N (New York City Subway Service) - Service History

Service History

The route that is now the N was originally BMT service 4, known as the Sea Beach Line or Sea Beach Express.

• On June 22, 1915, the current BMT Sea Beach Line opened, replacing a street level "el" that branched off of the Fifth Avenue El with the former BMT West End Line. Originally, it used the south tracks of the Manhattan Bridge, which at that time connected to the BMT Nassau Street Line.
• Beginning September 14, 1917, trains ran from 14th Street – Union Square to Coney Island – Stillwell Avenue, using the BMT Broadway Line and newly opened northern tracks of the Manhattan Bridge to enter Brooklyn.

• On January 15, 1918, service was extended to Times Square – 42nd Street.
• On May 2, 1957, service was extended north via the express tracks to 57th Street – Seventh Avenue.
• In 1959, trains began stopping at DeKalb Avenue during midday hours. Previously, they bypassed DeKalb Avenue at all times except late nights.
• Beginning January 1, 1961, trains bypassed DeKalb Avenue during rush hours only. In addition, on weekday evenings, late nights, and all day Sundays, they ran local on the BMT Fourth Avneue Line.
• The NX designation was used for a short-lived rush hour peak-direction "super-express" service along the express tracks of the Sea Beach Line, beginning at Brighton Beach, running through Coney Island, and ending at 57th Street / Seventh Avenue. This service was only provided from November 27, 1967 (when the Chrystie Street Connection opened) to April 12, 1968 due to low ridership. Starting on Monday, April 15, 1968, the five NX trips instead ran as N trips.
• On August 28, 1976, N service was extended north over the BMT 60th Street Tunnel Connection to Forest Hills – 71st Avenue to replace the discontinued EE. Some local N trains went from Whitehall Street – South Ferry in Lower Manhattan to 71st Avenue, which had been the E route; others stayed with the Manhattan Bridge and Brooklyn route and were simply extended to 71st Avenue.
• On April 26, 1986, the north tracks on the Manhattan Bridge were closed for rehabilitation, and services that had used the north tracks were moved to the south side. This caused N trains to be sent via Lower Manhattan and the Montague Street Tunnel, running fully local, though evening, night and weekend trains continued to use the bridge and express tracks, terminating at 57th Street.
• On May 24, 1987, the N swapped northern terminals with the R. The N was switched to Astoria – Ditmars Boulevard, while the R went to 71st Avenue. This was done to give the R direct access to Jamaica Yard; previously, the R did not have direct access to either Jamaica Yard or Coney Island Yard, while the N had direct access to both.
• When the north side of the Manhattan Bridge reopened and the south side was closed in December 1988, the N began running local in Brooklyn at all times with the M, which was rerouted from the BMT Brighton Line to the BMT West End Line, replacing it as the weekday express.
• In fall 1990, full service on Manhattan Bridge was briefly restored. Express service on Broadway ran all times except nights (all service stopped at 49th Street due to heavy usage). This very short service was halted by the discovery of a cracked beam on the bridge.
• In 1994, the N switched back to express in Brooklyn only, from Atlantic Avenue – Pacific Street to 59th Street, with the M running local instead on weekdays.
• From 1993 to 1995, the southern terminal of the N was 86th Street due to rehabilitation work at Coney Island – Stillwell Avenue. On November 3, 2001, it was cut back again for the final phase of the terminal's reconstruction project.
• From April to November 1995, the north side of the Manhattan Bridge was closed during midday and weekends. To allow B trains to lay up on the express tracks at Pacific Street, midday N express service in Brooklyn was discontinued for the duration of the closure.
• After the September 11, 2001 attacks, N service was suspended and replaced by the W in Manhattan and Queens and the M in Brooklyn. On October 28, service was restored, but Cortlandt Street remained closed until September 15, 2002.
• On September 8, 2002, the N service became a shuttle to Pacific Street on nights and weekends, running express on the BMT Fourth Avenue Line, as the W was extended since it was the only line serving Stillwell Avenue.
• On February 22, 2004, the Manhattan Bridge work was finally completed. Since then, the N has been restored to the bridge (via Fourth Avenue express and DeKalb Avenue bypass). Weekdays, N trains ran express between 34th Street in Manhattan and 59th Street in Brooklyn, and local elsewhere. On weekends, it makes local stops in Manhattan, but express in Brooklyn. During late nights, it runs local along its entire route via the Montague Street Tunnel, replacing the R train.
• On May 29, 2005, the new Stillwell Avenue terminal was completed, and N service there was restored.
• On June 28, 2010, the N began running local in Manhattan north of Canal Street at all times in place of the W, which was discontinued due to budget problems, effectively adopting the weekend service pattern.