Ralph Avenue station (IND Fulton Street Line)

"Ralph Avenue station" redirects here. For the demolished station at Ralph Avenue and Fulton Street, see Ralph Avenue station (BMT Fulton Street Line).

Ralph Avenue
View from southbound platform
Station statistics
Address	Ralph Avenue & Fulton Street Brooklyn, New York
Borough	Brooklyn
Locale	Bedford–Stuyvesant, Ocean Hill
Coordinates	40°40′44″N73°55′18″W / 40.678815°N 73.92168°W / 40.678815; -73.92168
Division	B (IND) [1]
Line	IND Fulton Street Line
Services	A   (late nights) ​   C   (all except late nights)
Transit	NYCT Bus: B25, B47
Structure	Underground
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	4
Other information
Opened	April 9, 1936;89 years ago (April 9, 1936) [2]
Opposite- direction transfer	Yes
Traffic
2024	1,093,924 [3]   1.9%
Rank	283 out of 423 [3]
Services Preceding station New York City Subway Following station Utica Avenue A   ​ C   toward 168th Street Local Rockaway Avenue A   ​ C   toward Euclid Avenue
Location Show map of New York City Subway Show map of New York City Show map of New York
Track layout Legend to Utica Avenue to Rockaway Avenue
Street map
Station service legend Symbol Description Stops all times except late nights Stops late nights only

The Ralph Avenue station is a local station on the IND Fulton Street Line of the New York City Subway. Located in Brooklyn at the intersection of Ralph Avenue and Fulton Street, it is served by the C train at all times except nights, when the A train serves the station.

History

This underground station opened on April 9, 1936, and replaced the BMT Fulton Street El. ^[2] The Ralph Avenue El station, which was formerly above the current subway station, closed on May 31, 1940. ^[4]

The New York City Board of Transportation announced plans in November 1949 to spend $325,000 extending platforms at several IND stations, including Ralph Avenue, to accommodate 11-car, 660-foot (200 m) trains. ^{[5] [6]} The lengthened trains began running during rush hour on September 8, 1953, with eleven-car trains operating on weekdays. ^{[7] : 37–38} The project cost $400,000 and increased the total carrying capacity of rush-hour trains by 4,000 passengers. ^[8] The operation of eleven-car trains ended in 1958 because of operational difficulties. The signal blocks, especially in Manhattan, were too short to accommodate the longer trains, and the motormen had a very small margin of error to properly align the train with the platform. It was found that operating ten-car trains allowed for two additional trains per hour to be scheduled. ^[9]

Station layout

Ground	Street level	Exit/entrance
Mezzanine		Fare control, station agent, MetroCard machines
Platform level	Side platform
	Westbound local	← toward 168th Street (Utica Avenue) ← toward Inwood–207th Street late nights (Utica Avenue)
	Westbound express	← does not stop here
	Eastbound express	→ does not stop here →
	Eastbound local	→ toward Euclid Avenue (Rockaway Avenue) → → toward Far Rockaway–Mott Avenue late nights (Rockaway Avenue) →
	Side platform

Mosaic name tablet and stair to mezzanine on the northbound platform

Closed entrance at Howard Avenue

Mezzanine level, facing the closed end

The station has four tracks and two side platforms. The two express tracks are used by the A train during daytime hours.

Both platforms are column-less and have a maroon trim-line with a deep maroon border and name tablets reading "RALPH AVE." in white sans-serif lettering on a deep maroon background and maroon border. Underneath the trim line are small directional and station signs reading "RALPH" in white lettering on a black background.

This station has a full length mezzanine above the platforms and tracks. Only the western entrance is open to the public, and there are four staircases to each platform. The mezzanine columns are painted maroon (previously dark livid) except for those that had payphones on them, which are instead painted yellow.

Exits

The fare control area at the extreme west end has a bank of four turnstiles and one exit-only turnstile. There are a token booth and two street stairs, one to the southeast corner of Ralph Avenue and Fulton Street and the other to the northeast peninsula formed by Ralph Avenue, MacDougal Street, and Fulton Street. ^[10]

This station formerly had another entrance/exit to Howard Avenue and Fulton Street at the east (railroad south) end. The street stairs on the northwest side of the intersection, though closed, remain intact, but the street stairs on the southwest side of the intersection were sealed. Both platforms have one staircase to the closed-off portion of the mezzanine. ^[10]

References

1. "Glossary". Second Avenue Subway Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement (SDEIS) (PDF). Vol. 1. Metropolitan Transportation Authority. March 4, 2003. pp. 1–2. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 26, 2021. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
2. "NEW SUBWAY LINK OPENED BY MAYOR; He Tells 15,000 in Brooklyn It Will Be Extended to Queens When Red Tape Is Cut". The New York Times. April 9, 1936. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved August 15, 2016.
3. "Annual Subway Ridership (2018–2023)". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2023. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
4. The New York Times , Last Train is Run on Fulton St. 'El', June 1, 1940
5. Bennett, Charles G. (November 20, 1949). "Transit Platforms on Lines in Queens to Be Lengthened; $3,850,000 Program Outlined for Next Year to Care for Borough's Rapid Growth". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved May 23, 2023.
6. "37 Platforms On Subways To Be Lengthened: All Stations of B. M. T. and I.R.T. in Queens Included in $5,000,000 Program". New York Herald Tribune. November 20, 1949. p. 32. ISSN   1941-0646. ProQuest   1325174459.
7. Report. New York City Transit Authority. 1953.
8. Ingalls, Leonard (August 28, 1953). "2 Subway Lines to Add Cars, Another to Speed Up Service" (PDF). The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved January 25, 2016.
9. "16-Point Plan Can Give Boro Relief Now". Long Island Star–Journal. August 10, 1962. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
10. "MTA Neighborhood Maps: Ocean Hill" (PDF). Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2016. Retrieved July 5, 2016.

External links

• nycsubway.org – IND Fulton: Ralph Avenue
• Station Reporter — C Train
• The Subway Nut — Ralph Avenue Pictures
• Ralph Avenue entrance from Google Maps Street View
• Closed Howard Avenue entrance from Google Maps Street View
• Platforms from Google Maps Street View