IRT Flushing Line

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Services that use the Flushing Line are colored {{NYCS const|color|purple}}. The following services use part or all of the IRT Flushing Line:{{NYCS const|serviceguide}}

The line has two distinct sections, split by the Queensboro Plaza station. It begins as a three-track subway, with the center track used for express service, at Flushing–Main Street.{{NYCS const|trackref|trackbook3}} It quickly leaves the ground onto a steel elevated structure above Roosevelt Avenue, passing Citi Field and the United States Tennis Association's National Tennis Center. A flying junction between Mets–Willets Point and 111th Street provides access to the Corona Yard from the local tracks.{{NYCS const|trackref|trackbook}} At 48th Street in Sunnyside, the line switches to Queens Boulevard and an ornate concrete viaduct begins. The express track ends between 33rd Street–Rawson Street and Queensboro Plaza.{{Cite web|url=https://accessqueens.org/couch/uploads/file/4-5-16-askthemta_7train_presesentation.pdf|title=Flushing Line 2016 Town Hall April 5, 2016 Sunnyside, Queens|date=April 5, 2016|website=Access Queens|publisher=Metropolitan Transportation Authority|access-date=October 22, 2017}}

At Queensboro Plaza, the eastbound track (railroad north) is above the westbound track, with both tracks on the south side of the island platforms. On the north side of these platforms is the BMT Astoria Line. East of this point, both the Flushing Line and the Astoria Line were formerly operated by the IRT and the BMT. Connections still exist between the eastbound tracks just east of the platforms, but cannot be used for revenue service as BMT trains are wider than IRT trains. This is the only track connection between the Flushing Line and the rest of the subway system.

West of Queensboro Plaza, the line sharply turns south onto an elevated structure over 23rd Street. It heads into the west end of Amtrak's Sunnyside Yard, and passes through two underground stations before entering Manhattan via the Steinway Tunnel under the East River. In Manhattan, the line runs under 42nd Street, with part directly underneath the 42nd Street Shuttle ({{NYCS trains|42nd}}), before angling towards 41st Street. The Times Square–42nd Street station, with no track connections to other lines, is directly under 41st Street.

West of Times Square, the tracks curve sharply downward before turning under 11th Avenue. The tracks end at 24th Street, even though the last station is at 34th Street.{{NYCS const|trackref|469}} This segment was built as part of the extension of the Flushing Line west to Manhattan's Far West Side (see {{section link||Extension westward}}). A decommissioned lower level at the IND Eighth Avenue Line's 42nd Street–Port Authority Bus Terminal station formerly blocked the way.{{Cite news |title=No Whoosh, No 'All Aboard' |first=Alex |last=Mindlin |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/20/nyregion/thecity/20port.html |newspaper=The New York Times |date=April 20, 2008 |access-date=February 28, 2010}} Although London ultimately received the bid for the 2012 Summer Olympics, New York City pursued the extension anyway, albeit as a means to enable the redevelopment of the far West Side under the Hudson Yards Redevelopment Project.

{{wide image|Linea IRT Flushing.png|600px|Overview of the IRT Flushing Line}}

The Flushing Line is one of only two New York City non-shuttle subway lines that hosts only a single service and does not share operating trackage with any other line or service; the other is the BMT Canarsie Line, carrying the {{NYCS|L}} train. Because of this, the MTA is automating the line with new trains using communication-based train control (CBTC), similar to the Canarsie Line (see {{Section link||Automation of the line}}).

The IRT Flushing Line's 7 service has the distinction of running trains with the largest number of cars in the New York City Subway. 7 trains are eleven cars long; most other New York City Subway services run ten or eight-car trains. The trains are not the longest by total length, however. An IND/BMT train of ten {{convert|60|ft|adj=on}}-long cars or eight {{convert|75|ft|adj=on}}-long cars, which is {{convert|600|ft}} long, is still {{convert|35|ft|m}} longer than an IRT train of eleven {{convert|51.4|ft|adj=on}}-long cars, which is {{convert|565|ft}} long.

{{for|the history of the subway service|7 (New York City Subway service)#History}}

The earliest origins of the Flushing Line emerged on February 22, 1885, with the founding of the East River Tunnel Railroad. The railroad would construct the Steinway Tunnel under the East River, connecting the Long Island Rail Road in Queens with the New York Central Railroad in Manhattan.{{Cite news|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1885/02/22/103628293.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210819015807/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1885/02/22/103628293.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=August 19, 2021|title=Tunnel Under the East River.|date=February 22, 1885|work=The New York Times|access-date=January 9, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}} However, the East River Tunnel Railroad Company went out of business. On July 22, 1887, Walter S. Gurnee and Malcolm W. Niven founded the New York and Long Island Railroad Company (NY&LIRR). They soon began planning for the tunnel.

To run from West 42nd Street and Tenth Avenue to Van Alst Avenue after crossing under the East River, the builders planned for the remainder of the line to be constructed on private lands, and numerous alterations were made to the proposal. In 1890, William Steinway advised the company to utilize electricity to power the tunnels, believing that the construction of the tunnel would increase the value of his properties in the vicinity.{{Cite news|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1890/12/28/106045783.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191222050527/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1890/12/28/106045783.pdf|archive-date=December 22, 2019|title=Rapid-Transit Systems; One Plan or Parts of Several May Be Adopted. the Availability and Utility of a Roomy Tunnel – Speed, Light, and Cleanliness Obtainable by the Use of Electricity.|date=December 28, 1890|work=The New York Times|access-date=January 9, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}

On June 3, 1892, construction of the tunnel commenced near the intersection of 50th Avenue and Vernon and Jackson Avenues.{{cite book |last=Hood |first=Clifton |title=722 Miles: The Building of the Subways and How They Transformed New York |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Az6dEkuGhccC |access-date=August 26, 2009 |edition=Centennial |year=2004 |publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press |location=Baltimore |pages=163–168 |isbn=978-0-8018-8054-4 }}{{rp|164}} However, several failures and hindrances, which included an underground spring preventing the extraction of rubble, resulted in the termination of the project on February 2, 1893.{{rp|165}} Several calls for the resumption of the project between 1893 and 1896, in addition to a proposed extension to New Jersey, were futile.{{cite web|last1=Feinman|first1=Mark S.|last2=Darlington|first2=Peggy|last3=Pirmann|first3=David|title=IRT Flushing Line|url=http://www.nycsubway.org/wiki/IRT_Flushing_Line|website=www.nycsubway.org|access-date=April 21, 2013}} Work resumed in 1905, and test runs with streetcars began in 1907. Though the streetcar tests were successful, the tunnel remained closed to passengers. The tunnel opened for subway use on June 22, 1915, with service running between Grand Central and Vernon–Jackson Avenues.{{cite news|title=Queensboro Tunnel Officially Opened — Subway, Started Twenty-Three Years Ago, Links Grand Central and Long Island City — Speeches Made in Station — Belmont, Shonts, and Connolly Among Those Making Addresses — $10,000,000 Outlay|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1915/06/23/100163384.pdf|newspaper=The New York Times|date=June 23, 1915|page=22|access-date=October 2, 2011}}

