Fantastic video. Can you imagine the amount of labor that went into the construction of just this part of the system? The subway, for all its flaws, is a triumph of engineering.
That's what I think about for all mass train systems... All the miles and miles of tunneling, bridges, lighting, flawless track installation, wiring, construction of each station that had to go into building these train systems is mind boggling
This brings back memories of the short-lived NX Super Express ! Absolutely phenomenal footage of the rarely-used Sea Beach express track, which bypasses all 9 of those pesky Sea Beach local stations on the way to Coney Island. That re-routed R46 was really moving too ! As an old-time NYC subway railfan and avid front-rider, I can remember back to when the NX SUPER EXPRESS (that's what they called it) went into service in November 1967, at the time when the BMT and IND merged into a single "B Division". It was a rush-hour only special between Brighton Beach and 57 St / 7 Ave. The morning trains (about 10 of them in the AM rush hour ) would depart from Brighton Beach station and make the stops at Ocean Parkway and West 8 St, then entered the Coney Island station on the Track 1, which is the Sea Beach Line track, rather than entering on Track 3, which is the usual Brighton line platform. From Coney Island, the next stop would be 59 St, flying past all of those 9 local stops via these same Sea Beach Northbound express track shown is the video. It was railfan nirvana to finally get to ride on that never-used Sea Beach express track back then, and it's a thrill now to relive the experience, and even better that it is on a southbound train on the northbound express track (since it looks like most of the old southbound express track has been retired ). As far as I am aware, that short-lived NX line of 1967/68 was the only regular-service line in the system to EVER to run on these Sea Beach express tracks, and probably the last. The NX Line was unfortunately not very popular among ridership and was discontinued in April 1968, less than five months after its introduction. It's great to relive the ride of the Great NX one more time.
I skipped to right before the Manhattan Bridge. I take the Manhattan Bridge lines every day and I've always wondered what it looks like from the operators ' POV so thanks for this video.
Another great run. Good operators. A special treat the portion on the Sea Beach middle tracks. Glad you could get it. 59Th St direct to Coney Island. Wow! Thank you!.
Those tracks to the left were the original tracks that led up to Greenwood Cemetery where all the northbound steam railroads ended because the city of Brooklyn forbid steam just prior to 1860. That is why the Atlantic Ave Branch of the LIRR terminates at Flatbush Ave. Originally the tracks ran down what back then was Division Street all the way to the water, known as South Ferry.
This is just... awesome! I've never seen a cabride video this good. It's on a whole new level. I wish I was able to give more likes, but am definitively subscribing.
@@morganlimes oh okay. i don't want no train going express against my beloved N train! reminds of the times when the N went express against the Q when the same thing happen. also further back when the N train was Super Express. those were the days. the N when it was known as the NX, was super express service way back. they need to bring that back!
This is a pretty amazing video for many reasons. I don't remember a time when I went across the Manhattan bridge with one of the tracks closed & a work train on it. They usually close both tracks. The substituted portion around Dekalb Ave is great! Not only for the lighting but seeing other trains also. Always good to see multiple trains on these videos. I had forgot when it got to Atlantic Ave when I see the train leaving ahead & said wait, where did it go? lol I remember when I was a kid & there were no timer signals on approach to 36th Street. Trains used to haul ass past 25th street & enter 36th street faster than I can remember. Still seems odd to see the lights in the tunnel going up to 9th Ave / the West End after 36th Street. You can clearly see where they did the work in the overhead between 36th & 59th streets when that section was closed for a year a few years back. I'm wondering if anyone knows the history of the Sea Beach Line, the area to the left of the Manhattan bound track right after this video passes New Utrecht Ave 44:28, it looks like a small pocket track & a ramp that rises up to street level may have been there at one time (Of course overgrown & abandoned now). I'm wondering if anyone agrees with that or may know about that. This has to be the clearest view of the Sea Beach Express I have ever seen & probably the only video on YT of a Sea Beach Express racing & passing a Sea Beach Local train. Amazing! So much smoother & faster for express trains after 86th Street vs locals that have to switch over & slower. The flood protection at Coney Island Creek bridge looks interesting. Thanks again for this video! Can't wait for the next one!
I've also never experienced single track operation on the Manhattan Bridge either so that was also a first. I also find those timers before 36st very unnecessary, that also goes for any other timers that are on the express tracks preventing trains from going in full speed into the stations. I remember when they had just reopened the 4th ave express (36th - 59th) it took graffiti artists a long while before they tagged up the fresh new walls but it eventually happened Lol. Glad you enjoyed the express portion! Next video will cover the 2nd part of this weekend G.O
@@morganlimes Yeah the only reason I can figure is that they put the timers in to prevent switch wearing down. I haven't heard of an accident in that area so I'm thinking it's to preserve those switches. They did something similar on the 7 Train around 74th street before they went to CBTC. Those timers were in effect in both directions. Even now with CBTC the train do slow slightly, but nothing like when the timers were operational.
