2 (New York City Subway service)

Service history

Early history

The first section of what became the current 2 entered service on November 26, 1904, from the temporary 180th Street–Bronx Park terminal via the West Farms El to 149th Street–3rd Avenue. On July 10, 1905, the connection between the IRT Lenox Avenue Line and IRT White Plains Road Line (which was previously served by the Third Avenue El) opened, allowing subway service from Manhattan to the Bronx.

On January 9, 1908, the Joralemon Street Tunnel opened, connecting the current IRT Lexington Avenue Line to Brooklyn. At this time, trains ran from East 180th Street to Borough Hall. On May 1, 1908, trains were extended to Nevins Street and Atlantic Avenue.

The IRT White Plains Road Line was extended to 219th Street on March 3, 1917, to 238th Street–Nereid Avenue on March 31, 1917, and to Wakefield–241st Street on December 13, 1920. On August 1, 1918, the entire IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line was completed. On April 15, 1919, the Clark Street Tunnel opened, connecting the line to Brooklyn as well.

Beginning on December 19, 1919, trains ran to South Ferry with some rush hour trains to Atlantic Avenue. In 1923, during rush hours, 2 trains alternated between South Ferry and Utica Avenue. Beginning December 1, 1924, 2 trains that had previously ended at South Ferry were extended to New Lots Avenue.

On January 16, 1928, the New York State Transit Commission announced that it had reached an agreement with the IRT to increase service on its lines by 8,000,000 car miles a year; the greatest increase since 1922. As part of the changes, on January 30, all West Farms trains were extended from Atlantic Avenue to Flatbush Avenue during middays.

As of 1934, 2 trains ran from 180th Street-Bronx Park to Flatbush Avenue weekdays and Saturday during daytime and to South Ferry evenings and Sundays, running express in Manhattan. Late-night service was from 241st St to South Ferry, making all stops. There were occasional lay-up/put-ins from New Lots Avenue, and four weekday evening trains turned at Atlantic Avenue. On September 5, 1937, some evening rush hour trains started running to Flatbush Avenue.

As of July 1, 1938, weekday and Saturday evening service was extended to Flatbush Avenue from South Ferry.

The IRT routes were given numbered designations with the introduction of "R-type" rolling stock, which contained rollsign curtains with numbered designations for each service. The first such fleet, the R12, was put into service in 1948. The Seventh Avenue–Bronx route became known as the 2.

Sunday service was extended to Flatbush Avenue on March 5, 1950.

Beginning on December 26, 1950, alternate weekday rush trains were extended to 241st Street in the peak direction, but PM rush service to 241st Street was discontinued on June 26, 1952. Beginning on August 4, 1952, the 180th Street–Bronx Park station was closed, with trains rerouted to East 180th Street.

Under the New York City Transit Authority

Morning rush hour service to 241st Street was cut back to Gun Hill Road on October 2, 1953. On March 19, 1954, weekend service was rerouted to New Lots Avenue at all times except late nights. On May 4, 1957, a track connection to the IRT Dyre Avenue Line was completed and daytime 2 trains were rerouted to Dyre Avenue. Evening service remained a shuttle between Dyre Avenue and East 180th Street, and morning rush service from Gun Hill Road was discontinued.

On December 20, 1957, weekday trains were rerouted to New Lots Avenue at all times except late nights. On June 26, 1958, late night service began between Dyre Avenue and East 180th Street. Beginning on December 12, 1958, late night service was extended to Flatbush Avenue and the 2 began running express at all times. Beginning February 6, 1959, trains ran between Wakefield–241st Street and Flatbush Avenue at all times except late nights, when they ran between East 180th Street and New Lots Avenue.

Beginning on April 8, 1960, daytime service was rerouted from Dyre Avenue to 241st Street and service in Brooklyn was rerouted from New Lots Avenue to Flatbush Avenue. At the same time, late night service was rerouted from Flatbush Avenue to New Lots Avenue.

Beginning on April 18, 1965, evening service was extended from East 180th Street to 241st Street and daytime service was rerouted from Flatbush Avenue to New Lots Avenue.

On July 10, 1983, the 2 and trains swapped terminals in Brooklyn, with 2 trains terminating at Flatbush Avenue and 3 trains terminating at New Lots Avenue. These changes were made to reduce non-revenue subway car mileage, to provide a dedicated fleet for each service, and to provide an easily accessible inspection yard for each service. The change allowed the 2 to be dedicated to 239th Street Yard and allowed the 3 to be assigned to Livonia Yard. With the rerouting of 3 trains, train lengths along the New Lots Line were reduced from 10 cars to 9 cars, within acceptable crowding levels, and train lengths along the Nostrand Avenue Line were increased from 9 to 10 cars, reducing crowding.

