Grand Central Terminal (GCT; also referred to as Grand Central Station or simply as Grand Central) is a commuter rail terminal located at 42nd Street and Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Grand Central is the southern terminus of the Metro-North Railroad's Harlem, Hudson and New Haven Lines, serving the northern parts of the New York metropolitan area. It also contains a connection to the Long Island Rail Road through the Grand Central Madison station, a 16-acre (65,000 m²) rail terminal underneath the Metro-North station, built from 2007 to 2023. The terminal also connects to the New York City Subway at Grand Central–42nd Street station. The terminal is the third-busiest train station in North America, after New York Penn Station and Toronto Union Station.

Quick Facts General information, Location ...

Grand Central Terminal

Metro-North Railroad terminal

Clockwise from top left: 42nd Street facade; underground Metro-North platform and tracks; Main Concourse; iconic clock atop the information booth

General information

Location

89 East 42nd Street
Manhattan, New York City

Owned by

NYC & Hudson River (1913–1914)
New York Central (1914–1968)
Penn Central (1968–1994)
American Premier Underwriters (1994–2006)
Midtown Trackage Ventures (2006–2020)
Metropolitan Transportation Authority (2020–present)

Operated by

NYC & Hudson River (1913–1914)
New York Central (1914–1968)
New York, New Haven and Hartford (1913–1968)
Penn Central (1968–1976)
Amtrak (1971–1991)
Conrail (1976–1983)
Metro-North (1983–present)

Managed by

George Monasterio (director)

Line(s)

Park Avenue main line

Platforms

44: 43 island platforms, 1 side platform
(6 tracks with Spanish solution)

Tracks

67: 56 passenger tracks (30 on upper level, 26 on lower level)
43 in use for passenger service
11 sidings

Connections

Long Island Rail Road
at Grand Central Madison

New York City Subway:

at Grand Central–42nd Street

NYCT Bus: M1, M2, M3, M4, M42, M101, M102, M103, Q32

NYCT Bus, MTA Bus, Academy Bus: express services

Construction

Platform levels

2

Accessible

Accessible^{[N 1]}

Other information

Website

Official website

Key dates

Construction

1903–1913
Opened February 2, 1913; 111 years ago

Passengers

FY 2018

67 million annually, based on weekly estimate^[2]

0.6% (Metro-North)

Services

Preceding station		Following station
Terminus	Harlem Line	Harlem–125th Street toward North White Plains or Southeast
	Hudson Line	Harlem–125th Street toward Croton–Harmon or Poughkeepsie
	New Haven Line	Harlem–125th Street toward Stamford or New Haven
	New Canaan Branch select weekday service	Harlem–125th Street toward New Canaan
	Danbury Branch select weekday service	Harlem–125th Street toward Danbury

Former services

Preceding station	New York Central Railroad		Following station
125th Street toward Chicago		Main Line	Terminus
125th Street toward Peekskill		Hudson Division
125th Street toward Chatham		Harlem Division
Preceding station	New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad		Following station
Terminus		Main Line	Harlem–125th Street toward New Haven
Preceding station	Amtrak		Following station
Croton-Harmon toward Chicago		Lake Shore	Terminus
Croton-Harmon toward Detroit (Michigan Central)		Niagara Rainbow
Yonkers toward Montreal		Adirondack
Yonkers toward Niagara Falls, New York		Empire Service
Yonkers toward Toronto		Maple Leaf

Former services (pre-1913)

Preceding station		Following station
110th Street Until 1906 toward Peekskill	Hudson Division	Terminus
86th Street Until 1901 toward Chatham	Harlem Division
72nd Street Limited toward Chatham	Harlem Division

Interactive map

Coordinates

40°45′10″N 73°58′38″W

Architect

Reed and Stem;
Warren and Wetmore

Architectural style(s)

Beaux-Arts

Visitors

21.6 million (in 2018)^[3]

U.S. National Historic Landmark

Designated

December 8, 1976

Reference no.

75001206

U.S. National Register of Historic Places

Designated

January 17, 1975
August 11, 1983 (increase)

Reference no.

75001206, 83001726

New York State Register of Historic Places

Designated

June 23, 1980^[4]

Reference no.

06101.000365

New York City Landmark

Designated

August 2, 1967 (facade)
September 23, 1980 (interior)

Reference no.

0266 (facade)
1099 (interior)

Close

The distinctive architecture and interior design of Grand Central Terminal's station house have earned it several landmark designations, including as a National Historic Landmark. Its Beaux-Arts design incorporates numerous works of art. Grand Central Terminal is one of the world's ten most-visited tourist attractions,^[5] with 21.6 million visitors in 2018, excluding train and subway passengers.^[3] The terminal's Main Concourse is often used as a meeting place, and is especially featured in films and television. Grand Central Terminal contains a variety of stores and food vendors, including upscale restaurants and bars, a food hall, and a grocery marketplace. The building is also noted for its library, event hall, tennis club, control center and offices for the railroad, and sub-basement power station.

Grand Central Terminal was built by and named for the New York Central Railroad; it also served the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad and, later, successors to the New York Central. Opened in 1913, the terminal was built on the site of two similarly named predecessor stations, the first of which dated to 1871. Grand Central Terminal served intercity trains until 1991, when Amtrak began routing its trains through nearby Penn Station.

Grand Central covers 48 acres (19 ha) and has 44 platforms, more than any other railroad station in the world. Its platforms, all below ground, serve 30 tracks on the upper level and 26 on the lower. In total, there are 67 tracks, including a rail yard and sidings; of these, 43 tracks are in use for passenger service, while the remaining two dozen are used to store trains.^{[N 2]}