149th Street (IRT Third Avenue Line)

149th Street
Former New York City Subway rapid transit station
The Hub in Bronx at the north end of the former station, 35 years after it closed
Station statistics
Borough	The Bronx
Locale	The Hub
Coordinates
Line	IRT Third Avenue Line
Services	None
System transfers	IRT White Plains Road Line (at Third Avenue – 149th Street)
Structure	Elevated
Platforms	2 island platforms (1887-1955) 1 island platform (1955-1973)
Tracks	3 (1887-1955) 2 (1955-1973)
Other information
Opened	June 16, 1887 (June 16, 1887)
Closed	April 29, 1973 (April 29, 1973)
Station succession
Next north	156th Street
Next south	143rd Street (1887-1955) Terminus (1955-1973)

149th Street was a station on the demolished IRT Third Avenue Line. It was located in "The Hub" in the South Bronx, at the intersection of 149th Street, Third Avenue, Willis Avenue, and Melrose Avenue. Opened as an express station in 1887 and later operating as the line's southern terminus, the station closed in 1973 and was demolished by 1977 due to political pressure in the area.

Station layout

The station was built as an express station, with three tracks and two island platforms; the center express track was completed by 1916. North of the station, a spur track curved from Third Avenue east onto Westchester Avenue (150th Street) to connect with the IRT White Plains Road Line. A signal tower was located in between the mainline and the spur track.

After it became the line's southern terminal in 1955, the center track was removed and the platforms were connected into one large island platform. A diamond crossover switch was installed north of the station to relay terminating trains.

History

File:SOUTH END OF 149TH ST. STATION PLATFORM, GENERAL VIEW IS SOUTHWEST. - Interborough Rapid Transit Company, Third Avenue Elevated Line, Borough of the Bronx, New York, New York HAER NY,3-BRONX,13-4.tif

South end of the station following its closure in 1974.

The station was originally opened on June 16, 1887 by the Suburban Rapid Transit Company. On July 10, 1905, the underground Third Avenue – 149th Street station of the IRT White Plains Road Line (which fed into the Lenox Avenue and West Side subways) was opened, and free transfers were provided between the two stations. In October 1911, the 149th Street Crosstown Trolley Line between Longwood and Harlem opened (the predecessor to the current Bx19 bus), in addition to the Third Avenue trolley line of the Third Avenue and Union Railway system. Between 1913 and 1916 during the Dual Contracts, the center track was added to facilitate express service along the line. Around this time, the name "The Hub of the Bronx" emerged due to the area's status as a major transportation, commercial, and amusement center.

In 1921, a seven-car train derailed crossing the spur track north of the station, destroying a control tower and causing a fire on the trestle. Thirty passengers were injured, and the second of the wooden elevated cars was damaged beyond repair.

On May 12, 1955, the Third Avenue elevated was closed south of 149th Street, ending service on the line between the Bronx and Manhattan. 149th Street station became the southern terminus of the Third Avenue Line. In the 1960s under the Program For Action, the city planned to close the remainder of the line, which fell into disrepair and was credited for blight in the area. The station closed on April 29, 1973 and was demolished in 1977.

Current status

From 1973 to 2013, the Bx55 limited bus replaced elevated service between The Hub and Gun Hill Road. Free transfers, first via a paper transfer and later by MetroCard, were given between the bus and the 149th Street subway station. In 2013, the Bx55 was eliminated, replaced by the Bx15 limited bus which terminates at Fordham Plaza. Service to Gun Hill Road is provided by the parallel Bx41 Select Bus Service route along Webster Avenue.

External links

Media related to at Wikimedia Commons