In Spring 1995, rush hour 5 service to 241st Street was cut back to Nereid Avenue. 241st Street had insufficient capacity to terminate all 2 and 5 trains during rush hours, requiring some 2 and 5 trips to terminate at Nereid Avenue. To ease passenger confusion regarding which trips terminate where and to provide more reliable service, it was decided to have all 2 trips terminate at 241st Street and have all 5 trains terminate at Nereid Avenue. This recommendation was made in response to comments made as part of the Northeast Bronx Comprehensive Study.*

Recent history

From March 2 to October 12, 1998, the IRT Lenox Avenue Line was rehabilitated. On weekdays, 2 trains ran via the IRT Lexington Avenue Line between 149th Street–Grand Concourse and Nevins Street uptown from 5:00 a.m. to midnight and downtown from midnight to 5:00 a.m. On October 3, 1999, the 2 began running local in Manhattan during late night hours so local stations would receive service every ten minutes.*

On December 9, 1999, New York City Transit released a proposal revising 2 and 5 service in the Bronx to eliminate a merge north of the East 180th Street station, increasing capacity and reducing delays, to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Board. Dyre Avenue-bound 5 trains would start running local along the White Plains Road Line while 2 trains would run express. Nereid Avenue-bound 5 trains would continue to run express in the Bronx. As part of the change, the frequency of service at White Plains Road Line local stations would decrease from 12 trains per hour to 7 trains per hour. Market research showed that riders at these stations preferred Lexington Avenue Line service. In addition, riders on the line north of East 180th Street would gain express service. This change would have been revenue neutral.*

Shortly after the proposal was more widely announced in April 2000, Assemblyman Jeffrey Klein collected 2,000 signatures for a petition opposing the change. The MTA delayed the change's planned implementation by a month after receiving the petition. Opponents of the change also argued that it would have increased subway crowding on the 2 train, especially at the 72nd Street station on the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line. The change was also opposed by State Senator Eric Schneiderman, Assemblyman Scott Stringer, and Public Advocate Mark Green. New York City Transit expected the passenger volume of downtown 2 trains in the morning rush hour to increase from 92% of capacity to 108% at 72nd Street. After Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver put pressure on the MTA, the change was pushed back for an additional three months in May 2000. On September 24, 2000, a spokesperson for New York City Transit said that MTA Chairman E. Virgil Conway told planners to drop the change until service on the 5 was increased with the arrival of new R142 subway cars by early 2002; the swap proposal was canceled the next day.

After the September 11, 2001 attacks, 2 service was initially split in two sections, with the northern section operating between 241st Street and 96th Street and the southern section operating between Atlantic Avenue and Flatbush Avenue, but service between 96th and 34th Streets got restored on the evening of September 12. On September 17, 2 service was restored along the full route and made all stops in Manhattan, with trains skipping Franklin Street, Chambers Street and Park Place; Franklin Street reopened on September 18, Chambers Street reopened on September 26, and Park Place reopened on October 28. Normal 2 service was restored on September 15, 2002.

Due to repairs to Hurricane Sandy-related damage on the Clark Street Tube, on weekends between June 17, 2017, and June 24, 2018, the 2 ran between Eastchester–Dyre Avenue in the Bronx and South Ferry in Lower Manhattan, with 5 trains replacing it in Brooklyn and the Bronx north of East 180th Street. Trains ran express only between 96th Street and Times Square–42nd Street during the daytime.

Route

Signage history

File:R12 IRT 2.gif|Pre-1967 bullet used on the R12s to R36s File:2 (1967-1979 New York City Subway bullet).svg|1967–1979 bullet File:NYCS-bull-trans-2.svg|Bullet used since 1979

Service pattern

The following table shows the lines used by the 2, with shaded boxes indicating the route at the specified times:

Stations

For a more detailed station listing, see the articles on the lines listed above.

