Bleecker Street / Broadway – Lafayette Street (New York City Subway)

Bleecker Street / Broadway – Lafayette Street
New York City Subway rapid transit station complex
300px One of the two street stairs along the south side of East Houston Street between Broadway and Crosby Street
Station statistics
Address	Bleecker Street & Lafayette Street New York, NY 10012
Borough	Manhattan
Locale	NoHo, SoHo
Coordinates
Division	A (IRT), B (IND)
Line	IND Sixth Avenue Line       IRT Lexington Avenue Line
Services	4  (late nights)       6  (all times) <6> (weekdays until 8:45 p.m., peak direction)       B  (weekdays until 11:00 p.m.)       D  (all times)       F  (all times)       M  (weekdays until 11:00 p.m.)
Transit connections	NYCT Bus: M5, M21, X1, X7, X9, X10, X12, X17
Other information
Opened	May 19, 1957 (1957-05-19) (IND – southbound IRT) September 25, 2012 (2012-09-25) (IND – northbound IRT)
Accessible
Traffic
Passengers (2015)	12,666,868 (station complex)  1.9%
Rank	25
Station service legend Symbol Description Stops all times Stops late nights only Stops rush hours in the peak direction only Stops weekdays only

Bleecker Street / Broadway – Lafayette Street is a New York City Subway station complex in the NoHo district of Manhattan on the IRT Lexington Avenue Line and the IND Sixth Avenue Line. It is served by the:

• 6, D, and F trains at all times
• B and M trains on weekdays
• <6> train during rush hours in the peak direction
• 4 train during late nights

The complex comprises two stations, Bleecker Street (IRT) and Broadway – Lafayette Street (IND). The transfer between the downtown IRT platform and the IND platform has been within fare control since May 19, 1957, and the corresponding free transfer from the uptown IRT platform to the rest of the station opened on September 25, 2012.

IRT Lexington Avenue Line platforms

Bleecker Street
New York City Subway rapid transit station
Platform for the uptown local 6 train
Station statistics
Division	A (IRT)
Line	IRT Lexington Avenue Line
Services	4  (late nights)       6  (all times) <6> (weekdays until 8:45 p.m., peak direction)
Structure	Underground
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	4
Other information
Opened	October 27, 1904 (1904-10-27)
Accessible
Station succession
Next north	Astor Place: 4  6  <6>
Next south	Spring Street: 4  6  <6>
Next north	Grand Central – 42nd Street: 4  6  <6>
Next south	Canal Street: 4  6  <6>
Station service legend Symbol Description Stops all times Stops late nights only Stops rush hours in the peak direction only
Bleecker Street Subway Station (IRT)
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
MPS	New York City Subway System MPS
NRHP Reference #	04001012
Added to NRHP	September 17, 2004

Bleecker Street on the IRT Lexington Avenue Line is a standard local station with four tracks and two side platforms.

This station was opened on October 27, 1904, as part of the original subway. Fare control is currently at platform level, with a crossunder via the IND mezzanine. It has two side platforms which were originally 5-cars long. In the 1950s, the southbound platform was extended to the south and the northbound platform was extended to the north for ten car trains. After the 2012 renovation, the northbound platform was extended to the south, and the 1950s northern extension of that platform was closed (but can still be seen upon leaving the station on a train).

File:Bleecker Street IRT 1905.jpg

The station used to have skylights to let in natural light (1905)

The station features two styles of "Bleecker Street" station identifiers made by the Grueby Faience Company in 1904. The large "Bleecker Street" plaques were assembled from 27 pieces of faience ceramic. They depict poppies. The smaller blue "B" cartouches show tulips, probably a reminder of the Dutch origins of the city. Later Vickers' mosaic tablets were installed when the station was extended, and five different colors were used for the mosaics. These mosaics were removed in the 2012 renovation of the station, and replicas of the "B" cartouches were installed throughout the station.

A new MTA's Arts for Transit project was created in 2012, called Hive, by Leo Villareal. It is located at the newest section of the uptown platform in the mezzanine providing the transfer to the IND station. This new art complements the first work—Signal by Mel Chin, which was added to the station complex in 1997.

