Hunterspoint Avenue station (LIRR)

Not to be confused with Hunters Point Avenue station or Hunts Point Avenue station.

Hunterspoint Ave
The western end of the station.
General information
Location	49th Avenue between 21st Street and Skillman Avenue Hunters Point and Long Island City, Queens, New York
Coordinates	40°44′32″N73°56′50″W / 40.74222°N 73.94722°W / 40.74222; -73.94722
Owned by	Long Island Rail Road
Line(s)	Main Line
Distance	0.6 mi (0.97 km) from Long Island City [1]
Platforms	1 island platform
Tracks	2
Connections	New York City Subway : ​ at Hunters Point Avenue at 21st Street NYCT Bus : B62 (at Jackson Avenue) MTA Bus : Q67
Construction
Parking	No
Bicycle facilities	No
Accessible	No; accessibility planned
Other information
Fare zone	1
History
Opened	1860
Closed	1902
Rebuilt	1903, 1914
Electrified	June 16, 1910 750 V (DC) third rail
Passengers
2006	6,479 [2]
Services
Preceding station Long Island Rail Road Following station Long Island City Terminus Port Jefferson Branch limited service Jamaica toward Port Jefferson Oyster Bay Branch limited service Jamaica toward Oyster Bay Montauk Branch limited service Jamaica toward Montauk
Former services Preceding station Long Island Rail Road Following station Long Island City Terminus Main Line Woodside toward Greenport
Location

Hunterspoint Avenue is a station on the Main Line of the Long Island Rail Road, within the City Terminal Zone. It is located at 49th Avenue (formerly Hunters Point Avenue) between 21st Street and Skillman Avenue in the Hunters Point and Long Island City neighborhoods of Queens, New York City. This ground-level station has an island platform between two tracks and is not wheelchair accessible from the entrance above the station.

The Hunterspoint Avenue station is only served during weekday rush hours in the peak direction (to Hunterspoint Avenue from Long Island in the morning; from Hunterspoint Avenue to Long Island in the evening). Trains serving here usually run on the Oyster Bay, Montauk, or Port Jefferson Branches. Some westbound trains continue to and terminate at Long Island City, and some eastbound trains originate in Long Island City. All service at the station is provided by diesel trains, which can neither use the East River Tunnels nor the 63rd Street Tunnel – although the tracks are electrified.

History

Hunterspoint Avenue station opened in August 1860, three years before the New York and Flushing Railroad built their own Hunter's Point station.^{[ citation needed ]}

According to a New York Times article from May 1914, the third station was scheduled to open on July 1, 1914. ^[3] Instead, the reopening date was delayed until October 18, 1914. ^[4]

In June 1947, only two weekday trains were scheduled east from Hunterspoint Ave, one to Jamaica and one to Queens Village. Trains destined beyond electrified territory could leave Penn Station behind DD1 electric locomotives and change engines at Jamaica; thirteen weekday trains did so. That service ended in 1951, leading to Hunterspoint Avenue's present role.^{[ citation needed ]}

On November 22, 1948, a 155 foot (47 m)-long extension of the platform went into service. ^[5]

In the 2010s, it was announced that the station would receive renovations and become compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as part of the 2015–2019 MTA Capital Program. ^[6] However, this was pushed back in an amendment from August 2017 until the MTA's 2020–2024 Capital Program. ^{[6] [7]}

Station layout

The station has one 10-car long high-level island platform between the two Main Line tracks, with stairways on both sides of 49th Avenue.^{[ citation needed ]}

G	Street level	Entrance/exit to 49th Avenue
P Platform level	Track 1	←       Port Jefferson Branch AM rush hours toward Long Island City (Terminus) ←       Oyster Bay Branch AM rush hours toward Long Island City (Terminus) ←       Montauk Branch AM rush hours toward Long Island City (Terminus) ←      Port Jefferson Branch PM rush hours toward Huntington or Port Jefferson (Jamaica) → ←      Oyster Bay Branch PM rush hours toward Oyster Bay (Jamaica) → ←      Montauk Branch PM rush hours toward Patchogue, Speonk or Montauk (Jamaica) →
	Island platform, doors will open on the left or right
	Track 2	←       Port Jefferson Branch AM rush hours toward Long Island City (Terminus) ←       Oyster Bay Branch AM rush hours toward Long Island City (Terminus) ←       Montauk Branch AM rush hours toward Long Island City (Terminus) ←      Port Jefferson Branch PM rush hours toward Huntington or Port Jefferson (Jamaica) → ←      Oyster Bay Branch PM rush hours toward Oyster Bay (Jamaica) → ←      Montauk Branch PM rush hours toward Patchogue, Speonk or Montauk (Jamaica) →

Gallery

• 
  Hunterspoint Avenue station, as seen from IRT Flushing Line subway train.
• 
  The North end of the station seen from the overpass bridge.
• 
  Junction; left branch crosses Borden Avenue to HP station.
• 
  A New Jersey Transit commuter train passes by on the way to Penn Station as it leaves the Sunnyside Yard.
• 
  An Amtrak train passes by on the way to Penn Station as it leaves the Sunnyside Yard.

References

1. Long Island Rail Road (May 14, 2012). "TIMETABLE No. 4" (PDF). p. III. Retrieved August 4, 2022.
2. Average weekday, 2006 LIRR Origin and Destination Study
3. "New Railway Station; At Hunters Point Avenue, L.I. City, to Open July 1". The New York Times . May 3, 1914. p. XX1. Retrieved February 12, 2010.
4. "Long Island Rail Road Alphabetical Station Listing and History". trainsarefun.com. Archived from the original on May 26, 2017. Retrieved February 12, 2010.
5. "Extended Rail Platform in Use". The New York Times. November 23, 1948. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved January 4, 2021.
6. Heaton, Richard (November 21, 2019). "MTA sidetracks new LIRR Elmhurst station". Queens Chronicle. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
7. Castillo, Alfonso A. (September 23, 2019). "LIRR plan: Upgrade stations, new trains". Newsday. Archived from the original on June 18, 2021. Retrieved August 15, 2020.

External links

• Hunterspoint Avenue – LIRR
• Hunterspoint Avenue LIRR timetable
• Hunterspoint Avenue entrance from Google Maps Street View
• Platform from Google Maps Street View
• Wooden Station Sign and covered entrance from the bridge in 1958; by W.J. Edwards (TrainsAreFun)