Divisions
The BMT's predecessor BRT organized the rapid transit lines into two divisions, the Eastern Division and the Southern Division. When BMT service began on the Corona and Astoria Lines in 1923, a Queens Division was added. When the dual-operated Queens lines were divided between the BMT and IRT in 1949, the Queens Division was dissolved.
All the lines running to southern Brooklyn, including the Brighton–Franklin Line plus the Broadway Line as far as Queensboro Plaza and the BMT Nassau Street Line as far as Chambers Street constitute the Southern Division. All the rest of the system are the Eastern Division except the Astoria and Flushing Lines, which were the Queens Division. The Astoria Line has been part of the Southern Division since 1949, and the Flushing is no longer a BMT Line.
The divisions maintained separate car fleets and maintenance bases, to the extent that some types of cars were assigned only to one division or the other, and common equipment, such as the BMT Standards, were nevertheless divided by car number between the divisions.
| Equipment | Introduced | Code | Division | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gate cars | to 1910 | BU | All | Blocks of cars assigned to all three |
| Standards | 1915-24 | AB | East / South | Blocks of car assigned to Eastern and Southern |
| C-types | 1923 | C | Eastern | Converted from gate cars |
| Triplex | 1925-27 | D | Southern | |
| Multi-Section | 1936 | MS | Eastern | |
| World's Fair | 1939 | Q | Queens | Converted from gate cars |
| R16 | 1953 | R16 | Eastern | Under NYCTA |
| R27/30 | 1960-61 | R27/R30 | Southern | Under NYCTA |
| Brightliners | 1964-65 | R32 | Southern | Under NYCTA |
The distinction between Eastern and Southern BMT Divisions continues to date, partly for operational and maintenance reasons, and partly because the Eastern Division is limited to the shorter 60-foot cars. When the Chrystie Street Connection joined the IND and BMT operationally in 1967, it did not change the Division boundaries, but it did break the strict assignment of types of car to one division of another.
Prior to Chrystie Street, operation of a service on both divisions was exceedingly rare, until the QJ and RJ services were introduced in 1967. There were some instances of joint trackage, mainly on the Nassau Street Line and approaching Brooklyn Bridge. Currently, only the M service operates on both divisions, during rush hours.
When the BMT introduced line numbers in 1924, it divided them by division: 1 to 4, the Southern Division subway services, 5, 6 and 7, the Southern Division elevated services, 8 and 9 of the Queens Division. 10 to 16, the Eastern Division services.
In 1940, with City ownership, the Divisions were officially restyled as "Sections" to avoid having Divisions of Divisions: i.e., "BMT Division, Eastern Section" but they are usually still referred to as "Divisions" to the present.
Read more about this topic: Rapid Transit Operations Of The BRT And BMT
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