The Flushing Line was extended one stop from Vernon–Jackson Avenues to Hunters Point Avenue on February 15, 1916.{{Cite news|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1916/02/16/100192409.pdf|title=Subway Extension Open – Many Use New Hunters Point Avenue Station|newspaper=The New York Times|date=February 16, 1916|page=22|access-date=August 31, 2016}}{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=05clAQAAIAAJ|title=Documents of the Senate of the State of New York|last=Senate|first=New York (State) Legislature|date=January 1, 1917|language=en}} On November 5, 1916, the Flushing Line was extended two more stops to the east to the Queensboro Plaza station.{{cite news|title=New Subway Link|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1916/11/05/104027201.pdf|newspaper=The New York Times|date=November 5, 1916|page=XX4|access-date=October 2, 2011}} At this point, the Flushing Line between Grand Central and Queensboro Plaza was called the Queensboro Line.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MrAjAQAAMAAJ|title=Minutes and Proceedings|publisher=New York City Transit Authority|date=January 1, 1955|language=en}}{{cite report |title=1916–1917 Annual Report of the Interborough Rapid Transit Company for the Year Ended June 30, 1917 |publisher=Interborough Rapid Transit Company|hdl=2027/mdp.39015016416920 |hdl-access=free}}

The Dual Contracts were formalized in March 1913, specifying new lines or expansions to be built by the IRT and the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company (BRT).{{Cite news |date=March 19, 1913 |title=Money Set Aside for New Subways; Board of Estimate Approves City Contracts to be Signed To-day with Interboro and B.R.T. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1913/03/19/104910612.pdf |url-status=live |access-date=November 10, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210707225820/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1913/03/19/104910612.pdf |archive-date=July 7, 2021 |issn=0362-4331}} The Dual Contracts involved opening the Steinway Tunnel as part of the new Flushing subway line.{{cite magazine |last=Rogoff |first=David |year=1960 |title=The Steinway Tunnels |url=https://nycsubway.org/wiki/The_Steinway_Tunnels_%281960%29 |url-status=live |magazine=Electric Railroads |publisher=Electric Railroaders' Association |issue=29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191210061431/https://www.nycsubway.org/wiki/The_Steinway_Tunnels_(1960) |archive-date=December 10, 2019 |access-date=December 22, 2020}}{{cite book |last=Hood |first=Clifton |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Az6dEkuGhccC |title=722 Miles: The Building of the Subways and How They Transformed New York |publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-8018-8054-4 |edition=Centennial |location=Baltimore |pages=163–168 |access-date=August 26, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220425235930/https://books.google.com/books?id=Az6dEkuGhccC |archive-date=April 25, 2022 |url-status=live}}{{rp|168}} The route, traveling under 41st and 42nd Streets in Manhattan, was to go from Times Square through the tunnel over to Long Island City and from there continue toward Flushing.{{cite book |url=https://www.nycsubway.org/wiki/Chapter_1:_Dual_System_of_Rapid_Transit |title=New Subways For New York: The Dual System of Rapid Transit Chapter 1: Dual System of Rapid Transit |publisher=New York State Public Service Commission |year=1913 |access-date=December 22, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210111162732/https://www.nycsubway.org/wiki/Chapter_1:_Dual_System_of_Rapid_Transit |archive-date=January 11, 2021 |url-status=live}}File:Queens_Boulevard,_New_York_City_(1920).jpg, seen in 1920]]

At Queensboro Plaza, the line met the BMT's 60th Street Tunnel, as well as a spur from the elevated IRT Second Avenue Line on the Queensboro Bridge. From this point east, the Flushing and Astoria Lines were built by the City of New York as part of the Dual Contracts. They were officially IRT lines on which the BMT held irrevocable and equal trackage rights. Because BMT trains were wider, and the platforms had been built for the IRT, normal BMT trains ran only to Queensboro Plaza, with a transfer to shuttles, using elevated cars, that alternated between the Astoria–Ditmars Boulevard and Flushing–Main Street terminals. IRT trains simply continued from the Queensboro Line and Queensboro Bridge onto the lines to Astoria and Flushing.{{cite journal |last=Rogoff |first=David |year=1960 |url=https://nycsubway.org/wiki/The_Steinway_Tunnels_%281960%29 |title=The Steinway Tunnels |journal=Electric Railroads |issue= 29 }} The line to Flushing was originally called the Corona Line or Woodside and Corona Line before it was completed to Flushing.{{Cite news|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1913/07/06/100633544.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230722153219/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1913/07/06/100633544.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 22, 2023|title=STATION SITES FOR NEW SUBWAYS; Pamphlet Issued by Utilities Board Contains List of Stops on Dual System.|date=July 6, 1913|work=The New York Times|access-date=October 1, 2017|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V99LAQAAMAAJ|title=Annual Report|date=1928|publisher=J.B. Lyon Company|language=en}}{{Rp|9, 128}} The segment of the viaduct above Queens Boulevard, from 33rd to 48th streets, was made of concrete rather than steel because it was intended to serve as a gateway to Queens.

The line was opened from Queensboro Plaza to Alburtis Avenue on April 21, 1917.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Fg4KAQAAMAAJ|title=A History of the New York City Subway System|last1=Cunningham|first1=Joseph|last2=DeHart|first2=Leonard O.|date=1993|publisher=J. Schmidt, R. Giglio, and K. Lang|page=48|language=en}}{{cite news|title=Transit Service on Corona Extension of Dual Subway System Opened to the Public|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1917/04/22/102336714.pdf|newspaper=The New York Times|date=April 22, 1917|page=RE1|access-date=October 2, 2011}}{{Cite news|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1917/04/20/102335849.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624031916/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1917/04/20/102335849.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=June 24, 2021|title=To Celebrate Corona Line Opening.|date=April 20, 1917|work=The New York Times|access-date=October 1, 2017|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}} The Flushing Line was initially derided by opponents, as it passed through agricultural areas rather than connecting populated places, as previous lines had. Rapid development quickly followed once the Flushing Line was operational, with six-story apartment buildings being erected directly on the former fields, and several major firms building housing for their workers along the route.{{cite web|url=https://nypost.com/2017/08/04/how-one-subway-line-changed-new-york-forever/|title=The Subway Line That Changed New York Forever|work=New York Post|date=August 4, 2017|access-date=January 16, 2020}} By June 1917 ridership on the line was exceeding expectations, with 363,726 passengers using the Corona Line that month, 126,100 using the Queensboro Plaza station, and 363,508 using the Queensboro Subway.{{Cite news|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1917/08/12/102359307.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240704083337/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1917/08/12/102359307.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 4, 2024|title=BIG TRAFFIC INCREASE.; Reports Show a Total of 100,000 Over May on Queensboro Subway.|date=August 12, 1917|work=The New York Times|access-date=October 1, 2017|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}

