Junius Street station

The Junius Street station is a station on the IRT New Lots Line of the New York City Subway. Located at the intersection of Junius Street and Livonia Avenue in Brownsville, Brooklyn,^[3] it is served by the 3 train at all times except late nights, when the 4 train takes over service. During rush hours, occasional 2, 4 and 5 trains also stop here.^[4]

Junius Street
New York City Subway station (rapid transit)
Platform view
Station statistics
Address	Junius Street & Livonia Avenue Brooklyn, New York
Borough	Brooklyn
Locale	Brownsville
Coordinates	40.663615°N 73.90151°W / 40.663615; -73.90151
Division	A (IRT)[1]
Line	IRT New Lots Line
Services	2  (limited rush hour service in the reverse-peak direction) ​   3  (all except late nights) ​   4  (late nights, and limited rush hour service in the peak direction) ​   5  (limited a.m. rush hour service in the northbound direction only)
System transfers	Free out-of-system transfer with MetroCard or OMNY:    L  (all times) at Livonia Avenue
Transit	NYCT Bus: B14
Structure	Elevated
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	3 (1 not for passenger service)
Other information
Opened	November 22, 1920; 103 years ago (1920-11-22)
Rebuilt	October 5, 2016; 7 years ago (October 5, 2016) to June 19, 2017; 7 years ago (June 19, 2017)
Accessible	not ADA-accessible; currently undergoing renovations for ADA access
Opposite- direction transfer	Yes
Traffic
2023	487,780[2]  9.2%
Rank	387 out of 423[2]
Services Preceding station New York City Subway Following station Rockaway Avenue 2  ​3  ​4  ​5  toward Harlem–148th Street Pennsylvania Avenue 2  ​3  ​4  toward New Lots Avenue
Location Show map of New York City Subway Show map of New York City Show map of New York
Track layout Legend to Rockaway Avenue Unpowered service track to Linden Shops to Pennsylvania Avenue
Street map
Station service legend Symbol Description Stops all times Stops late nights only Stops late nights and weekends Stops rush hours only Stops rush hours in the peak direction only Stops weekdays during the day

History

The New Lots Line was built as a part of Contract 3 of the Dual Contracts between New York City and the Interborough Rapid Transit Company, including this station.^[5] It was built as an elevated line because the ground in this area is right above the water table, and as a result the construction of a subway would have been prohibitively expensive.^[6] This station opened along with the first portion of the line from Utica Avenue on November 22, 1920, with shuttle trains operating over this route.^[7][8] This station ceased to be the line's terminal when the line opened one more stop farther to the east to Pennsylvania Avenue on December 24, 1920,^[8] using its southbound platform.^[9]: 129 The line was completed to New Lots Avenue on October 16, 1922,^[8] with a two-car train running on the northbound track.^[10] On October 31, 1924, through service to New Lots Avenue was begun.^[10]

From October 5, 2016, to June 19, 2017, this station and Sutter Avenue–Rutland Road were closed for renovations.^[11][12][13]

Transfer with Canarsie Line

A New Lots Avenue-bound 3 train of R62s passing above Livonia Avenue after leaving Junius Street.

The New Lots Line passes over the Livonia Avenue station on the BMT Canarsie Line (L train) directly to the east of this station and there is a free-transfer between the two stations, which can only be accessed by walking outside the stations and using a MetroCard or OMNY. Passengers originally transferred between the two stations for an additional fare by using an overpass running parallel to the New Lots Line which allows pedestrians on Livonia Avenue to cross over the Long Island Rail Road's open-cut Bay Ridge Branch.^{[citation needed]}