Gallery

• Bleecker Street IRT 001.JPG

  Faience name tablet, Heins & LaFarge / Grueby Faience Company, from 1904

• Bleecker Street IRT 002.JPG

  Original cartouche

• Bleecker Street IRT 004.jpg

  Pre-renovation Mosaic station tablets by Vickers

• 

  Southbound stairway at street

IND Sixth Avenue Line platforms

Broadway – Lafayette Street
New York City Subway rapid transit station
300px
Station statistics
Division	B (IND)
Line	IND Sixth Avenue Line
Services	B  (weekdays until 11:00 p.m.)       D  (all times)       F  (all times)       M  (weekdays until 11:00 p.m.)
Structure	Underground
Platforms	2 island platforms cross-platform interchange
Tracks	4
Other information
Opened	January 1, 1936 (1936-01-01)
Accessible
Station succession
Next north	West Fourth Street – Washington Square: B  D  F  M
Next south	Second Avenue (local): F  Grand Street (express): B  D  Essex Street (local via Chyrstie St.): M
Next north	West Fourth Street – Washington Square: B  D  F  M
Next south	Jay Street – MetroTech (local): F  DeKalb Avenue (express via Chrystie St.): B  D  Atlantic Avenue – Barclays Center (express via Chrystie St.): D  Marcy Avenue (local via Chrystie St.): M
Station service legend Symbol Description Stops all times Stops weekdays only

Broadway – Lafayette Street on the IND Sixth Avenue Line is an express station, located on East Houston Street between Broadway and Lafayette Street in Manhattan. This section of the station complex, opened on January 1, 1936, has four tracks and two island platforms. B and D trains stop at the inner express tracks while F and M trains stop at the outer local tracks. Both outer track walls have a blue trim line on a black border and small "BROADWAY" signs beneath in white lettering on a black border. Large blue columns run along either side of both platforms at regular intervals with alternating ones having the standard black station name plate and white lettering.

File:FASTRACK on the F (12839418164).jpg

FASTRACK construction work at the station

The center of both platforms have three staircases that go up to a mezzanine, where wide staircases on either side go up to the station's three fare control areas. The full-time side is at the west end (railroad north). It has a turnstile bank, token booth, and two staircases going up to either eastern corners of Broadway and East Houston Street. The southeastern one is built inside an alcove of an Adidas Sport Performance Center. The station's other fare control areas lead to exits on either side of East Houston Street. In one fare control area, a set of full height turnstiles lead to two separate entrances leading to East Houston Street between Lafayette and Crosby Streets, on the south side. In the other fare control area, another set of full height turnstiles leads to another entrance on Lafayette Street and Houston Street, on the north side. A passageway connects the Lafayette Street fare control areas with the fare control areas at the Broadway end of the station without going through the lower level mezzanine.

The 1998 artwork here is called Signal by Mel Chin. It features stainless steel and glass sculptures with lights on the mezzanine walls and ceramic tiles on the platform walls.

West (railroad north) of this station, there are crossovers between the two northbound tracks and a single one between the express tracks. The line turns north along Sixth Avenue and goes through a complex set of switches and crossovers with the IND Eighth Avenue Line before arriving at West Fourth Street – Washington Square.

East (railroad south) of this station, there used to be a crossover between the two southbound tracks before they were reconfigured in 1967 by the Chrystie Street Connection. The express tracks turn south down Chrystie Street and B and D trains stop at Grand Street before crossing the Manhattan Bridge into Brooklyn. The local tracks continue east and F trains stop at Second Avenue. A connection from the local tracks, which is used by M trains, leads to Essex Street on the BMT Nassau Street Line and continues onto the Williamsburg Bridge into Brooklyn.

Station layout

G	Street Level	Exit/Entrance (Elevator at NW corner of Lafayette and Houston Streets)
B1	East Mezzanine	Fare control, exits to east side of Lafayette Street
	Side platform, doors will open on the right
	Northbound local	← toward Pelham Bay Park ( toward Parkchester PM rush hours and middays) (Astor Place) ← toward Woodlawn late nights (Astor Place)
	Northbound express	← do not stop here
	Southbound express	→ do not stop here →
	Southbound local	→ toward Brooklyn Bridge – City Hall ( toward New Lots Avenue late nights) (Spring Street) →
	Side platform, doors will open on the right
	West Mezzanine	Fare control, station agent, exits to west side of Lafayette Street and to Houston Street
B2	Mezzanine	Transfer between platforms
B3	Northbound local	← toward Jamaica – 179th Street (West Fourth Street – Washington Square) ← toward Forest Hills – 71st Avenue (West Fourth Street – Washington Square)
	Island platform, doors will open on the left, right
	Northbound express	← toward Bedford Park Boulevard rush hours, 145th Street middays and evenings (West Fourth Street – Washington Square) ← toward Norwood – 205th Street (West Fourth Street – Washington Square)
	Southbound express	→ toward Brighton Beach weekdays (Grand Street) → → toward Coney Island – Stillwell Avenue via West End (Grand Street) →
	Island platform, doors will open on the left, right
	Southbound local	→ toward Coney Island – Stillwell Avenue via Culver (Second Avenue) → → toward Middle Village – Metropolitan Avenue (Essex Street) →

The new transfer

This station had a unique feature in the system in that a transfer to the Lexington Avenue line from the IND platform was only possible in the southbound direction until late September 2012. A free transfer passageway from the downtown IRT platform to the IND platform opened on May 19, 1957 after the IRT station's platforms were lengthened. This "one-way" transfer existed for about 50 years, as the connection from the IND platforms to the downtown IRT platform was purely coincidental, and was not originally intended when first built. A large offset of that station's platforms could not permit the construction of a full transfer to both platforms of the Bleecker Street station, when the free transfer was created in 1957. As a result, a free transfer was not available to the northbound platform and access to it required a one-block walk north to Bleecker Street and payment of an additional fare except to Unlimited-Ride MetroCard holders.

