Fourth Avenue / Ninth Street (New York City Subway) - IND Culver Line Platforms

IND Culver Line Platforms

Fourth Avenue, opened on October 7, 1933, is a local station on the IND Culver Line that has four tracks and two side platforms. The center express tracks are not used in regular service.

Both platforms have tan brick windscreens and column-less cantilevered windscreens along their entire lengths except for a small portion of the west (railroad north) end. The station has a crew quarters structure over both platforms which is constructed of brick with evidence of covered windows.

This station's fare control area is at street level underneath the platforms and tracks and built within the viaduct's concrete structure. Two staircases from each platform near their east end go down to a balcony (where mosaics reading "MEN" and "WOMEN" for two now-closed restrooms are visible) before three staircases go down to the turnstile bank. Outside fare control, there is a token booth and two sets of entry/exit doors, one to the west side of Fourth Avenue directly underneath the viaduct and the other to the north side of Tenth Street. Both entrances have their original lit-up IND "SUBWAY" sign while mosaic direction tiles reading "To Coney Island" and "To Manhattan" are in the mezzanine.

The fare control area has a single staircase going down to the extreme south end of the Bay Ridge-bound platform of Ninth Street on the BMT Fourth Avenue Line. The extreme east (railroad south) ends of each platform have a single staircase going down to a now-abandoned entry/exit that led to the east side of Fourth Avenue underneath the viaduct at ground level. Another staircase goes down to the Manhattan-bound platform of Ninth Street. The staircase and mezzanine areas have tile accents of green.

West of this station is a stub-end reversing spur entered only from this station. It remains level between the two express tracks while the other tracks ramp up towards Smith–Ninth Streets. East of this station, the line enters a tunnel towards Seventh Avenue. That station is underground, but at a higher altitude than this elevated station due to the steep slope of the land (hence the neighborhood name of Park Slope).

In 2007, the MTA announced a three-year renovation project of the elevated Culver Viaduct. The work area covers from south of Carroll Street to north of Ditmas Avenue. Reconstruction began in 2008 and ended in April 2012. Along with the viaduct project, the MTA re-opened the east station house to the station, after closing that entrance area for over 40 years.