BMT shuttles began to use the Flushing and Astoria Lines on April 8, 1923.{{cite news|title=Additional Subway Service to Borough of Queens|url=http://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1923/04/08/issue.html|newspaper=The New York Times|date=April 8, 1923|page=RE1}} Service to 111th Street was inaugurated on October 13, 1925, with shuttle service running between 111th Street and the previous terminal at Alburtis Avenue (now 103rd Street–Corona Plaza) on the Manhattan-bound track.{{cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/59882105/?terms=%22111th%2BStreet%22%2Bsubway%2Bqueens%2Bcorona|title=First Trains to be Run on Flushing Tube Line Oct. 13: Shuttle Operation Ordered to 111th Street Station on New Extension|date=October 5, 1925|website=Newspapers.com|publisher=Brooklyn Daily Eagle|page=8|access-date=September 20, 2015}}{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jw8kAQAAMAAJ|title=Poor's...1925|date=1925|page=523|language=en}} The line to Main Street had been practically completed at this point, but had to be rebuilt in part due to the sinking of the foundations of the structure in the vicinity of Flushing Creek.{{cite news|title=Flushing Rejoices as Subway Opens|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1928/01/22/94122788.pdf|newspaper=The New York Times|date=January 22, 1928|page=28|access-date=October 2, 2011}} Once the structure was deemed to be safe for operation, the line was extended to Willets Point Boulevard on May 7, 1927.{{cite news|title=Corona Subway Extended|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1927/05/08/96646501.pdf|newspaper=The New York Times|date=May 8, 1927|page=26|access-date=October 2, 2011}}{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/stream/annualreport7192newy#page/12/mode/2up/search/pelham|title=Annual Report|date=1927|publisher=J.B. Lyon Company|language=en}}{{Rp|13}} This extension was served by shuttle trains until through service was inaugurated on May 14. On that date, the opening of the station was formally celebrated; it coincided with the opening of the Roosevelt Avenue Bridge for cars and buses.{{cite news|title=Flushing to Celebrate|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1927/05/13/117990767.pdf|newspaper=The New York Times|date=May 13, 1927|page=8|access-date=October 2, 2011}}{{cite news|title=Dual Queens Celebration|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1927/05/15/96648620.pdf|newspaper=The New York Times|date=May 15, 1927|page=3|access-date=October 2, 2011}} Wooden elevated rolling stock had to be used by the BMT, as the Flushing Line was built to IRT clearances, and standard steel BMT subway rolling stock were not compatible.{{Cite web |title=nycsubway.org: IRT Flushing Line |url=https://www.nycsubway.org/wiki/IRT_Flushing_Line |access-date=March 20, 2022 |website=www.nycsubway.org}}

In July 1920, the New York State Public Service Commission announced it would extend the Flushing Line two stops west to Times Square, with an intermediate station under Bryant Park. The western end of the Bryant Park station would be {{convert|300|ft}} east of Sixth Avenue, while the eastern end would be about {{convert|100|ft}} west of Fifth Avenue.{{Cite news |date=July 25, 1920 |title=Plan New Station for 42d Street; Proposed as Part of Extension of the Queensboro Subway. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1920/07/25/archives/plan-new-station-for-42d-street-proposed-as-part-of-extension-of.html |access-date=July 12, 2022 |issn=0362-4331}}{{cite news |date=July 25, 1920 |title=Subway Station on 42d St. Between 5th and 6th Avs. |page=A12 |work=New-York Tribune |id={{ProQuest|576244392}}}} The 42nd Street Association, a local civic group, regarded the station as very important. In May 1921, it was expected that contracts for the extension would be advertised shortly.{{Cite news |date=May 15, 1921 |title=East River Subway Nears Completion: Transit Commission Consulting Engineer Reports on Tube Construction |work=New York Herald |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/35604540/new-york-herald/ |access-date=July 12, 2022}}

On November 9, 1921, the New York State Transit Commission opened up the contract for the extension for bidding. The extension would take a slightly different route than the one specified in the Dual Contracts. The original proposal had the line constructed under 42nd Street to a point just to the east of Broadway, which would have forced riders transferring to the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line to walk a long distance.{{Cite news |date=November 6, 1922 |title=Queensboro Tube to be Extended West: Bids for Construction of Subway Over to 8th Ave. to be Opened Wednesday; Two Years' Job |work=New-York Tribune |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/65994240/new-york-tribune/ |access-date=July 12, 2022}}

The Times Square station would be designed at a lower level than the two existing stations at Times Square. It would have two upper mezzanines connected by passageways: a mezzanine east of Seventh Avenue extending to Broadway, and one west of Seventh Avenue. Escalators would connect these upper mezzanines with the lower mezzanine, and a provision would be made to permit the installation of an escalator to the east of Seventh Avenue. There would be two entrances at street level at each of the western corners of 41st Street and Broadway, and two entrances at the northeastern corner of 41st Street and Seventh Avenue.

On November 22, 1921, the Powers-Kennedy Contracting Corporation was awarded a contract to construct the extension on a low bid of $3,867,138, below the estimated cost of over $4 million. This low bid was the narrowest margin ever recorded for any large city contract, beating out the next highest bidder by 0.7 percent. While the contractor was provided four years to complete work, engineers expected to reduce the time needed to do so to as little as three years. Since work on the project had to be completed underneath the foundations of several large buildings, such as theatres, and the north end of the New York Public Library, the contractor had to provide a $1 million bond.{{Cite news |date=November 28, 1921 |title=Subway Bids 0.7 P.C. Apart: Unprecedentedly Small Difference in Estimates Offered |work=The Brooklyn Times Union |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/35066635/times-union/ |access-date=July 12, 2022}}

The project was expected to reduce crowding on the 42nd Street Shuttle by enabling riders to use the Queensboro Subway to directly access Times Square. 24,000 of the estimated 100,000 daily shuttle riders transferred to and from the Queensboro Subway. The line was to extend as far as Eighth Avenue to connect with the proposed IND Eighth Avenue Line.{{Cite news |date=November 23, 1921 |title=Queensboro Subway Contract Is Awarded; $3,867,138 Bid for 42d Street Extension Let to Powers-Kennedy by Commission. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1921/11/23/archives/queensboro-subway-contract-is-awarded-3867138-bid-for-42d-street.html |access-date=July 12, 2022 |issn=0362-4331}}{{cite news |date=November 23, 1921 |title=Subway Power Expense Added To 'L' Burdens: Impoverished System Forced to Foot Bills for Overhead, According to Check-Up of Interborough Transactions Hedley on Stand To-day Auditor Admits Campaign to Raise Fare Was Charged to I. R. T. Operating Cost |page=24 |work=New-York Tribune |id={{ProQuest|576494810}}}}

