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How are trunk lines given their main street?


Javier

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Presumably the lines are named after the section with the highest ridership:

 

  • (1)(2)(3) Broadway - 7 Ave, to distinguish from the other Broadway line
  • (4)(5)(6) Lexington Ave, where the line is most overcrowded
  • (7) Flushing, named after the terminus, also the busiest stop outside Manhattan
  • (A)(C)(E) 8 Ave
  • (B)(D)(F)(M) 6 Ave
  • (J)(Z) Nassau St / Jamaica - named after both termini
  • (L) 14 Ave / Canarsie, named after the cross street and terminus 
  • (N)(Q)(R)(W) Broadway
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Strictly speaking, when these lines were referred to in the days after the individual systems but before the 1979 color changed, it was generally only by the Manhattan portion. The :LL: was the "Fourteenth Street Line," the :2: and :3: the "7 Avenue Express," and the :1: the "Broadway 7 Avenue Local" or "Local-Express." Distinctions were made for Bronx service patterns, like the :6: "Lexington Ave Local" and :6: "Lexington Ave Local Pelham Express" service. The emphasis was always on the Manhatttan portion, which is why sometimes ridiculous titling like the J/Z Nassau Street lines, when the vast majority of service was in Brooklyn/Queens.

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Strictly speaking, when these lines were referred to in the days after the individual systems but before the 1979 color changed, it was generally only by the Manhattan portion. The :LL: was the "Fourteenth Street Line," the :2: and :3: the "7 Avenue Express," and the :1: the "Broadway 7 Avenue Local" or "Local-Express." Distinctions were made for Bronx service patterns, like the :6: "Lexington Ave Local" and :6: "Lexington Ave Local Pelham Express" service. The emphasis was always on the Manhatttan portion, which is why sometimes ridiculous titling like the J/Z Nassau Street lines, when the vast majority of service was in Brooklyn/Queens.

Jamaica would be a good designation for the (J) and (Z). It’s not like they can go anywhere else. The (N) and (R) basically own Broadway, and no other line can have the designation even though 3 different trunks run along Broadway: the (M) and (R) in Queens; the (J), (M), and (Z) in Brooklyn; the (1), (2), and (3) in Manhattan. Even the (4), (5), (A), and (C) run along Broadway during some portion of their route.

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  • 2 weeks later...

LOL! But seriously why isn't it called Park Ave., since it runs on Park in midtown?

The trunk line is given its name based on the street/avenue it travels down the longest. The line in question travels down Lexington Ave from 125th Street to just north of Grand Central-42 St. In comparison, the Lexington Ave line runs under Park Ave between Grand Central and 14 St-Union Square before continuing under 4 Avenue South and Lafayette Ave.

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Well it does run along Queens Boulevard in Queens at least from 33rd to 103rd St, and it is labeled 42 St LOCAL on the R 188's when it's running between Hunters Point and 34th.

It runs on Roosevelt Avenue from that curve after 46th to it's last stop, so if anything, it should be the Roosevelt Avenue line.

 

And 42nd Street Local works since it's only running from 34th to Hunters Point, and the majority of that section is run on 42nd.

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When the (M) was rerouted to Bwy Jct. recently, the ones returning to Manhattan said "BWAY BKLYN LOCAL". When they first routed the (M) up 6th Ave. they came up with "Jamaica Local", which was odd, but of course referred to the Marcy-Myrtle part, and I had thought why didn't they use "Bway-Bklyn" instead? So they went with "Myrtle Local" instead, which is the old BMT way of naming it after the branch line, even though that's not where the actual local-express service is.

So now, we see they did use "Bway-Bklyn" for somethign after all!

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I guess I was a bit too concise in my previous comment. In a general sense, the north-south IRT and IND lines are generally named for the primary road(s) the lines travel under/above. In other instances, the lines are named for the neighborhood or location of one end point/terminal. For instance, before it was extended to Main St in the late 1920s, the line we now know as the Flushing line was called the Corona Line as it ended in the eponymous neighborhood. The BMT routes fall mostly under this category with some of the names based on the original streetcar/railroad lines, especially the ones coming out of Coney Island.

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that is like calling the Nassau Street Line the Nassau Street Line as it is only on Nassau Street for one stop.

Well, that part is the highlight of the line. Would you rather the dilapidated Canal Street or Chambers Street get that glory by calling it the Centre Street Line? *shudders*

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The trunk line is given its name based on the street/avenue it travels down the longest. The line in question travels down Lexington Ave from 125th Street to just north of Grand Central-42 St. In comparison, the Lexington Ave line runs under Park Ave between Grand Central and 14 St-Union Square before continuing under 4 Avenue South and Lafayette Ave.

Actually, they are named for the streets they travel under below 59th Street. The Lex is an exception to that rule.

 

Sent from my N9132 using Tapatalk

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See now this is confusing. How do they name the shuttles then?

 

If both the (S) and (7) run under the same street (42nd St) why is one called the 42nd St Shuttle and the other Flushing Local?

 

Same thing with the Bowling Green Shuttle.

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