It's an odd spot for a pocket track especially since it doesn't seem to extend beyond the ramp too far and there's not a ton of room so my guess is that it was just an access point for maintenance?
@@ethano3715 I agree on it being for maintenance. It's only seen similar in a few areas (Likely for different reasons & they don't have ramps) like on the IND just north of Yankee Stadium & on the IRT Lex Ave line south of Grand Central & north of Times Square on the Boadway/7th Ave line.
There was a short lived super express called the NX that ran from 57st to brighton beach via the sea beach line. it ran from Nov 27 1967 until spring 1968. it ran peak direction rush hour only with R27 cars. discontinued due to lack of patronage.
*Timest amps* *_NOTE: Transfers represent transfers available during this service change. Service changes for services other than the Q are not represented._* *Manhattan* *IND Second Avenue Line* 00:00 96th Street (NYCT Bus: M15, M15 SBS, M96; NYC Ferry: Soundview Route @ East 90th Street and East End Avenue) 01:29 86th Street (NYCT Bus: M15, M15 SBS, M86 SBS; NYC Ferry: Soundview Route @ East 90th Street and East End Avenue) 03:19 72nd Street (NYCT Bus: M15, M15 SBS, M66, M72) 04:48 _Bellmouth to Proposed Phase 3 of the Second Avenue Line_ 05:15 *BMT 63rd Street Line* 05:23 Lexington Avenue-63rd Street (NYC Subway: F; 4, 5, 6, N, R, W @ Lexington Avenue/59th Street; NYCT Bus: M101, M102, M103; MTA Bus: BxM1) 06:16 _Crossover with IND 63rd Street Line _08:02 _CENTER RIGHT: BMT Broadway Line Main Tracks Merge; FAR RIGHT: Trackways for unbuilt BMT Central Park West Line Merge _08:06 *BMT Broadway Line* 08:07 57th Street-Seventh Avenue (NYC Subway: N, R, W; NYCT Bus: M7, M20, M31, M57 )09:15 49th Street (SKIPPED) 09:28 _Express Tracks spread out to go around abandoned crossover on the 42nd Street Shuttle_ 09:50 _Express and Local Tracks recombine on same Right of Way_ 10:02 Times Square-42nd Street (NYC Subway: 1, 2, 3, 7, , A, C, E, 42nd Street Shuttle; 7, , B, D, F, , M @42nd Street-Bryant Park/Fifth Avenue via Passageway; Port Authority Bus Terminal; NYCT Bus: M7, M20, M34A SBS, M42, M104, SIM8, SIM8X, SIM22, SIM25, SIM26, SIM30; MTA Bus: BxM2) 11:19 34th Street-Herald Square (NYC Subway: B, D, F, , M, N, R, W; 1, 2, 3 @ 34th Street-Penn Station; A, C, E @ 34th Street-Penn Station; Amtrak, Long Island Railroad, New Jersey Transit, Long Distance Bus @ New York Penn Station; PATH: JSQ-33, HOB-33, JSQ-33 (via HOB) @ 33rd Street; NYCT Bus: M4, M5, M7, M34 SBS, M34A SBS, M55, Q32; MTA Bus: BxM2, QM1, QM2, QM3, QM4, QM5, QM6, QM10, QM11, QM12, QM15, QM16, QM17, QM18, QM20, QM24) 12:23 28th Street (SKIPPED) 12:57 23rd Street (SKIPPED) 13:38 14th Street-Union Square (NYC Subway: 4, 5, 6, , L, N, R, W; NYCT Bus: M1, M2, M3, M14A SBS, M14D SBS, SIM7, SIM33, X27, X28) 14:57 Eighth Street-New York University (SKIPPED) 15:51 Prince Street (SKIPPED) 16:40 Express Tracks Split from Main Line to Manhattan Bridge 16:58 *BMT Broadway Line (Manhattan Bridge Branch)* 17:11 _Bellmouth to Unbuilt Canal Street Crosstown_ 17:17 Canal Street (NYC Subway: 6, , J, N, R, W, Z; NYCT Bus: M55) 18:14 _Former Connection to Manhattan Bridge North Tracks and Former Nassau Street Line Connection to South Tracks (Connection demolished for Chrystie Street Connection (connected to North Tracks), Broadway tracks connected to South Tracks, Nassau Street tracks disconnected)_ 18:50 *Manhattan Bridge South Tracks* *Brooklyn* 24:21 _Remnants of pre-1956-1961 rebuild of DeKalb Avenue Interlocking_ 24:57 _Connection to Outbound North Bridge Track_ 26:00 _Connection from Outbound North Bridge Track_ 26:26 DeKalb Avenue (SKIPPED) 26:57 *BMT Fourth Avenue Line* 28:56 Atlantic Avenue-Barclays Center (NYC Subway: 2, 3, 4, 5, B, D, N, R, Q via R to Manhattan, Q Shuttle Bus; LIRR: City Terminal Zone @ Atlantic Terminal; NYCT Bus: B37, B41, B45, B63, B65, B67; MTA Bus: B103) 30:28 Union Street (SKIPPED )31:18 Ninth Street (SKIPPED) 32:03 Prospect Avenue (SKIPPED) 37:51 25th Street (SKIPPED) 33:57 36th Street (NYC Subway: D, N, Q via D to