Notes

References

References

1. {{NYCS const. timetable. 2
2. (August 8, 2021). "7:40 AM – 9:35 AM New Lots Av – OpenMobilityData".
3. (August 8, 2021). "3:42 PM – 5:30 PM Wakefield-241 St – OpenMobilityData".
4. (August 8, 2021). "7:21 AM – 9:07 AM Wakefield-241 St – OpenMobilityData".
5. (November 27, 1904). "Discuss Subway Signs in 18th St. Station – Engineer Parsons and Mr. Hedley Inspect Advertising Scheme – Bronx Viaduct Works Well – Delays There Only Those of Newness – Lenox Avenue Service Makes Fuss Below Ninety-Sixth Street". New York Times.
6. Kahn, Alan Paul. (January 1, 1973). "Tracks of New York /". Electric Railroaders' Association.
7. (July 10, 1905). "Subway Trains Running from Bronx to Battery – West Farms and South Ferry Stations Open at Midnight – Start Without a Hitch – Bowling Green Station Also Opened – Lenox Avenue Locals Take City Hall Loop Hereafter". New York Times.
8. (January 7, 1908). "Brooklyn Tunnel to Be Opened for Operation to Borough Hall Thursday". The Wall Street Journal.
9. (April 30, 1908). "Bronx to Montauk; One Change of Cars — This Trip Made Possible by the Opening of Brooklyn Subway Extension Friday — Official Opening Trip — And the Public Can Go Through to Long Island Railroad Station To-Night After Midnight". The New York Times.
10. (April 30, 1908). "Trains To Atlantic Ave.: New Subway Schedule For Extension Announced.". New-York Tribune.
11. (December 12, 2013). "Annual Report. 1916-1917.". Interborough Rapid Transit Company.
12. (March 4, 1917). "White Plains Road Extension of Subway Opened to the Public – New Branch, Which Runs from 177th to 219th Street, Gives the Williamsbridge and Wakefield Sections of the East Bronx Rapid Transit for the First Time". The New York Times.
13. (April 1, 1917). "New Subway Line Opened: White Plains Extension Is Now Running to 238th Street". New York Times.
14. "Line by Line History: White Plains-7th Av. Express".
15. (December 12, 1920). "Subway Line Extended: White Plains Avenue Branch Opens to 241st Street Tomorrow". New York Times.
16. Whitney, Travis (Public Service Commissioner). (March 10, 1918). "The Seventh and Lexington Avenue Subways Will Revive Dormant Sections – Change in Operation That Will Transform Original Four-Tracked Subway Into Two Four-Tracked Systems and Double Present Capacity of the Interborough".
17. (April 13, 1919). "New Subway Service Between Brooklyn and Manhattan Boroughs". The New York Times.
18. (January 16, 1928). "IRT Adds More Cars And Extends Lines: Delays at Atlantic Ave. Reduced—South Ferry Trains to Run to Brooklyn". The Brooklyn Citizen.
19. (September 2010). "IRT Brooklyn Line Opened 90 Years Ago". New York Division, Electric Railroaders' Association.
20. Brown, Nicole. (May 17, 2019). "How did the MTA subway lines get their letter or number? NYCurious".
21. (April 1960). "A Summary of Services on the IRT Division, NYCTA". Electric Railroaders' Association.
22. (July 1983). "New IRT Schedules – Increased Service to Flatbush Avenue". New York Division Bulletin.
23. (February 26, 1983). "Notice of Public Hearing". New York Amsterdam News.
24. Christian, Nichole M.. (March 3, 1998). "Subway Line Repairs Start With Confusion". The New York Times.
25. (October 19, 2002). "About NYC Transit – History".
26. (September 26, 2000). "No. 5 Express Still a Go: Dyre Ave. Line Shift to Local Service Nixed". New York Daily News.
27. Critchell, David. (May 28, 2000). "Neighborhood Report: Bronx Up Close; Our Trip's Long Enough as It Is, Commuters Tell M.T.A.". The New York Times.
28. Kennedy, Randy. (June 17, 2000). "Trouble Down the Line in Rerouting Train". The New York Times.
29. Kappstatter, Bob. (May 30, 2000). "No. 5 Express Run Saved". New York Daily News.
30. Kennedy, Randy. (September 25, 2000). "Plan to Shift No. 5 Train Is Abandoned". The New York Times.
31. (October 2001). "World Trade Center Destroyed". Electric Railroaders' Association.
32. (November 2001). "World Trade Center Destruction-Related Changes". Electric Railroaders' Association.
33. (December 2001). "New IRT And BMT Schedules". Electric Railroaders' Association.
34. (October 2002). "Test Trains in Lower Manhattan". Electric Railroaders' Association.
35. (December 12, 2016). "Transit & Bus Committee Meeting December 2016". [[Metropolitan Transportation Authority]].
36. (June 8, 2017). "Clark St Tunnel Reconstruction Weekend Service Changes". Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
37. {{NYCS const. serviceguide
38. "New York City Subway Severe Winter Weather". MTA.
39. (September 21, 2023). "MTA Announces New Station Elevator Paid in Full by Macy's".