207th Street station

207th Street is a local station on the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line of the New York City Subway. Located at the intersection of 207th Street and 10th Avenue in the Manhattan neighborhood of Inwood, it is served by the 1 train at all times.

207 Street
New York City Subway station (rapid transit)
Station platforms
Station statistics
Address	West 207th Street & 10th Avenue New York, NY 10034
Borough	Manhattan
Locale	Inwood
Coordinates	40.8644°N 73.9189°W
Division	A (IRT)
Line	IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line
Services	1  (all times)
Transit	NYCT Bus: M100, Bx12, Bx12 SBS
Structure	Elevated
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	3 (2 in regular service)
Other information
Opened	April 1, 1907
Station code	298[1]
Opposite- direction transfer	No
Traffic
2019	1,853,146[2]  8.3%
Rank	251 out of 424[2]
Station succession
Next north	215th Street: 1
Next south	Dyckman Street: 1
Location
Track layout to 215 St to 207 St Yard to Dyckman St
Street map
Station service legend Symbol Description Stops all times

History

207th Street station under construction in 1906, before development in the surrounding area took shape

This station was completed in 1906, but since it was in a sparsely populated location, it did not open until April 1, 1907.[3]

In 1909, to address overcrowding, the New York Public Service Commission proposed lengthening platforms at stations along the original IRT subway.[4]^:168 On January 18, 1910, a modification was made to Contracts 1 and 2 to lengthen station platforms to accommodate ten-car express and six-car local trains. In addition to $1.5 million (equivalent to $41.2 million in 2019) spent on platform lengthening, $500,000 (equivalent to $13,719,643 in 2019) was spent on building additional entrances and exits. It was anticipated that these improvements would increase capacity by 25 percent.[5]^:15 The northbound platform at the 207th Street station was extended 100 feet (30 m) to the north.[5]^:114 The southbound platform was not lengthened.[5]^:106 On January 24, 1911, ten-car express trains began running on the West Side Line.[4]^:168[6]

A subway crash occurred at the station in 1916, in which one train telescoped into another train. One motorman was badly injured, and twelve of the more than 200 passengers on the trains suffered minor injuries.[7]

Between 1946 and 1948, platforms on the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line from 103rd Street to 238th Street, including at 207th Street, were lengthened to 514 feet (157 m) to allow full ten-car express trains to stop. Previously, the station could accommodate six-car local trains, but ten-car trains could not open some of their doors.[8] A contract for the platform extensions at 207th Street and five other stations on the line was awarded to the Rao Electrical Equipment Company and the Kaplan Electric Company in June 1946.[9] The platform extensions at these stations were opened in stages. On July 9, 1948, the platform extensions at stations between 207th Street and 238th Street were opened for use at the cost of $423,000.[8][10] At the same time, the IRT routes were given numbered designations with the introduction of "R-type" rolling stock. The first such fleet, the R12, was put into service in 1948.[11] The Broadway/West Side route to 242nd Street became known as the 1.[12]

From January 5 to December 20, 2019, a free out-of-system transfer was provided from this station to Inwood–207th Street to accommodate the temporary closure of the IRT platforms at 168th Street, where a free transfer was normally provided. A similar transfer was also provided one station north at 215th Street.[13][14]

Station layout

P Platform level	Side platform
	Northbound local	← toward 242nd Street (215th Street)
	Peak-direction express	→ No regular service
	Southbound local	→ toward South Ferry (Dyckman Street) →
	Side platform
M	Mezzanine	Fare control, station agent, MetroCard machines
G	Street level	Entrances/exits

This elevated station has two side platforms and three tracks, with the center track not used in revenue service.[15] Both platforms have beige windscreens and dark canopies (both of which are currently being replaced as part of a renovation project) in the center, and black steel waist-high fences at either end. The station name plates are in the standard black with white lettering.

North of this station, there are two switches and a ramp to allow access from each of the three tracks to the 207th Street Yard, which runs along the east side of the line.[15]

The 1991 artwork here is called Elevated Nature I-IV by Wopo Holup. It consists of two concrete panels with wooden frames on the southbound platform's station house. Each panel consists of eight squares depicting tree limbs. Similar artwork is also located at four other stations on this line.

Exits

Both platforms have one wooden adjacent station house in the center. However, only the southbound one is used for passenger service. Doors from the platform lead to a small waiting area, where a turnstile bank provides entrance/exit from the station. Outside the fare control area, there is a token booth, one staircase going down to the southwest corner of 207th Street and Tenth Avenue, and a passageway leading to a staircase that goes down to the northwest corner.[16]

The station house on the northbound platform is used for employees only. One exit-only turnstile at platform level leads to a staircase that goes down to the northeast corner of 207th Street and Tenth Avenue, while a High Entry/Exit Turnstile, also at platform level, leads to a staircase going down to the southeast corner.[16]

References

1. "Station Developers' Information". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved June 13, 2017.
2. "Facts and Figures: Annual Subway Ridership 2014–2019". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2020. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
3. Merritt, A. L. (1914). "Ten Years of the Subway (1914)". www.nycsubway.org. Interborough Bulletin. Retrieved March 19, 2017.
4. Hood, Clifton (1978). "The Impact of the IRT in New York City" (PDF). Historic American Engineering Record. pp. 146–207 (PDF pp. 147–208). Retrieved December 20, 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
5. Report of the Public Service Commission for the First District of the State of New York For The Year Ending December 31, 1910. Public Service Commission. 1911.
6. "Ten-car Trains in Subway to-day; New Service Begins on Lenox Av. Line and Will Be Extended to Broadway To-morrow". The New York Times. January 23, 1911. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 5, 2018.
7. "Trains Telescoped in a Subway Crash – Policeman Badly Injured at 207th Street, While Motorman Leaps to Safety – A Dozen Passengers Hurt – But None Goes to Hospital After the Smash – Hedley Says Men Are Nervous". The New York Times. September 26, 1916. p. 1. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 15, 2016.
8. Report for the three and one-half years ending June 30, 1949. New York City Board of Transportation. 1949. hdl:2027/mdp.39015023094926.
9. "Platform Awards Made; Two Concerns to Enlarge Six Subway Stations of IRT" (PDF). The New York Times. June 14, 1946. p. 23. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved January 27, 2021.
10. "More Long Platforms – Five Subway Stations on IRT to Accommodate 10-Car Trains" (PDF). The New York Times. July 10, 1948. p. 8. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 27, 2016.
11. Brown, Nicole (May 17, 2019). "How did the MTA subway lines get their letter or number? NYCurious". amNewYork. Retrieved January 27, 2021.
12. Friedlander, Alex; Lonto, Arthur; Raudenbush, Henry (April 1960). "A Summary of Services on the IRT Division, NYCTA" (PDF). New York Division Bulletin. Electric Railroaders' Association. 3 (1): 2.
13. "Station Info (168 St)". MTA. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
14. "Washington Heights subway station set to close for elevator repairs". ABC7 New York. January 3, 2019. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
15. Dougherty, Peter (2006) [2002]. Tracks of the New York City Subway 2006 (3rd ed.). Dougherty. OCLC 49777633 – via Google Books.
16. "MTA Neighborhood Maps: Inwood" (PDF). Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2015. Retrieved July 29, 2016.

External links

• nycsubway.org – IRT West Side Line: 207th Street
• Station Reporter – 1 Train
• The Subway Nut – 207th Street Pictures
• 207th Street entrance from Google Maps Street View
• Platforms from Google Maps Street View