Manhattan, R; NYCT Bus: B70; B37 @ Third Avenue; B63 @ Fifth Avenue); B35 @ 35th Street) 35:21 _BMT West End Line Splits_ 35:35 _RIGHT: Bellmouth and Trackway to Unbuilt 40th Street Line_ 36:27 45th Street (SKIPPED) 37:09 53rd Street (SKIPPED) 37:48 59th Street (NYC Subway: N, R; NYCT Bus: B9; B37 @ Third Avenue; B63 @ Fifth Avenue; NYC Ferry: Rockaway and South Brooklyn Routes (at Brooklyn Army Terminal)) 39:10 _Sea Beach Line Splits_ 40:11 *BMT Sea Beach Line* 41:48 Eighth Avenue (SKIPPED) 42:38 Fort Hamilton Parkway (SKIPPED) 43:59 New Utrecht Avenue (SKIPPED) 44:50 18th Avenue (SKIPPED) 45:29 20th Avenue (SKIPPED) 46:20 Bay Parkway (SKIPPED) 48:23 Kings Highway (SKIPPED) 49:29 Avenue U (SKIPPED) 50:14 86th Street (SKIPPED) 51:02 _Connection to Coney Island Yard Complex_ 52:35 _Connection from Stillwell Yard (part of Coney Island Yard Complex)_ 54:25 _Crossover with BMT West End Line_ 55:01 Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue (Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue (NYC Subway: D, F, , N, Q via D to Manhattan, Q Shuttle to Prospect Park; NYCT Bus: B36, B64, B68, B74, B82)) 55:48 _Tracks Continue into BMT Brighton Line_
Great video! Hopefully one day in the future we can see the super expresses run with the NTTs! Would be great to see just how fast those sections can be.
@@morganlimes G O not needed they can introduce this service in revenue by a few simple changes to service. It would require 2 services to run on the 4th ave local full time and have one of em replace the west end.
Born and raised in Brooklyn New York. In my mid twenties I moved to the County of Baltimore. For a job that was located in Washington DC. I lived in the county not the city that's a disaster area but I got a nice size home in the county which was beautiful. I was only 18 minute drive from my job I got a lot for my money fast forward 35 years later I'm back in Brooklyn New York the traffic is insane the price of everything is through the roof I'm not sure if it has to do with the entire country or just New York's prices my biggest problem with New York and the boroughs if you're using a car and you need to get anywhere during a normal period of time you are going to run into traffic and that my friend sucks that's why so many people use their public transportation.
I couldn't agree more on the prices in NYC not only for housing or real estate but for basic items like food & food at entertainment. I actually live in Virginia but grew up in Brooklyn & Queens & have visited my parents that still live in Queens over the years. The prices are just insane there. I frequently pack the car with groceries when I go up there because it saves me the $$$ I use on tolls & gas. Example in VA a cup of Maruchan ramen is $0.28, in NYC it's $0.79, in VA a 96 oz container of Lactaid milk is $5.69, in NYC it goes for $7.99. Fortunately, when I am there for a longer period, my Dad has a club card that helps save & when we go on Wednesdays or Fridays, he gets a senior 10% off. LOL
@Irving Shekelstein Must of been amazing! I was getting ready to take a vacation there back in 2001 when 9/11 happened. Now I don't travel at all anymore.
video davvero molto bello, gradevole, rilassante. infrastrutture davvero notevoli. un pezzo di NYC mai visto . bisogna dire che una ventina di minuti circa è continuamente underground: una grande prova di forza e pazienza per chi conduce, ma è certo un lavoro da professionisti. mi piacciono tantissimo i graffiti lungo il tragitto e bisogna dire che in alcuni punti della ferrovia sembra di essere in un palcoscenico, tanto è il groviglio di strutture di cavi di luci di centraline... bellissimo, fantastico 😍! complimenti e congratulazioni.
This should be a daily rush hour express service, especially in the summer times to rush people to and from beaches and the carnival area of Coney Island.
@@morganlimes If Transit fix the whole southbound track and advertise it as the SEA BEACH EXPRESS to CONEY ISLAND then more people will get on it and take the last 5 miles of non-stop express service.