A transfer between the IND platforms and the uptown IRT platform had been planned since 1989. However, it was not built until the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's 2005–2009 capital program allocated $50 million to renovate the complex, which included installation of ADA-accessible elevators and a free transfer to the uptown IRT platform. Prior to the reconstruction, the Broadway – Lafayette Street station only connected only to the southbound platform of Bleecker Street at the extreme south end. On March 26, 2012, the uptown platform was shifted 300 feet south to the newly constructed extension and the 1950s northern extension closed at the same time. On the same day, the MTA had stated that the transfer project to the uptown Bleecker Street platform would be completed at the end of June.

The uptown transfer did not fully open until September 25, 2012. The overall cost of the rehabilitation project had climbed to US$135 million. On the same day, an escalator connected the uptown platform of the Broadway-Lafayette Street station with a new transfer mezzanine that connected riders to the uptown platform of the Bleecker Street station. In addition, elevators were installed to connect the various platforms of the IND station, and those of Bleecker Street. The transfer boasted new elevators and escalators to the IND station below.

Entrances and exits

The station has a total of 12 staircase entrances and 1 elevator entrance.

Exit location	Exit type	Number of exits	Platforms primarily served
NE corner of Broadway and Houston Street	Staircase	1	Sixth Avenue Line
SE corner of Broadway and Houston Street	Staircase	1	Sixth Avenue Line
NW corner of Houston Street and Lafayette Street	Staircase	1	Sixth Avenue Line Lexington Avenue Line southbound
	Elevator	1
SW corner of Houston Street and Lafayette Street	Staircase	2	Sixth Avenue Line Lexington Avenue Line southbound
NE corner of Houston Street and Lafayette Street	Staircase	1	Sixth Avenue Line Lexington Avenue Line northbound
SE corner of Houston Street and Lafayette Street	Staircase	1	Sixth Avenue Line Lexington Avenue Line northbound
NW corner of Bleecker Street and Lafayette Street	Staircase	1	Lexington Avenue Line southbound
SW corner of Bleecker Street and Lafayette Street	Staircase	1	Lexington Avenue Line southbound
NE corner of Bleecker Street and Lafayette Street	Staircase	1	Lexington Avenue Line northbound
SE corner of Bleecker Street and Lafayette Street	Staircase	1	Lexington Avenue Line northbound
Corner of Bleecker Street and Mulberry Street	Staircase	1	Lexington Avenue Line northbound

Gallery

• Bleecker Street Station new entrance.jpg

  An entrance to the northbound IRT platform in 2010, before the opening of the free transfer

• Bleecker St. transfer opening 2012-09-26 3.jpg

  The same entrance after the opening of the free transfer

• 

  The Hive artwork by Leo Villareal

• Bleecker St. transfer opening 2012-09-26 6.jpg

  The new transfer to the northbound IRT platform; the IND platforms are below

External links

External video
Bleecker St Station Expansion, Metropolitan Transportation Authority; February 5, 2010; 1:26 YouTube video clip (construction and rendering phase of the new transfer project between this station and the uptown Bleecker Street platform)
Broadway/Lafayette-Bleecker St Transfer, Metropolitan Transportation Authority; September 28, 2012; 4:04 YouTube video clip (completed project)

• nycsubway.org—IRT East Side Line: Bleecker Street
• nycsubway.org—IND 6th Avenue: Broadway/Lafayette
• nycsubway.org — Signal Artwork by Mel Chin (1998)
• Station Reporter — 4 Train
• Station Reporter — 6 Train
• Station Reporter — B Train
• Station Reporter — D Train
• Station Reporter — F Train
• Station Reporter — M Train
• Forgotten NY — Original 28 - NYC's First 28 Subway Stations
• MTA's Arts For Transit — Hive at Bleecker Street/Lafayette Street
• MTA's Arts For Transit — Signal at Bleecker Street/Lafayette Street
• MTA's Arts For Transit — Broadway – Lafayette Street/Bleecker Street
• Bleecker Street entrance from Google Maps Street View
• Broadway entrance from Google Maps Street View
• Lafayette Street entrance from Google Maps Street View
• Mulberry Street entrance from Google Maps Street View
• IRT platforms and transfer from Google Maps Street View
• IND platforms from Google Maps Street View