Powers-Kennedy started excavating the line westward from Grand Central in May 1922. The Flushing Line extension was to run beneath the original line from Vanderbilt to Fifth Avenue,{{Cite news |date=May 14, 1922 |title=Start Work on Forty-second Street Extension; New Link Will Run From Lexington Avenue and Forty-second Street to Forty-first Street and Eighth Avenue—Contractors Promise to Rush Work and Keep Streets Clear of Obstructions as Far as Possible |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1922/05/14/archives/start-work-on-fortysecond-street-extension-new-link-will-run-from.html |access-date=July 12, 2022 |issn=0362-4331}} running as little as {{convert|4|in}} under the original line.{{Cite news |date=March 21, 1926 |title=Fifth Av. To Open Subway Station; Final Plans Are Announced for Inaugurating Queensboro Extension Tomorrow |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1926/03/21/archives/fifth-av-to-open-subway-station-final-plans-are-announced-for.html |access-date=July 12, 2022 |issn=0362-4331}} The tunnel also had to pass under a sewage line at Madison Avenue. The construction of the Fifth Avenue station required underpinning the New York Public Library Main Branch and extending the library's foundation downward. The subway tunnel ran {{Convert|35|ft||abbr=}} below ground level. During construction, workers took precautions to avoid interrupting the flow of traffic above ground and interfering with preexisting tunnels.{{Cite news |date=July 30, 1922 |title=Bryant Park Busy "Mine" |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1922/07/30/archives/bryant-park-busy-mine.html |url-status=live |access-date=August 14, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190814190118/https://www.nytimes.com/1922/07/30/archives/bryant-park-busy-mine.html |archive-date=August 14, 2019 |issn=0362-4331}} The contractors had completed the tunnels to Fifth Avenue by May 1923.{{cite news |date=May 20, 1923 |title=Rushing Work on New Subway: New Tunnel Opened to Point Under Library, Fifth Av. And 42d Street, Last Week. |page=RE1 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |id={{ProQuest|103117644}}}} Local civic groups advocated for the Fifth Avenue station to be used as a temporary terminal while the permanent terminus at Times Square was being completed.{{Cite news |date=February 1, 1923 |title=Queens Subway Extension; Crossover at Fifth Avenue Station Will Hasten Opening. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1923/02/01/archives/queens-subway-extension-crossover-at-fifth-avenue-station-will.html |access-date=July 12, 2022 |issn=0362-4331}}{{cite news |date=January 14, 1923 |title=Want 42d St. Extension Operated in Sections: Need of Transit Is Too Great to Wait for Completion of Entire Tube |page=B2 |work=New-York Tribune |id={{ProQuest|1114723879}}}} By the end of 1923, the Transit Commission had allocated $50,000 for the construction of a temporary crossover east of the Fifth Avenue station.{{Cite news |date=November 18, 1923 |title=Queens Borough Subwy.; Committees Ask That Fifth Avenue Station Be Opened. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1923/11/18/archives/queens-borough-subwy-committees-ask-that-fifth-avenue-station-be.html |access-date=July 12, 2022 |issn=0362-4331}}

The temporary terminal at Fifth Avenue was nearly complete by February 1926.{{Cite news |date=February 21, 1926 |title=Queens Tube Trains to 5th Av. In March; Subway Extension Completed From Grand Central to Near Sixth Avenue. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1926/02/21/archives/queens-tube-trains-to-5th-av-in-march-subway-extension-completed.html |access-date=July 10, 2022 |issn=0362-4331}}{{cite news |date=February 21, 1926 |title=Queensboro Line 5th Ave. Stations Open in March: Tracks Now Installed Between Grand Central and Near Sixth Avenue |page=8 |work=The New York Herald, New York Tribune |id={{ProQuest|1112728483}}}} The station had two entrances on the south side of 42nd Street (one next to the library and the other next to the park). A third entrance was placed within the Stern Brothers building on the north side. Stern's funded the construction of the entrance inside its building, which also included storefront windows.{{cite magazine |date=February 23, 1926 |title=Store News —' Retail Service: Stern's To Have Subway Entrance; To Open In Fall: Will Provide Only Access To Queensboro Extension On North Side Of 42D Street— Will Instal Display Windows |magazine=Women's Wear |volume=32 |issue=44 |page=6 |id={{ProQuest|1676686432}}}} These entrances connected with a mezzanine above the platform. The platform was to be {{convert|480|ft}} long, though only a {{convert|300|ft|adj=mid}} section would be used initially.File:Queensboro Subway Service Extended To Times Square Station 1927.jpgThe Fifth Avenue station opened on March 22, 1926, extending the IRT Flushing Line one stop to the west from the line's previous terminus at Grand Central.{{cite news |date=March 23, 1926 |title=Queens Subway Runs to 5th Ave. Amid Ceremony: Bryant Park Station Will Mark Terminal of New Extension Until Tunnel Is Finished to 8th Avenue |page=1 |work=The New York Herald, New York Tribune |id={{ProQuest|1112743933}}}}{{Cite news |date=March 23, 1926 |title=Fifth Av. Station of Subway Opened; Ceremonies at Library Mark Completion of First Part of Queensboro Extension |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1926/03/23/archives/fifth-av-station-of-subway-opened-ceremonies-at-library-mark.html |access-date=July 10, 2022 |issn=0362-4331}}{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hhvVAAAAMAAJ |title=Annual Report of the Interborough Rapid Transit Company For The Year Ended June 30, 1925 |date=1925 |publisher=Interborough Rapid Transit Company |page=4 |language=en}} In fall 1926, it was announced that the line would be completed by January 1, 1927.{{Cite news |date=March 2, 1927 |title=Nearly Year Late, New Station to be Open in 2 Weeks: Date for Extending Queens Subway Service to Times Square Long Delayed |work=The Brooklyn Times Union |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/35066351/times-union/ |access-date=July 12, 2022}}

On February 8, 1927, the New York City Board of Transportation informed the New York State Transit Commission that work on the Times Square station was sufficiently completed to enable the start of train service beginning on February 19, 1927 with the completion of work to a point between Eighth Avenue and Seventh Avenue. Plans for the construction of an extension of the line to between Eighth Avenue and Ninth Avenue to provide a physical connection with the IND Eighth Avenue Line were underway.{{Cite news |date=February 9, 1927 |title=Times Square Tube Station To Open Soon: Train Operation on Queensboro Line Will Begin Feb. 19 |work=The Brooklyn Citizen |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/35063157/the-brooklyn-citizen/ |access-date=July 12, 2022}}

On March 1, 1927, the opening of the line was set for March 15, the third time an opening date was set for the line. Work had been postponed given the amount of work that remained to be completed. The opening of the line was about a year behind the April 29, 1926 date specified in the contract. The delay was the result of surprisingly difficult construction. The Board of Transportation had withheld retained percentages, as allowed in the contract, penalizing the contractor, and trying to incentivize it to speed up work. No retained percentages were provided to the contractor until February 1927. The Flushing Line was extended to Times Square on March 14, 1927.{{Cite news |date=March 15, 1927 |title=New Queens Subway Opened to Times Sq.; Service Starts at Once After a Celebration by City and Civic Leaders |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1927/03/15/archives/new-queens-subway-opened-to-times-sq-service-starts-at-once-after-a.html |access-date=July 10, 2022 |issn=0362-4331}}{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/stream/annualreport7192newy#page/12/mode/2up/search/pelham |title=State of New York Department of Public Service Metropolitan Division Transit Commission Seventh Annual Report For The Calendar Year 1927 |date=1928 |publisher=New York State Transit Commission |page=13 |language=en}}

