215th Street (IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line)

215th Street
New York City Subway rapid transit station
Aerial view of station
Station statistics
Address	West 215th Street & 10th Avenue New York, NY 10034
Borough	Manhattan
Locale	Inwood
Coordinates	40°52′10″N 73°54′54″W / 40.869473°N 73.915074°WCoordinates: 40°52′10″N 73°54′54″W / 40.869473°N 73.915074°W
Division	A (IRT)
Line	IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line
Services	1  (all times)
Transit connections	NYCT Bus: M100, Bx7, Bx20
Structure	Elevated
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	3 (2 in regular service)
Other information
Opened	March 12, 1906
Traffic
Passengers (2015)	615,177[1]  1.8%
Rank	397 out of 422
Station succession
Next north	Marble Hill–225th Street: 1  221st Street: no regular service (demolished)
Next south	207th Street: 1
Station service legend Symbol Description Stops all times
Location

215th Street is a local station on the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line of the New York City Subway. Located at the intersection of 215th Street and Tenth Avenue in the Manhattan neighborhood of Inwood, it is served by the 1 train at all times.

History

Track layout
Legend
to 225 St to 207 St

Street level view

The West Side Branch of the first subway was extended northward to a temporary terminus of 221st Street and Broadway on March 12, 1906 with the first open station at Dyckman Street, as the stations at 168th Street, 181st Street, and 191st Street were not yet completed.^[2][3][4] This extension was served by shuttle trains operating between 157th Street and 221st Street until May 30, 1906 when express trains began running through to 221st Street.^[5][6]

In 1948, platforms on the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line from 103rd Street to 238th Street were lengthened to 514 feet to allow full ten-car express trains to platform. Previously the stations could only platform six car local trains. The platform extensions 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.^[7][8]

Station layout

P Platform level	Side platform, doors will open on the right
	Northbound local	← toward Van Cortlandt Park–242nd Street (Marble Hill–225th Street)
	Peak-direction express	→ No regular service
	Southbound local	→ toward South Ferry (207th Street) →
	Side platform, doors will open on the right
M	Mezzanine	to entrances/exits, station agent, MetroCard vending 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. 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 ends. The station name plates are in the standard black with white lettering.

Both platforms have one wooden adjacent station house in the center. However, only the southbound one is used for passenger service. Three doors from the platform lead to a small waiting area, where a turnstile bank provides entrance/exit from the station. Outside fare control, there is a token booth and two staircases going down to either western corners of Tenth Avenue and 215th Street.

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 215th Street and Tenth Avenue while a High Entry/Exit Turnstile, also at platform level, leads to a staircase going down to the southeast corner.

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. This artwork is also located at four other stations on this line.

The station is near the northern end of the 207th Street Yard, which includes the 215th Street Signal Shop, and the MTA Buses Kingsbridge Depot which is just slightly north of this station. It is also four blocks along 218th Street from Inwood Hill Park and, also on 218th Street, provides access to Columbia University's Baker Field athletic complex, as well as the Allen Hospital, a satellite facility of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital. North of the station, the line crosses the Broadway Bridge over the Harlem River Ship Canal into the mainland of New York.

Ridership

In 2015, the station had 615,177 boardings, making it the 397th most used station in the 422-station system.^[1] This amounted to an average of 2,012 passengers per weekday.^[9] In terms of annual passenger ridership and in terms of weekday daily ridership, this is the least used station in Manhattan.^[9][1]

References

1. "Facts and Figures: Annual Subway Ridership". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved 2016-04-19.
2. New York Times, Farthest North in Town by the Interborough, January 14, 1907, page 18
3. District, New York (State) Public Service Commission First (1913-01-01). Report of the Public Service Commission for the First District of the State of New York. J.B. Lyon Company.
4. "Trains To Ship Canal: But They Whiz by Washington Heights Station". New York Times. March 13, 1906. Retrieved 16 August 2015.
6. "Express to 221st Street: Will Run In the Subway To-day–New 181st Street Station Ready.". Retrieved 2016-09-01.
7. Report for the three and one-half years ending June 30, 1949. New York City Board of Transportation. 1949.
8. "MORE LONG PLATFORMS; Five Subway Stations on IRT to Accommodate 10-Car Trains". The New York Times. 1948-07-10. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2016-03-27.
9. "Facts and Figures: Weekday Ridership". mta.info. Retrieved 2016-04-26.

External links

• nycsubway.org – IRT West Side Line: 215th Street
• Station Reporter – 1 Train
• The Subway Nut – 215th Street Pictures
• 215th Street entrance from Google Maps Street View