100 yr old subway system an absolute engineering marvel impossible to replicate in modern times..still there is so much negativity about it maybe that's because of human nature
18:13 the Nassau loop. Last stop on the R was chambers st on JMZ. If I'm not mistaken it's 2 tracks to the right of the Queenz side and it's used as a layup (sometimes). U can still see the bump stop signal.
I loved the detailed views of the tunnels and tracks; unlike others, they are well lit. I am studying the DeKalb Junction grade separation, and want to ride each of the tunnels of the line in both directions between DeKalb Ave station to the Manhattan Bridge to try and figure out how the grade separation was down in stages from a flat junction in the 1950's. Does anyone have a track diagram of the flat junction of pre 1950's ????? Aarre Peltomaa
That little turn to the left and then to the right north of 42nd St before they had timers there was scary if you didn't know it was coming. I was hauling ass with a light train years back and had an unpleasant experience right there.
Fantastic video, great work creating it. When you approach a switch track, how do you know the track is set correctly, so your train will move to the correct track and not go where it should not?
That responsibility is all up to the people in the control tower. Extremely extremely rare that it will ever go on the wrong tracks Thanks for watching
@@morganlimes If you are the train operator, and you approach a switch, can you see that the track is aligned to the track you want to go to? Is there something you look for to read the track, to know that, indeed you are switching to the correct location?
How long has it been since there was regular express service along the N line south of 59th? It seems only the northbound express track is maintained until it was switched to the "normal" southbound express track between Bay Hwy and Kings Hwy. I don't understand why there was a red signal when it was switched over as the southbound N was staying on the local track and there didn't seem to be any other traffic on the SB express track it was to proceed to... The unused SB track is overgrown and full of debris, and there's no 3rd rail any longer so it seems it's been a long time. It's frustrating that there's normally no express trains to Coney Island on the weekend as the B isn't running -- all other trains are local.
Thanks for sharing this with us. I love how the NY subway is so alike the Russian ones. Down to the very similar signaling system. I wonder how you avoid the click-clack of the third-rail pickup show on third-rail joins though. I'm also wondering why you don't have any automatic stop announcements in the trains.
The train in this video is the R46 which is very old by now. They are scheduled to be retired and replaced by newer trains in the next couple of years. All of the post 2000s equipment have automated announcements
I've seen this great video a few times, but I just noticed that this Q, running on the N line, pulled into Stillwell on its usual track. I wonder if it continued out in the same direction (kept going forward), following the Brighton local tracks.
Bro I don’t know what you do but the sound capture is amazing! Do you have mics all around the train? I like hearing the squeak of the 46s down express
Can anyone explain why there is track with no third rail and plenty of rubbish on it after it comes out of the portal in Brooklyn? I presume it used to be in service and now it’s no longer in use.
@@3ghin5 Yup there's a round plate in the front with more than enough space for the camera. Also since the camera is very small gravity is more than enough for it to Not fly off
I just went to 86 street, the stop before the terminal, and i quickly placed the camera at the tip of the floor using a grabber tool. not a train opersator haha BUT possibly in the future maybe
At 52:44, almost to Coney Island, the train stops at a red signal just short of four yellow-painted booms perched on top of what I think are steel equipment cases. What are those?
Does anyone know why the train has to hold before the switches by Kings Hwy? It did the same thing when I rode it. Obviously there was a red signla but, why?
Im not sure why but it sure does look unnecessary. There is another youtuber gogosupertoe who had it even worse than this Lol. His train was going slow, would stop randomly, stopped here in this switch and then even had to wait for an N train that was behind to pass first and then proceed afterwards
I'm thinking it stopped before Kings Highway because that switch is not monitored by an active tower. If I'm not mistaken the train operator has to call in on radio to Coney Island tower to proceed because it's going from 3 track operation (From after 59th St to just before Kings Hwy) to full 4 track operation. Not 100% sure but I have heard the operator call in on different videos of that same signal.
The video came out extra dark and shaky than usual in that part so I used some extra footage that I never used before that looks brighter in the exact same part. This also applies to part after the bridge
As a Brit., Watching this video, I’m very confused about the beginning. 62 Street can be two stations - west or east of Central Park. Following the station names on here on the subway map, the train seems to follow the A, C, D, B lines and then seems to ‘jump’ lines to get to Lexington Avenue 63rd Street though travelling towards Coney Island. Anyone able to help?
@@gothamtransitauthority7990 But when I say ‘jump’, I mean from line to line and direction rather than from station to station. If you follow the route this train took, it follows Central Park in the west, then round to the east and then makes its way back towards Coney Island somehow.
@@OfficialRyanx Oh okay I get it now, I'm just going to assume switching tracks. Either way, the lines after atlantic ave and barclays all end up at coney island
