City Hall (BMT Broadway Subway)
 
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City Hall Station · Opened 4/14/1918Next up is City Hall, a station with one
large, irregularly shaped island platform. The fare control is in the
center of the platform, leaving the ends open for crossing over
between directions. An active tower is at the north end. The
trackside walls feature a mosaic rendering of the City Hall cupola.
Built along with the rest of the Dual Contract lines and
opened in 1918, the active platform at City Hall Station was
originally designed to be a stub terminal for local trains, following
the pattern in which almost all of the Manhattan subway lines were
built. Local trains were to terminate inside the borough while express
trains would diverge and cross the river into Brooklyn. The IND 8th
Avenue (locals terminate at World Trade Center), the IRT East Side
(locals terminate at Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall), and IRT West Side
(locals terminate at South Ferry) lines all follow this pattern, as
does the IND Fulton Street line in Brooklyn as it was
initially operated (locals terminated at Court Street).
To accommodate the express trains, therefore, City Hall
station was designed with another set of tracks and platforms on a
lower level. The plan was that the Brooklyn-bound express trains from
upper Manhattan (and the Bronx, had a northern extension of the
Broadway Subway been built) were to use the lower level, connecting to
the subway running under Church Street and Trinity Place, and then to
Brooklyn via the Montague Street Tunnel (as the line is operated
today).
Plans were changed when it was decided to run subway
trains over the Manhattan Bridge. The express trains were diverted
from Broadway under Canal Street leaving only the local trains running
south under Broadway to City Hall. The upper level platform was then
converted into a through platform, which explains part of the
irregular shape of the island platform on the upper level. The
southbound side of the platform is straight as an arrow, and the
northbound side is curved at the south end. But, the trackside wall on
the northbound side is straight; there is a space between the wall and
the track itself at the south end of the northbound side of the
station. Immediately south of the station the tracks ramp down to meet
the lower level grade to continue south along Vesey Street and into
Church Street. The local tracks on the upper local sit above the outer tracks on
the lower level. The columns on the platform delineate the tracks and
platforms under them.
That change in plans rendered the lower level at City
Hall unnecessary, and in fact, no service has ever been operated on
the lower level. The fact that the Broadway line was never extended
northward contributed to the fact that the lower level has never been
used- there is simply not enough traffic on this line to support two
river crossings and a Manhattan terminal. This may some day change if
the BMT Broadway line is ever permanently served by either the 63rd
Street tunnel or the 2nd Avenue subway.
The lower level was never even finished; there are no wall
tiles on the lower level and the steel beamwork has a decidedly rough
look to it. The platforms are narrow, and only the west one has a
finished top and stairways to the upper level platforms. Stairways on
the eastern side platform don't appear to ever have been "punched
through" the floor on the upper level.
The lower level tracks are used for train storage; north
of City Hall the lower and upper level tracks rise into a typical
four-track express/local configuration but the "express tracks" are
really just tail tracks; there are crossovers just prior to entering
Canal Street; the center tracks themselves dead end at concrete bumper
blocks about 2/3rds of the way into Canal Street station. A detailed
Track Map of the BMT
Broadway Line in this area is available.
A persistant rumor concerns a plaque that might have been
installed at City Hall honoring Beach's
pneumatic subway. The
New York Times even reported on its placement. No such plaque
exists here or anywhere else in the subway system. It is unclear
whether it was ever placed at all.
Upper Level
(image 87094) (239k, 1044x791)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall
Photo by: Aliandro Brathwaite
Date: 7/1/2008
Notes: View south from north end of northbound platform.