In 2015, there were proposals to convert the overpass into a free-transfer passage between the two stations, due to increasing ridership and plans for additional housing in the area.^[14] Money was allocated in the 2015–2019 Capital Program to build this transfer. Both stations would also have been upgraded to become compliant with mobility accessibility guidelines under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.^[15] However, in the April 2018 revision to the Capital Program, funding for the project, with the exception of funding already used to design the connection, was removed.^[16] A free MetroCard-only transfer between the two stations was also provided during weekends and late nights as part of the reconstruction of the 14th Street Tunnel starting in April 2019^[17][18] and introduced permanently in February 2020.^[19] The 2020–2024 Capital Program added back funding for the project, with an allocation of $38.4 million;^[20] by January 2020, only $400,000 of that amount had been spent on "pre-design" activities.^[21] In February 2020, the MTA awarded a design–build contract to construct the free transfer and associated elevator upgrades.^[22] In November 2022, the MTA announced that it would award a $965 million contract for the installation of 21 elevators across eight stations,^[23] including Junius Street.^{[24][25]: 81} A joint venture of ASTM and Halmar International would construct the elevators under a public-private partnership.^{[24][25]: 80}

Station layout

Platform level	Side platform
	Northbound	← toward Harlem–148th Street (Rockaway Avenue) ← toward Woodlawn late nights (Rockaway Avenue) ← toward Wakefield–241st Street (select rush hour trips) (Rockaway Avenue) ← toward Eastchester–Dyre Avenue (select rush hour trips) (Rockaway Avenue)
	Center track	→ No passenger service
	Southbound	→ ( late nights) toward New Lots Avenue (Pennsylvania Avenue) → → toward New Lots Avenue (select rush hour trips) (Pennsylvania Avenue) →
	Side platform
Mezzanine		Fare control, station agent, MetroCard and OMNY machines
Ground	Street level	Exit/entrance, MetroCard/OMNY connection to at Livonia Avenue

Entrance

There are two side platforms and three tracks. It is the only station on the line with a center track, which was installed sometime before 1987. However, it does not have a third rail and thus can only be used by diesel trains or other non-electric equipment. Just west (railroad north) of the station, tracks split from both the northbound and southbound tracks, merging to form the center track; this goes through the station and turns south, crossing the southbound track at grade. The track joins with one from the BMT Canarsie Line and heads to the Linden Shops.^[26] Both platforms have beige windscreens and green canopies that run for the entire length.^[27]

This station is the highest point on the New Lots Line, which rises here to pass over the BMT Canarsie Line. At Junius Street, a block from the station entrance, an overpass running parallel to the New Lots Line allows pedestrians on Livonia Avenue to cross over the Long Island Rail Road's open-cut Bay Ridge Branch. This overpass leads to the main entrance of the Livonia Avenue station on the BMT Canarsie Line.^{[citation needed]}

Exits

Despite the station name, there are no actual entrances to this station on Junius Street; they were removed many years ago. The two street stairs to the station's only mezzanine are a block away on the south side of Livonia Avenue between Powell and Sackman Streets.^[3] The small, elevated mezzanine/station house beneath the tracks has a token booth, turnstile bank, and two staircases to the center of each of the two side platforms.^{[citation needed]}

In popular culture

A scene in the 2010 movie Brooklyn's Finest shows Ethan Hawke's character chasing a man up to the stairs of the Junius Street station.^{[citation needed]}

In a scene from the 1992 movie Just Another Girl on the IRT, the main character is seen walking up the stairs, then is later seen on the elevated platform of this station.^{[citation needed]}

