34th Street–Penn Station (IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line)

Infobox NYCS
name = 34th Street–Penn Station

---

accessible = yes
bg_color = #E20F00
line = IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line
service = Broadway-Seventh south
platforms = 1 island platform, 2 side platforms
tracks = 4
passengers = 27.804 million
pass_year = 2007
pass_percent = 5
borough = Manhattan
connection = Amtrak, LIRR, and NJ Transit at Pennsylvania Station
connection_2 = PATH at 33rd Street
open_date = July 1, 1918
north_station = Times Square–42nd Street
north_station_acc = yes
north_line = IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line
north_service = Broadway-Seventh
south_line = IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line
south_local_station = 28th Street
south_local_service = Broadway-Seventh south local
south_express_station = 14th Street
south_express_service = Broadway-Seventh south express

34th Street–Penn Station is a station on the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line of the New York City Subway. Located at the intersection of 34th Street and Seventh Avenue, it is served by the NYCS|1 and NYCS|2 trains at all times, and the NYCS|3 train at all times except late nights. Connections are available to the LIRR, NJ Transit, and Amtrak in Pennsylvania Station and to PATH at 33rd Street and Sixth Avenue.

History

34th Street-Penn Station on the IRT Broadway-Seventh Avenue Line was opened on 1 July 1918 as part of an extension of the IRT, the dominant subway in Manhattan at the time, from Times Squre-42nd Street to South Ferry. [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9D02E0DA173BE033A25751C0A9619C946996D6CF Open new subway to regular traffic] "New York Times" Retrieved 2008-08-27] This meant that the subway would be expanded down the Lower West Side to neighborhoods such as Greenwich Village and the western portion of Lower Manhattan. As part of this and the northern IRT Lexington Avenue Line extension, the IRT network would be radically changed from an S-shaped line connecting the eastern side of Lower Manhattan to the Upper West Side to an H-shaped network with two parallel lines, the East and West Side Lines, and a shuttle at 42nd Street connecting them. [http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9507EEDE1739E13ABC4A53DFBE668383609EDE Open new subway lines to traffic; called a triumph] "New York Times" Retrieved 2008-08-27]

tation layout

Like 34th Street–Penn Station on the IND Eighth Avenue Line and Atlantic Avenue on the IRT Eastern Parkway Line, this station has side platforms for local service and an island platform for express service. This is due to the expected increase in ridership and to encourage riders to switch at the next stop northbound, Times Square-42nd Street, as it is set up in the usual island platform manner for cross-platform interchanges. [http://nycsubway.org/perl/stations?6:3134 34th Street-Penn Station] "NYCSubway" Retrieved 2008-08-27]

There is no free transfer between this station and 34th Street–Penn Station (NYCS Eighth south) on the Eighth Avenue Line, despite the fact that both connect to Penn Station. The nearest transfer location is at Times Square-42nd Street with a free transfer to 42nd Street-Port Authority Bus Terminal.

Entrances and exits

34th Street-Penn Station spans three streets: 32nd, 33rd, and 34th Streets. For each of these streets there is a set of entrances and exits. For the purposes of this article, entrance and exit are interchangeable except when explicitly mentioned.

*34th Street exits access icon|10px: There are four entrances directly from the intersection of 34th Street and 7th Avenue. On the local platforms the turnstiles for these exits are at platform level; passengers wishing to use the express platforms must use a passeageway beneath the platforms and tracks. These entrances utilise the northern portions of the platforms. There is also a supplementary and handicapped-accessible entrance to the Penn Station complex in general from 34th Street.
*33rd Street exits: There are three direct entrances from the street at 33rd Street and 7th Avenue. As a replacement for the southwestern corner's lack of an entrance, there is an underground entrance directly connecting the station with the Long Island Rail Road concourse in the Penn Station complex. The turnstiles for this entrance are located below the track level and utilise the central portions of the platforms. There are no turnstiles at platform level for these exits.
*32nd Street exits:The main entrance to the Penn Station complex is located on the western end of 32nd Street. From there, passengers must go through the New Jersey Transit and Long Island Rail Road concourses and use the main entrance to the station at the end of the latter's concourse. There is also a smaller exit from the station and the southern ends of the platforms that connects with the end of the New Jersey Transit concourse where it meets the Long Island Rail Road underneath the main corridor in the station that connects New Jersey Transit and Amtrak. There is also an entrance on the north side of 32nd Street between 7th and 6th Avenues.

Ridership

34th Street-Penn Station is continually ranked as one of the busiest stations in the subway system. As of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's most recent ridership data, 34th Street-Penn Station was the fifth-busiest subway station with 27.804 million riders in 2007, a five per cent increase in ridership from 2006. [http://mta.info/nyct/facts/ridership/ridership_sub.htm 2007 ridership by subway station] "Metropolitan Transportation Authority" Retrieved 2008-08-28] [http://transit.frumin.net/subway/growth/nyc-station-ridership.xls.zip 1904-2006 ridership figures] "Metropolitan Transportation Authority" Retrieved 2008-08-28] Interestingly, when 34th Street-Penn Station was only a shuttle stop before the rest of the South Ferry extension opened, ridership was quite low; in its first year of operation, only 78,121 boardings were recorded. In fact, a now-minor stop such as 50th Street had 8.789 million riders during the same period. Ironically, in 2007 50th Street had lower ridership than in the 1910s with only 8.227 million boardings.

Bus connections

* M4
* M10
* M16
* M34
* Q32

References

External links

*
* Station Reporter — [http://www.stationreporter.net/1train.htm 1 Train]
* Station Reporter — [http://www.stationreporter.net/2train.htm 2 Train]
* Station Reporter — [http://www.stationreporter.net/3train.htm 3 Train]
* The Subway Nut — [http://subwaynut.com/irt/34n1.htm 34 Street-Penn Station (1, 2, 3, 9)]