
Structure	Underground
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	4
Other information
Opened	July 1, 1918; 103 years ago (1918-07-01)
Station code	326[2]
Opposite- direction transfer	No
Traffic
2019	1,567,005[4]  10.8%
Rank	285 out of 424[4]
Station succession
Next north	Canal Street: 1  ​2
Next south	Chambers Street: 1  ​2
showLocation Show map of New York City SubwayShow map of New York CityShow map of New YorkShow all
showTrack layout Legend to Canal St to Chambers St
showStreet map Wikimedia | © OpenStreetMap
showStation service legend Symbol Description Stops all times Stops late nights only Stops late nights and weekends

Franklin Street is a local station on the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line of the New York City Subway, located at the intersection of Franklin Street, Varick Street, and West Broadway.^[5] It is served by the 1 train at all times and by the 2 train during late nights.

The station was built by the Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) as part of the Dual Contracts with New York City, and opened on July 1, 1918. The station had its platforms extended in the 1960s, and was renovated in the early 1990s.

History[]

Construction and opening[]

Mosaic name tablet

Mosaic directional tablet to North Moore Street

Mosaic directional tablet to Franklin Street

The Dual Contracts, which were signed on March 19, 1913, were contracts for the construction and/or rehabilitation and operation of rapid transit lines in the City of New York. The contracts were "dual" in that they were signed between the City and two separate private companies (the Interborough Rapid Transit Company and the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company), all working together to make the construction of the Dual Contracts possible. The Dual Contracts promised the construction of several lines in Brooklyn. As part of Contract 4, the IRT agreed to build a branch of the original subway line south down Seventh Avenue, Varick Street, and West Broadway to serve the West Side of Manhattan.^[6][7][8]

The construction of this line, in conjunction with the construction of the Lexington Avenue Line, would change the operations of the IRT system. Instead of having trains go via Broadway, turning onto 42nd Street, before finally turning onto Park Avenue, there would be two trunk lines connected by the 42nd Street Shuttle. The system would be changed from looking like a "Z" system on a map to an "H" system. One trunk would run via the new Lexington Avenue Line down Park Avenue, and the other trunk would run via the new Seventh Avenue Line up Broadway. In order for the line to continue down Varick Street and West Broadway, these streets needed to be widened, and two new streets were built, the Seventh Avenue Extension and the Varick Street Extension.^[9] It was predicted that the subway extension would lead to the growth of the Lower West Side, and to neighborhoods such as Chelsea and Greenwich Village.^[10][11]

Franklin Street opened as the line was extended south to South Ferry from 34th Street–Penn Station on July 1, 1918, and was served by a shuttle.^[12] The new "H" system was implemented on August 1, 1918, joining the two halves of the Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line and sending all West Side trains south from Times Square.^[13] An immediate result of the switch was the need to transfer using the 42nd Street Shuttle in order to retrace the original layout. The completion of the "H" system doubled the capacity of the IRT system.^[10]

Station renovations[]

On August 9, 1964, the New York City Transit Authority (NYCTA) announced the letting of a $7.6 million contract to lengthen platforms at stations on the Broadway—Seventh Avenue Line from Rector Street to 34th Street–Penn Station, including Franklin Street, and stations from Central Park North–110th Street to 145th Street on the Lenox Avenue Line to allow express trains to be lengthened from nine-car trains to ten-car trains, and to lengthen locals from eight-car trains to ten-car trains. With the completion of this project, the NYCTA project to lengthen IRT stations to accommodate ten-car trains would be complete.^[14]

The station was renovated in the early 1990s.^{[citation needed]}

When Aretha Franklin died on August 16, 2018, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority put temporary sticker signs on the walls with the word "Respect" on them. They were only supposed to be up for six months but as of March 2021, they are still on the walls.

Station layout[]

Uptown station entrance kiosk

Staircase to the street

G	Street level	Exit/entrance
P Platform level	Side platform
	Northbound local	← toward 242nd Street (Canal Street) ← toward 241st Street late nights (Canal Street)
	Northbound express	← do not stop here
	Southbound express	→ do not stop here →
	Southbound local	→ toward South Ferry (Chambers Street) → → toward Flatbush Avenue late nights (Chambers Street) →
	Side platform

The station has two side platforms and four tracks with no crossover or crossunder. The center tracks are used by the 2 and 3 express trains during daytime hours.^[15]

There are "store window"-style art displays on the southbound platform and a faux-newsstand on the northbound side.^[15] Although the station's original wall tiling was replaced during renovations, its mosaic bands were kept; there are "Franklin Street" large mosaics, small "F" mosaics and directional mosaics "To Franklin St." and "To North Moore St."^[15] The floor tiles are rose and tan colored with light and dark splotches.^[15]

Exits[]

The full-time entrance is on the uptown side, on a traffic island where Varick Street and West Broadway meet.^[16] There is a kiosk reminiscent of the original IRT kiosks at 72nd Street and Bowling Green, but it was added during the station's renovation during the mid-1990s.^[15] There are two downtown street stair entrances on either western corner of Varick and Franklin Streets, but the booth is not staffed at all times. There are part-time high-exit turnstiles one block north, at both northern corners of Varick and North Moore Streets, on both the uptown and downtown sides.^[16]

References[]

External links[]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Franklin Street (IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line).

• nycsubway.org – IRT West Side Line: Franklin Street
• nycsubway.org – Alleyways, Tribeca Artwork by Susan Leopold (2005)
• Station Reporter – 1 Train
• Franklin Street entrance from Google Maps Street View
• Varick Street and West Broadway entrance from Google Maps Street View
• Moore Street exit only stairs from Google Maps Street View
• Platforms from Google Maps Street View