The eastern extension to Flushing–Main Street opened on January 21, 1928.{{cite news|title=Flushing Rejoices as Subway Opens – Service by B.M.T. and I.R.T. Begins as Soon as Official Train Makes First Run – Hope of 25 Years Realized – Pageant of Transportation Led by Indian and His Pony Marks the Celebration – Hedley Talks of Fare Rise – Transit Modes Depicted|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1928/01/22/94122788.pdf|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=September 18, 2015|date=January 22, 1928}} At this time, Corona Yard opened, with the inspection shed and some yard tracks available for use.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Oxs9AAAAIAAJ|title=Annual Report for the Year Ending June 30, 1927|date=1927|publisher=Interborough Rapid Transit Company|language=en}}{{Rp|9}} The remaining tracks opened on April 16, 1928.{{Rp|104}}

For the 1939 New York World's Fair, the Willets Point Boulevard station was rebuilt and centered on 123rd Street, just west of where the station originally lay. Some remnants of the old station are still visible; ironwork tends to indicate where the older outside-platform stations were, and the remains of the fare entry area can be seen east of the current station. The original Willets Point Boulevard station was a "minor" stop on the Flushing Line; it had only two stairways and short station canopies at platform level. It was rebuilt into the much larger station in use today, and the ramp used during two World's Fairs still exists, but is only used during special events, such as the US Open for tennis. Express service to the World's Fair began on the Flushing Line on April 24, 1939.{{cite news|title=Fast Subway Service to Fair Is Opened|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1939/04/25/91572482.pdf|newspaper=The New York Times|date=April 25, 1939|page=1|access-date=October 2, 2011}}

Currently and historically, the IRT assigned the number 7 to its Flushing Line subway service, though this did not appear on any equipment until the introduction of the R12 rolling stock in 1948. The BMT assigned the number 9 to its service, used on maps but not signed on trains.{{Cite web|url=http://www.thejoekorner.com/lines/suball-frame.htm|title=Line Names|last=Korman|first=Joseph|date=December 29, 2016|website=www.thejoekorner.com|access-date=April 29, 2018|archive-date=April 10, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210410202206/http://www.thejoekorner.com/lines/suball-frame.htm}}

The Main Street station was not intended to be the Flushing Line's terminus.{{Rp|49}}{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/17/dining/critics-notebook-pete-wells-explores-korean-restaurants-in-queens.html?_r=0|title=In Queens, Kimchi Is Just the Start: Pete Wells Explores Korean Restaurants in Queens|last=Wells|first=Pete|date=December 16, 2014|access-date=September 18, 2015|newspaper=The New York Times|quote=We can blame the IRT. The No. 7 train was never meant to end at Main Street in Flushing.|author-link=Pete Wells}} While the controversy over an elevated line in Flushing was ongoing in January 1913, the Whitestone Improvement Association pushed for an elevated to Whitestone, College Point, and Bayside. However, some members of that group wanted to oppose the Flushing line's construction if there was not going to be an extension to Whitestone. In January 1913, groups representing communities in south Flushing collaborated to push for an elevated along what was then the LIRR's Central Branch,{{Rp|53–55}} in the current right-of-way of Kissena Corridor Park.{{Rp|277}} Shortly after, the New York Public Service Commission (PSC) announced its intent to extend the line as an el from Corona to Flushing, with a possible further extension to Little Neck Bay in Bayside.{{Rp|56}} There was consensus that the line should not abruptly end in Corona, but even with the {{Convert|5.5|mi|km|-long|adj=mid}} extension to Bayside, the borough would still have fewer Dual Contracts route mileage than either Brooklyn or the Bronx. The New York Times wrote that compared to the Bronx, Queens would have far less subway mileage per capita even with the Flushing extension.{{Cite news|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1913/02/09/100253625.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220518040930/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1913/02/09/100253625.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=May 18, 2022|title=Extension of Corona Line to Bayside Will Benefit Flushing Section of Queens|date=February 9, 1913|work=The New York Times|access-date=September 30, 2017|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}

The Bayside extension was tentatively approved in June 1913, but only after the construction of the initial extension to Flushing.{{Rp|61}} Under the revised subway expansion plan put forth in December 1913, the Flushing Line would be extended past Main Street, along and/or parallel to the right-of-way of the nearby Port Washington Branch of the LIRR towards Bell Boulevard in Bayside. A spur line would branch off north along 149th Street towards College Point.{{cite news|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1913/12/04/100666082.pdf|title=Flushing Line Risk Put on the City – Interborough Agrees to Equip and Operate Main St. Branch, but Won't Face a Loss – It May Be a Precedent – Company's Letter Thought to Outline Its Policy Toward Future Extensions of Existing Lines|date=December 4, 1913|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=September 18, 2015}}

In 1914, the PSC chairman and the commissioner committed to building the line toward Bayside. However, at the time, the LIRR and IRT were administered separately, and the IRT plan would require rebuilding a section of the Port Washington branch between the Broadway and Auburndale stations. The LIRR moved to block the IRT extension past Flushing since it would compete with the Port Washington Branch service in Bayside.{{Rp|62}} One member of the United Civic Association submitted a proposal to the LIRR to let the IRT use the Port Washington Branch to serve Flushing and Bayside, using a connection between the two lines in Corona.{{Rp|63}} The PSC supported the connection as an interim measure, and on March 11, 1915, it voted to let the Bayside connection be built. Subsequently, engineers surveying the planned intersection of the LIRR and IRT lines found that the IRT land would not actually overlap with any LIRR land.{{Rp|63}}{{Cite news|url=https://bklyn.newspapers.com/image/55624881/?terms=railroad|title=McCall and Maltbie Favor Transit Plan|date=March 6, 1915|work=Brooklyn Daily Eagle|access-date=September 30, 2017|page=4|language=en|via=Newspapers.com}} The LIRR president at the time, Ralph Peters, offered to lease the Port Washington and Whitestone Branches to the IRT for rapid transit use for $250,000 annually ({{Inflation|index=US|value=250000|start_year=1915|r=-4|fmt=eq}}), excluding other maintenance costs. The lease would last for ten years, with an option to extend the lease by ten more years. The PSC favored the idea of the IRT being a lessee along these lines, but did not know where to put the Corona connection.{{Rp|64}} Even the majority of groups in eastern Queens supported the lease plan.{{Cite news|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1915/04/02/106731397.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220518040931/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1915/04/02/106731397.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=May 18, 2022|title=9-FOOT PETITION FOR CARS.; Service Board Gets Plea of Several Long Island Towns.|date=April 2, 1915|work=The New York Times|access-date=September 30, 2017|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}} The only group who opposed the lease agreement was the Flushing Association, who preferred a previous plan to build the Corona Line extension as a subway under Amity Street (currently Roosevelt Avenue), ending at Main Street.{{Rp|64–65}}