References

1. "Glossary". Second Avenue Subway Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement (SDEIS) (PDF). Vol. 1. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. March 4, 2003. pp. 1–2. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 26, 2021. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
2. "Annual Subway Ridership (2018–2023)". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2023. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
3. "Neighborhood Map Brownsville" (PDF). mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2015. Retrieved October 9, 2016.
4. • "2 Subway Timetable, Effective June 26, 2022". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved June 28, 2024.
   • "3 Subway Timetable, Effective June 30, 2024". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved June 28, 2024.
   • "4 Subway Timetable, Effective December 4, 2022". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved June 28, 2024.
   • "5 Subway Timetable, Effective June 30, 2024". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved June 28, 2024.
5. "Nearly 70 Track Miles to Be Added To Rapid Transit Facilities in 1920". Brooklyn Standard Union. December 28, 1919. Retrieved August 14, 2016 – via Fulton History.
6. "Differ Over Assessment Plans in Transit Projects: Eastern Parkway Subway and Livonia Avenue Extension the Cause of Bitter Dissension Among Property Owners Uptown". The Daily Standard Union. March 13, 1910. Retrieved August 14, 2016 – via Fulton History.
7. "Annual report. 1920-1921". HathiTrust. Interborough Rapid Transit. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
8. Cunningham, Joseph; DeHart, Leonard O. (1993). A History of the New York City Subway System. J. Schmidt, R. Giglio, and K. Lang. p. 53.
9. Annual Report. J.B. Lyon Company. 1922.
10. "IRT Brooklyn Line Opened 90 Years Ago". New York Division Bulletin. 53 (9). New York Division, Electric Railroaders' Association. September 2010. Retrieved August 31, 2016 – via Issu.
11. "ServiceAlert: As of 5 AM, the Sutter Av-Rutland Rd and Junius St stations have reopened for 3 and 4 subway service". @NYCTSubway. June 19, 2017. Retrieved June 19, 2017.
12. "Sutter Av-Rutland Rd, Junius St Stations on 3 Line Reopen". www.mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. June 19, 2017. Retrieved June 19, 2017.
13. "The Stations Were Closed for Renewal Work Since April". mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. September 16, 2016. Archived from the original on October 9, 2020. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
14. Eisinger, Dale W.; Rivoli, Dan (July 6, 2015). "Brooklyn official wants transfer at 2 nearby subway stations in East New York". Daily News (New York). Retrieved October 25, 2015.
15. "MTA Capital Program 2015-2019: Renew. Enhance. Expand" (PDF). Metropolitan Transportation Authority. October 28, 2015. Retrieved October 9, 2016.
16. Martinez, Jose (May 2, 2019). "Free Subway Transfers Prove One 'L' of an Idea in Brooklyn". The City. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
17. Hogan, Gwynne; Tcholakian, Danielle (July 25, 2016). "The L Train Shutdown: Here's How to Commute Between Brooklyn and Manhattan". DNAinfo New York. Archived from the original on August 21, 2016. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
18. Fitzsimmons, Emma G. (July 25, 2016). "L Train Will Shut Down From Manhattan to Brooklyn in '19 for 18 Months". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
19. "Service information for L, M, G, 7, M14 SBS and free transfers". April 26, 2020. Retrieved April 26, 2020.
20. "MTA Capital Program 2020-2024" (PDF). mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. September 20, 2019. p. 187. Retrieved September 23, 2019.
21. Guse, Clayton (January 19, 2020). "MTA to finally connect two Brooklyn subway stations where riders were double-charged for a century". nydailynews.com. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
22. "New York City Transit and Bus Committee Meeting February 2020". mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. February 24, 2020. pp. 179–181. Retrieved February 23, 2020.
23. Nessen, Stephen (November 28, 2022). "MTA to spend more than $1B on accessibility upgrades". Gothamist. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
24. Brachfeld, Ben (November 29, 2022). "MTA to spend $1 billion on subway, commuter rail accessibility upgrades". amNewYork. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
25. "Capital Program Oversight Committee Meeting November 2022". mta.info. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. November 29, 2022. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
26. Dougherty, Peter (2006) [2002]. Tracks of the New York City Subway 2006 (3rd ed.). Dougherty. OCLC 49777633 – via Google Books.
27. Cox, Jeremiah. "Junius Street (3) - The SubwayNut". www.subwaynut.com. Retrieved October 9, 2016.

External links

• nycsubway.org – Brooklyn IRT: Junius Street
• The Subway Nut — Junius Street Pictures
• Sackman Street entrance from Google Maps Street View
• Platforms from Google Maps Street View