Forest Avenue station

The Forest Avenue station is a station on the BMT Myrtle Avenue Line of the New York City Subway. Located on a private right-of-way in Ridgewood, Queens, the station is served by the M train at all times. The station opened in 1915 as part of the Dual Contracts.

Forest Avenue
Station statistics
Address	Forest Avenue & Putnam Avenue Queens, New York
Borough	Queens
Locale	Ridgewood
Coordinates	40.704619°N 73.901982°W / 40.704619; -73.901982
Division	B (BMT)[1]
Line	BMT Myrtle Avenue Line
Services	M  (all times)
Transit	NYCT Bus: B13, B20, Q14, Q39, Q58, Q98
Structure	Elevated
Platforms	1 island platform
Tracks	2
Other information
Opened	February 22, 1915; 110 years ago (1915-02-22)
Closed	July 1, 2017; 8 years ago (2017-07-01) (temporary line closure)
Reopened	September 1, 2017; 7 years ago (2017-09-01)
Accessible	not ADA-accessible; accessibility planned
Opposite- direction transfer	Yes
Traffic
2024	998,920[2]  8.2%
Rank	290 out of 423[2]
Services Preceding station New York City Subway Following station Seneca Avenue toward Forest Hills–71st Avenue Fresh Pond Road toward Middle Village–Metropolitan Avenue
Location Show map of New York City Subway Show map of New York City Show map of New York
Track layout Legend to Fresh Pond Road to Seneca Avenue
Street map
Station service legend Symbol Description Stops all times

History

This station opened on February 22, 1915 by the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company as part of a project to elevate a portion of the Myrtle Avenue Line, which had run at street level. This work was completed as part of the Dual Contracts.^[3][4][5] The Myrtle Avenue Elevated line was already extended to Middle Village nine years earlier. The station was acquired by Brooklyn Manhattan Transit Company in 1923, and later by the New York City Board of Transportation in 1940.

As part of its 2025–2029 Capital Program, the MTA has proposed making the station wheelchair-accessible in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.^[6]

Station layout

Platform level	Westbound	← toward Forest Hills–71st Avenue weekdays, Essex Street weekends, Myrtle Avenue late nights (Seneca Avenue)
	Island platform
	Eastbound	→ toward Middle Village–Metropolitan Avenue (Fresh Pond Road) →
Mezzanine		Fare control, station agent, OMNY machines
Ground	Street level	Exit/entrance

This elevated station has two tracks and an island platform. The canopy is metal while the mezzanine under the station is wood.

Exits

The only open exit is at the east end of the station. Stairs from the platform lead down to a mezzanine below the tracks, from which two stairs lead to the western side of Forest Avenue on opposite sides of the intersection of Fairview and Putnam Avenues.^[7] There was also an exit at the west end that led to Woodward Avenue.