Afterward, the PSC largely ignored the lease plan since it was still focused on building the first phase of the Dual Contracts. The Flushing Business Men's Association kept advocating for the Amity Street subway, causing a schism between them and the rest of the groups that supported the LIRR lease. Through the summer of 1915, the PSC and the LIRR negotiated the planned lease to $125,000 a first year, {{Inflation|index=US|value=125000|start_year=1915|r=-4|fmt=eq}}, with an eight percent increase each year; the negotiations then stalled in 1916.{{Rp|65–66}} The Whitestone Improvement Association, impatient with the pace of negotiations, approved of the subway under Amity Street even though it would not serve them directly.{{Rp|66}}{{Cite news|url=https://bklyn.newspapers.com/image/55283201/|title=Now Urge Action on Old Transit Plan|date=March 29, 1916|work=Brooklyn Daily Eagle|access-date=September 30, 2017|page=14|language=en|via=Newspapers.com}} The PSC's chief engineer wrote in a report that a combined 20,600 riders would use the Whitestone and Bayside lines each day in either direction, and that by 1927, there would be 34,000 riders per day per direction.{{Rp|67}} The Third Ward Rapid Transit Association wrote a report showing how much they had petitioned for Flushing subway extensions to that point, compared to how little progress they had made in doing so.{{Cite news|url=https://bklyn.newspapers.com/image/55315628/|title=Work for Transit is Called Wasted|date=May 18, 1916|work=Brooklyn Daily Eagle|access-date=September 30, 2017|page=4|language=en|via=Newspapers.com}} Negotiations continued to be stalled in 1917.{{Rp|67}} Despite the line not having been extended past Corona yet, the idea of a subway extension to Little Neck encouraged development there.{{Rp|68}}

The Whitestone Branch would have had to be rebuilt if it were leased to the subway, with railroad crossings removed and the single track doubled. The PSC located 14 places where crossings needed to be eliminated. However, by early 1917, there was barely enough money to build the subway to Flushing, let alone a link to Whitestone and Bayside.{{Rp|68}} A lease agreement was announced on October 16, 1917,{{Cite news|url=https://bklyn.newspapers.com/image/55296476/|title=Agree on tentative Plan for Lease of Tracks in 3rd Ward|date=October 16, 1917|work=Brooklyn Daily Eagle|access-date=September 30, 2017|page=14|language=en|via=Newspapers.com}} but the IRT withdrew from the agreement a month later, citing that it was inappropriate to enter such an agreement at that time.{{Rp|68}} Thereafter, the PSC instead turned its attention back to the Main Street subway extension.{{Rp|71}}

Even after the Main Street station opened in 1928, efforts to extend the line past Flushing persisted. In 1928, the New York City Board of Transportation (BOT) proposed allowing IRT trains to build a connection to use the Whitestone Branch, but the IRT did not accept the offer since this would entail upgrading railroad crossings and the single-tracked line. Subsequently, the LIRR abandoned the branch in 1932.{{Rp|72}} As part of the 1929 IND Second System plan, the Flushing Line would have had branches to College Point and Bayside east of Main Street.{{Cite Routes Not Taken}}Board of Transportation of the City of New York Engineering Department, Proposed Additional Rapid Transit Lines And Proposed Vehicular Tunnel, dated August 23, 1929{{cite news|last1=Duffus|first1=R.L.|title=Our Great Subway Network Spreads Wider – New Plans of Board of Transportation Involve the Building of More Than One Hundred Miles of Additional Rapid Transit Routes for New York|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1929/09/22/91938390.pdf|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=August 19, 2015|date=September 22, 1929}} That plan was revived in 1939.[//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/1939_IND_Second_System.jpg Project for Expanded Rapid Transit Facilities, New York City Transit System], dated July 5, 1939 The BOT kept proposing an extension of the Flushing Line past Main Street until 1945, when World War II ended and new budgets did not allow for a Flushing extension. Since then, several New York City Transit Authority proposals for an eastward extension have all failed.{{Rp|72}}

Second Avenue Line service, including the connection across the Queensboro Bridge, ended June 13, 1942,{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1942/06/14/archives/200-take-last-ride-on-2d-ave-elevated-official-says-the-structure.html|title=200 TAKE LAST RIDE ON 2D AVE. ELEVATED; Official Says the Structure Will Yield 29,400 Tons of Steel|date=June 14, 1942|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 29, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}} and free transfers to the IRT Third Avenue Line were offered at Grand Central.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1942/06/07/archives/el-will-cease-saturday-service-on-second-avenue-line-from-queens-to.html|title=EL' WILL CEASE SATURDAY; Service on Second Avenue Line From Queens to End|date=June 7, 1942|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 29, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}} These transfers were valid until May 12, 1955, when Third Avenue Line service ended.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J2d5rgEACAAJ|title=From a Nickel to a Token: The Journey from Board of Transportation to MTA|last=Sparberg|first=Andrew J.|date=2014|publisher=Empire State Editions|isbn=978-0-8232-6193-2|language=en}}{{Rp|113}}

File:October 17, 1949 New York Board of Transportation Subway Service Change Poster .jpg

On October 17, 1949, the joint BMT/IRT service arrangement ended. The Flushing Line became the responsibility of IRT. The Astoria Line had its platforms shaved back, and became BMT-only.{{Cite news|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1949/10/15/96475230.pdf|title=Direct Subway Runs To Flushing, Astoria|date=October 15, 1949|work=The New York Times|access-date=October 7, 2017|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}} Because of this, routes through the then eight-track Queensboro Plaza station were consolidated and the northern half of the structure was later torn down. Evidence of where the torn-down platforms were, as well as the trackways that approached this area, can still be seen in the ironwork at the station.{{Cite web|title = www.nycsubway.org: BMT Astoria Line|url = http://www.nycsubway.org/wiki/BMT_Astoria_Line|website = www.nycsubway.org|access-date = February 21, 2016}}

During the joint service period, the elevated stations on the Astoria and Flushing Lines were only able to fit nine 51-foot-long BMT elevated or IRT cars, the rough equivalent of seven 67-foot-long BMT subway cars. After the BMT/IRT dual services ended in 1949, the New York City Board of Transportation announced that the Flushing Line platforms would be lengthened to 11 IRT car lengths, and the Astoria Line platforms extended to 9 BMT car lengths. The project, to start in 1950, would cost $3.85 million.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1949/11/20/archives/transit-platforms-on-lines-in-queens-to-be-lengthened-3850000.html|title=TRANSIT PLATFORMS ON LINES IN QUEENS TO BE LENGTHENED; $3,850,000 Program Outlined for Next Year to Care for Borough's Rapid Growth NEW LINKS ARE TO BE BUILT 400 More Buses to Roll Also – Bulk of Work to Be on Corona-Flushing Route TRANSIT PROGRAM IN QUEENS OUTLINED|last=Bennett|first=Charles G.|date=November 20, 1949|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 29, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}