Viewed (this week/total): 25 / 1361
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(image 87101) (259k, 1044x791)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall
Route: W
Car: R160B (Kawasaki, 2005-2008) 8759
Photo by: Aliandro Brathwaite
Date: 7/1/2008
Viewed (this week/total): 12 / 1258
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(image 87102) (251k, 1044x791)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall
Route: W
Car: R160B (Kawasaki, 2005-2008) 8762
Photo by: Aliandro Brathwaite
Date: 7/1/2008
Viewed (this week/total): 16 / 1653
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(image 87103) (281k, 1044x791)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall
Route: W
Car: R160B (Kawasaki, 2005-2008) 8784
Photo by: Aliandro Brathwaite
Date: 7/1/2008
Viewed (this week/total): 8 / 1440
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(image 87105) (258k, 1044x791)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall
Route: W
Car: R160B (Kawasaki, 2005-2008) 8948
Photo by: Aliandro Brathwaite
Date: 7/1/2008
Viewed (this week/total): 21 / 1891
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(image 85732) (252k, 1044x788)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall
Route: Q reroute
Car: R68 (Westinghouse-Amrail, 1986-1988) 5186
Photo by: Leonard Wilson
Date: 5/17/2008
Viewed (this week/total): 7 / 1586
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(image 85733) (251k, 1044x788)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall
Route: N
Car: R160A/R160B
Photo by: Leonard Wilson
Date: 5/17/2008
Viewed (this week/total): 11 / 2032
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(image 71792) (200k, 1044x788)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall
Route: R
Car: R46 (Pullman-Standard, 1974-75) 5539
Photo by: Leonard Wilson
Date: 8/19/2007
Viewed (this week/total): 11 / 2671
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(image 31974) (138k, 820x620)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall
Photo by: Richard Panse
Date: 6/19/2004
Notes: Street entrance at Warren & Broadway
Viewed (this week/total): 17 / 9436
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(image 31976) (97k, 820x620)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall
Photo by: Richard Panse
Date: 6/19/2004
Viewed (this week/total): 11 / 5443
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(image 31977) (91k, 820x620)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall
Photo by: Richard Panse
Date: 6/19/2004
Viewed (this week/total): 5 / 3996
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(image 31978) (104k, 820x620)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall
Photo by: Richard Panse
Date: 6/19/2004
Viewed (this week/total): 16 / 4455
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More Images: 1-12 13-22
Lower Level
(image 31858) (160k, 1044x701)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall Lower Level
Photo by: David Pirmann
Date: 6/19/2004
Notes: View from top of stairs of the in-use portion of BMT City Hall station.
Viewed (this week/total): 22 / 9441
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(image 31857) (149k, 1044x701)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall Lower Level
Photo by: David Pirmann
Date: 6/19/2004
Notes: View of only usable stairway up from west platform
Viewed (this week/total): 30 / 11335
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(image 31845) (161k, 1044x701)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall Lower Level
Photo by: David Pirmann
Date: 6/19/2004
Notes: View of easternmost trackway
Viewed (this week/total): 30 / 13497
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(image 31851) (147k, 1044x701)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall Lower Level
Car: R40 (St. Louis Car, 1968) 4261
Photo by: David Pirmann
Date: 6/19/2004
Notes: View from east platform
Viewed (this week/total): 22 / 9915
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(image 31850) (149k, 701x1044)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall Lower Level
Photo by: David Pirmann
Date: 6/19/2004
Notes: Two slant-R40's laid up on middle trackway, view from east platform
Viewed (this week/total): 12 / 6516
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(image 31838) (152k, 1044x701)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall Lower Level
Car: R40 (St. Louis Car, 1968) 4378
Photo by: David Pirmann
Date: 6/19/2004
Notes: View of west platform
Viewed (this week/total): 14 / 6998
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(image 31843) (131k, 701x1044)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall Lower Level
Photo by: David Pirmann
Date: 6/19/2004
Notes: View of east platform
Viewed (this week/total): 12 / 5923
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(image 31852) (142k, 1044x701)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall Lower Level
Photo by: David Pirmann
Date: 6/19/2004
Notes: Graffiti over center trackway
Viewed (this week/total): 18 / 8315
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(image 31854) (145k, 1044x701)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall Lower Level
Car: R40 (St. Louis Car, 1968) 4404
Photo by: David Pirmann
Date: 6/19/2004
Notes: View of R40 laid up on middle trackway from east platform
Viewed (this week/total): 30 / 10179
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(image 31855) (156k, 1044x728)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall Lower Level
Photo by: David Pirmann
Date: 6/19/2004
Notes: View from east platform of center trackway, south of station
Viewed (this week/total): 36 / 13487
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(image 31973) (119k, 820x620)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall Lower Level
Photo by: Richard Panse
Date: 6/19/2004
Notes: Looking down stairway from upper level platform
Viewed (this week/total): 24 / 9047
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(image 31847) (144k, 1044x701)
Country: United States
City: New York
System: New York City Transit
Line: BMT Broadway Subway
Location: City Hall Lower Level
Car: R40 (St. Louis Car, 1968) 4261
Photo by: David Pirmann
Date: 6/19/2004
Notes: View of east platform
Viewed (this week/total): 18 / 6914
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More Images: 1-12 13-24 25-34
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