IRT/BMT/IND subway map

[Peter Williams]

Hello,

I was recently in New York and was super fascinated by the subway. It's a massive and complex system, that is also a bit chaotic and doesn't always make sense. To understand it, I think you need to understand that it used to be three competing companies each building their own system in parallel to the others. I was looking for a map that explains which parts of the modern system were built by which company, but couldn't find one. So I just made my own. Literally using Paint to color in the present day subway map, super nerdy haha, I know.

Anyway, here it is: https://postimg.cc/yDR2Q89n

Blue: IRT

Red: BMT

Green: IND

Purple: Far Rockaway Line taken over from LIRR

Grey: built after the system was unified in 1940

The color of the line bullet is based on the Manhattan trunk the line runs on. I understand that it is not so straight-forward for the two lines running out of Queensboro Plaza as these were shared by BMT and IRT, I decided to color them based on which rolling stock runs on them now. Rebuilt stations, such as WTC, South Ferry, etc still counted for the company that built the original station.

I am posting here, because I am not actually from New York and am sure that I made mistakes. I just pieced it together with what I understand about the subway and the information I could find online. Please have a look and let me know if there are any details missing. Feel free to use the map in any way you want, if you like it. 

Thanks

[Vulturious]

2 hours ago, Peter Williams said:

Hello,

I was recently in New York and was super fascinated by the subway. It's a massive and complex system, that is also a bit chaotic and doesn't always make sense. To understand it, I think you need to understand that it used to be three competing companies each building their own system in parallel to the others. I was looking for a map that explains which parts of the modern system were built by which company, but couldn't find one. So I just made my own. Literally using Paint to color in the present day subway map, super nerdy haha, I know.

Anyway, here it is: https://postimg.cc/yDR2Q89n

Blue: IRT

Red: BMT

Green: IND

Purple: Far Rockaway Line taken over from LIRR

Grey: built after the system was unified in 1940

The color of the line bullet is based on the Manhattan trunk the line runs on. I understand that it is not so straight-forward for the two lines running out of Queensboro Plaza as these were shared by BMT and IRT, I decided to color them based on which rolling stock runs on them now. Rebuilt stations, such as WTC, South Ferry, etc still counted for the company that built the original station.

I am posting here, because I am not actually from New York and am sure that I made mistakes. I just pieced it together with what I understand about the subway and the information I could find online. Please have a look and let me know if there are any details missing. Feel free to use the map in any way you want, if you like it. 

Thanks

In all honesty, even with maps of each of the three companies (this can be found here https://www.nycsubway.org/wiki/Historical_Maps), it's a nice modern take on current system of the three companies.

[CenSin]

There are ROWs which predate even the BMT. The Sea Beach and Brighton lines, for example, were formerly used by railroads. If you wanted the nuance, you’d have a pretty colorful map.

[darkstar8983]

Considering all the inter-mingling of the B Division lines,  the only services that are exclusive to either IND or BMT are:

IND:   

BMT:      

 

All the other services are mixes between the IND and BMT in some capacity:

- Changes from IND to BMT south of Grand St, Manhattan

 - Changes from IND to BMT south of Church Av, Brooklyn

 - Changes from IND to BMT between Broadway-Lafayette St and Essex St

 - Changes from BMT to IND north of Lexington Av-63 St

 - Changes from BMT to IND past the 11 St Cut approaching Queens Plaza

[CenSin]

9 hours ago, darkstar8983 said:

 - Changes from BMT to IND north of Lexington Av-63 St

Is it really the IND if it’s built post-unification?

[Vulturious]

1 hour ago, CenSin said:

Is it really the IND if it’s built post-unification?

On a technicality, it is. I believe they use IND frequencies, right?

[Trainmaster5]

2 hours ago, Vulturious said:

On a technicality, it is. I believe they use IND frequencies, right?

One would think that the line was IRT territory,  right?  The radio frequency says otherwise . I remember breaking in over there and after hearing the radio conversations my trainer laughed at my quizzical look. He finally said "history, kid". Heck my (5) line was an IND line. 

Edited April 18, 2022 by Trainmaster5

[mrsman]

On 4/17/2022 at 8:49 AM, darkstar8983 said:

Considering all the inter-mingling of the B Division lines,  the only services that are exclusive to either IND or BMT are:

IND:   

BMT:      

 

All the other services are mixes between the IND and BMT in some capacity:

- Changes from IND to BMT south of Grand St, Manhattan

 - Changes from IND to BMT south of Church Av, Brooklyn

 - Changes from IND to BMT between Broadway-Lafayette St and Essex St

 - Changes from BMT to IND north of Lexington Av-63 St

 - Changes from BMT to IND past the 11 St Cut approaching Queens Plaza

This is all true.  Some of the early maps post-1968 (Chrystie connection) did their best to try to keep track of which lines were BMT and which were IND and did their best to point out the exceptions.

The original nomenclature of the trains also kept track of which system was which.

The IND system controlled the first letters of the alphabet and were arranged based on their northern terminal, more or less heading east as you went down the alphabet.

A,B  Inwood and Washington Heights

C, D Concourse

E,F,G Queens Blvd

H Rockaways

The next set of letters were assigned to the BMT.  BMT originally had numbers, but post-unification they were assinged letters so as to differentiate from the IRT system.  As the early letters were taken by IND, only the later letters could be used by BMT.  But there is a system to the naming:

J,K,L,M - BMT eastern division

N, Q,R - BMT southern division

To account for many of the hybrid BMT/IND lines, the description was slightlly amended.  B and D were generally IND lines, but BMT in Brooklyn.  K (a forerunner to today's M that ran from 57/6 along 6 Av to Williamsburg Bridge and then to Broadway Junction) was a BMT line that was IND in Manhattan.  R was a BMT line that was IND in Queens.

The map posted by OP is mostly accurate in terms of the history.  But it should also be pointed out that in terms of governance, certain sections of line were transferred between IND and BMT.  (And at this point there is even less distinction as all o these lines are part of the B division.)  So the Culver line south of Church was built by BMT, but because in current layout it only connects to the IND routes, it is considered part of IND.  Similarly with the elevated train along Liberty Ave to Ozone Park, this was BMT, but as it (and the extension to the Rockaways) only connects to AC, it is part of the IND system.

I don't know how to classify the current part of the 2nd Ave subway.  As it directlly connects to  and nothing else, it seems to fit as being part of BMT, but given the newness of the construction, it does not belong as part of BMT or as IND either, but as a separate new-build line.