Identification of Trains and Routing Automatically (IDENTRA) was implemented on the line in the 1957 and used until 1997, when a route selector punch box with B1 Astoria, local/express buttons was installed at the 10/11 car marker on the upper level of Queensboro Plaza.[http://www.thejoekorner.com/out-the-front/signals.htm "Subway Signals"], thejoekorner.com{{cite web|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-198995503.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160222182320/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-198995503.html|archive-date=February 22, 2016|title=Roots of an Evolution: Fifty Years of Automated Train Control in New York|work=Railway Age|date=April 1, 2009|access-date=September 15, 2015|author=Conningham, Joseph J.|quote=The latter included an installation on the IRT Flushing (7) line of the US&S IDENTRA (Identification of Trains and Routing Automatically) system in which a passive coil on the lead car actuated wayside readers to set routes and station signs.|via=HighBeam}} IDENTRA used a removable round circular disc type radio antenna assembly, slide-mounted on the small mounting brackets that were attached on the front of R12, R14, R15, and R17 cars that were assigned to the 7 route, which had been used on the line since 1948. Similar to the use of radio transponders in the CBTC installation, the system used the antennas to determine whether a train was running local or express, and then accordingly switched the track at interlockings near the Queensboro Plaza and Flushing–Main Street stations. This move reduced the number of signal towers on the line from 9 to 2 and theoretically allowed to operate 37 eleven-car trains instead of only 30 nine-car trains per hour.{{cite journal|title=Automatic Control of Switches In New York Subway|journal=Railway Signaling and Communications|date=1954|issue=4|page=33}} The consolidated signal system was in use by 1956 while the selector system was in service by 1958.{{Cite book|title=Annual Report — 1962–1963|publisher=New York City Transit Authority|year=1963}} However, in practice, train frequencies were not necessarily increased. According to an experiment performed by the Long Island Star Journal in 1957, rush-hour headways ranged from 6 to 15 minutes between local trains, and 2 to 6 minutes between express trains.{{Cite news|url=http://fultonhistory.com/highlighter/highlight-for-xml?altUrl=http%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2FNewspaper%252014%2FLong%2520Island%2520City%2520NY%2520Star%2520Journal%2FLong%2520Island%2520City%2520NY%2520Star%2520Journal%25201957%2FLong%2520Island%2520City%2520NY%2520Star%2520Journal%25201957%2520-%25203083.pdf|title=Millions Spent... Flushing IRT Still Crawls|last=Perlow|first=Austin H.|date=April 2, 1957|newspaper=Long Island Star – Journal|access-date=October 7, 2018|via=Fulton History|page=1}}

In 1953, with increased ridership on the line, a "super-express" service was instituted on the line.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1953/08/28/archives/2-subway-lines-to-add-cars-another-to-speed-up-service-3-subways-to.html|title=2 Subway Lines to Add Cars, Another to Speed Up Service; 3 SUBWAYS TO GET IMPROVED SERVICE|last=Ingalls|first=Leonard|date=August 28, 1953|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 29, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}} The next year, the trains were lengthened to nine cars each. Subsequently, the trains were extended to ten cars on November 1, 1962.{{Cite journal|date=December 1962|title=R17s to the Flushing Line|url=https://issuu.com/erausa/docs/1962-06-dec-bulletin|journal=New York Division Bulletin|publisher=Electric Railroaders' Association|volume=5|issue=6|pages=M-8|via=Issu}} With the 1964–1965 World's Fair in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in April 1964, trains were lengthened to eleven cars.{{Cite news|url=http://fultonhistory.com/highlighter/highlight-for-xml?altUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fultonhistory.com%2FNewspaper%252014%2FLong%2520Island%2520City%2520NY%2520Star%2520Journal%2FLong%2520Island%2520City%2520NY%2520Star%2520Journal%25201963%2FLong%2520Island%2520City%2520NY%2520Star%2520Journal%25201963%2520-%25205257.pdf&highlightsFile=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fultonhistory.com%2Fhighlighter%2Fhits%2F1988d896b7a6d005cf0318462615258c#page=1|title=TA to Show Fair Train|date=August 31, 1963|newspaper=Long Island Star – Journal|access-date=August 30, 2016|via=Fulton History}} The Flushing Line received 430 new R33S and R36 cars for this enhanced service.{{Rp|137}}

Rolling stock along the Flushing Line received "strip maps" in 1965, the first such installation in the system. The strip maps showed only the stations on the Flushing Line, as opposed to for the entire system, but the transfers available at each station were listed.{{Cite news|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1965/04/14/101537746.pdf|title=Subway Cars Here To Get Strip Maps Showing One Route; New Series of Maps, Signs and Schedules Are Designed to Take the Guesswork Out of Subway Travel|last=Perlmutter|first=Emanuel|date=April 14, 1965|newspaper=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=August 16, 2016}}

File:7Train-33Rawson.png train of R36 cars at 33rd Street–Rawson Street, in the Redbird paint scheme|alt=]]

As with much of the rest of the subway system, the IRT Flushing Line was allowed to deteriorate throughout the 1970s to the late 1980s. Structural defects that required immediate attention at the time were labeled as "Code Red" defects or "Red Tag" areas, and were numerous on the Flushing Line. Some columns that supported elevated structures on the Flushing Line were so shaky that trains did not run when the wind speed exceeded {{convert|65|mph|km/h}}. This was particularly widespread on the Flushing and the BMT Jamaica Lines.

File:On May 13, Residents of Queens Are Going To Be Mad As Hell.jpg

On May 13, 1985, a 4{{1/2}}-year-long, $70 million project to overhaul the IRT Flushing Line commenced.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/24553366/more_delays_ahead_for_no_7_line/|title=More delays ahead for No. 7 line|last=Slagle|first=Alton|date=December 2, 1990|work=New York Daily News|access-date=November 5, 2018}} It forced single-tracking on much of the line during weekends, and the elimination of express service for the duration of the project. The MTA advertised this change by putting leaflets in the New York Times, the Staten Island Advance, the Daily News, and Newsday. The project laid new track, replaced or repaired concrete and steel structures, replaced wooden station canopies with aluminum, improved lighting, improved signage, and installed new ventilation and pumping equipment. Expanded service was provided when the Mets played home games or when there were sporting events in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park. Paradoxically, Flushing local trains had better on-time performance during the construction than before it started.

The $70 million rehabilitation project on the Queens Boulevard concrete viaduct was completed six months early, and <7> express service was restored on August 21, 1989, without stopping at 61st Street–Woodside.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_5hq0ippLSwC&q=Manhattan+Bridge|title=Annual Report on ... Rapid Routes Schedules and Service Planning|date=1989|publisher=New York City Transit Authority|language=en}}{{Rp|17}} This led to protests by community members to get express service back at 61st Street station. The reason for the discontinuance on the Flushing express was because the MTA felt it took too long to transfer between locals and expresses. The service was also due to fears of delays on the line when locals and expresses merged after 33rd Street–Rawson Street. The change was supposed to enable local trains to stop at 61st Street every four minutes (15 trains per hour) during rush hours, but according to riders, the trains arrived every 8–10 minutes. The community opposition led to service changes, and expresses began stopping at Woodside again a few months later.{{cite web|last1=Feinman|first1=Mark S.|title=The New York Transit Authority in the 1980s|url=https://www.nycsubway.org/wiki/The_New_York_Transit_Authority_in_the_1980s|work=www.nycsubway.org|access-date=November 8, 2016}}

On weekends between January 19 and March 11, 7 service was partially shutdown so that switches at the Fisk Interlocking could be replaced. The $5 million project was not done in conjunction with the work between 1985 and 1989 because the 23-year old switches were not due for replacement.

In the mid-1990s, the MTA discovered that the Queens Boulevard viaduct structure was unstable, as rocks that were used to support the tracks as ballast became loose due to poor drainage, which, in turn, affected the integrity of the concrete structure overall. <7> express service was suspended again between 61st Street–Woodside and Queensboro Plaza; temporary platforms were installed to access the express track in the four intermediate stations.{{cite web |last=Pérez-Peńa |first=Richard | title=Along the Subway, a Feat in Concrete | website=The New York Times | date=October 9, 1995 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1995/10/09/nyregion/along-the-subway-a-feat-in-concrete.html | access-date=October 8, 2024}} The work began on April 5, 1993.{{Cite web|url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/127872292@N06/35119874302/in/album-72157652636594213/|title=April 1993 Map Information|date=April 1993|website=Flickr|publisher=New York City Transit Authority|language=en-us|access-date=October 7, 2018}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/24541574/daily_news/|title=The repairs we're making on the 7 line will take some time. Like 3–4 minutes per trip if you ride the express.|date=April 2, 1993|work=New York Daily News|access-date=November 5, 2018}} When the viaduct reconstruction finished on March 31, 1997, full <7> express service was reinstated.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/22799873/restoration_of_7_express_between/|title=7 Express service is being restored between 61 Street/Woodside and Queensboro Plaza|date=March 28, 1997|work=New York Daily News|access-date=November 5, 2018}} Throughout this entire period, ridership grew steadily.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/02/16/nyregion/on-the-no-7-subway-line-in-queens-it-s-an-underground-united-nations.html?pagewanted=all|title=On the No. 7 Subway Line in Queens, It's an Underground United Nations|last=Onishi|first=Norimitsu|date=February 16, 1997|work=The New York Times|access-date=May 15, 2009}}

In spring 2018, express service west of 74th Street was suspended temporarily so the MTA could fix the supports under the center track at 61st Street.{{Cite news|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/queens/no-7-line-losing-express-service-weeks-queens-article-1.3754184|title=No. 7 line losing express service for weeks in Queens|last=Rivoli|first=Dan|date=January 12, 2018|work=NY Daily News|access-date=January 17, 2018|language=en}}

File:R188 7 train.jpg orders on the 7 route, which runs on the Flushing Line]]

In January 2012, the MTA selected Thales for a $343 million contract to set up a communications-based train control (CBTC) system as part of the plan to automate the line. This was the second installation of CBTC, following a successful implementation on the BMT Canarsie Line. The total cost was $550 million for the signals and other trackside infrastructure, and $613.7 million for CBTC-compliant rolling stock.{{cite web|url=http://library.rpa.org/pdf/RPA-Moving-Forward.pdf|title=Moving Forward: Accelerating the Transition to Communications-Based Train Control for New York City's Subways|website=rpa.org|publisher=Regional Plan Association|date=May 2014|access-date=September 12, 2016|archive-date=March 4, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304091527/http://library.rpa.org/pdf/RPA-Moving-Forward.pdf}} The safety assessment at system level was performed using the formal method Event-B.{{cite book|last1=Guéry|first1=Jérôme|last2=Reque|first2=Antoine|last3=Burdy|first3=Lilian|last4=Sabatier|first4=Denis|title=Abstract State Machines, Alloy, B, VDM, and Z |chapter=Formal Proofs for the NYCT Line 7 (Flushing) Modernization Project |date=2012|volume=7316|pages=369–372|doi=10.1007/978-3-642-30885-7_34|series=Lecture Notes in Computer Science|issn=0302-9743|isbn=978-3-642-30884-0}}

The MTA chose the Flushing Line for the next implementation of CBTC because it is also a self-contained line with no direct connections to other subway lines currently in use. Funding was allocated in the 2010–2014 capital budget for CBTC installation on the Flushing Line, with scheduled installation completion in 2016.[http://mta.info/mta/pdf/2010-14questions_and_answers_v2.pdf Pages 11–12] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120302010603/http://mta.info/mta/pdf/2010-14questions_and_answers_v2.pdf |date=March 2, 2012 }} The R188 cars were ordered so the line would have compatible rolling stock. CBTC on the line will allow the {{NYCS trains|Flushing|type=service}} to run 7% more service, or 2 more trains per hour (tph) during peak hours (before retrofit, it ran 27 tph).{{Cite web|url=http://web.mta.info/capital/infra_alt.html|title=MTA {{!}} Capital Programs Service Reliability|website=web.mta.info|publisher=Metropolitan Transportation Authority|language=en|access-date=September 3, 2017}} However, the system had been retrofitted to operate at 33 tph even without CBTC.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NbYqQSQcE2MC|title=Rail Transit Capacity|access-date=May 20, 2014|isbn=978-0-309-05718-9|last1=Parkinson|first1=Tom|last2=Fisher|first2=Ian|year=1996|publisher=Transportation Research Board }}

The first train of R188 cars began operating in passenger service on November 9, 2013.{{cite news|last=Mann|first=Ted|date=November 18, 2013|title=MTA Tests New Subway Trains on Flushing Line|url=https://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/2013/11/18/mta-tests-new-subway-trains-on-flushing-line/|newspaper=The Wall Street Journal|access-date=November 19, 2013}}{{cite web|url=http://www.mta.info/news/2013/11/18/new-subway-cars-being-put-test|title=MTA – New Subway Cars Being Put to the Test|work=mta.info|access-date=July 2, 2018|archive-date=May 15, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140515152907/http://www.mta.info/news/2013/11/18/new-subway-cars-being-put-test|url-status=dead}} Test runs of R188s in automated mode started in late 2014. However, the CBTC retrofit date was later pushed back to 2017{{Cite news|url=https://www.amny.com/transit/7-train-signal-upgrade-still-expected-to-be-completed-in-2017-mta-says-1.14080694|title=7 train signal upgrade on track for 2017: MTA|last=Barone|first=Vincent|date=August 21, 2017|work=am New York|access-date=August 23, 2017|language=en}} or 2018{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/21/nyregion/subway-signals-disruption.html|title=Fixing the Subway Requires Pain. But How Much, and for How Long?|last1=Santora|first1=Marc|date=August 21, 2017|work=The New York Times|access-date=August 23, 2017|last2=Tarbell|first2=Elizabeth|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}} after a series of problems that workers encountered during installation, including problems with the R188s. The project also went over budget, costing $405 million for a plan originally marked at $265.6 million. The whole line was cutover to CBTC operation on November 26, 2018, with the completion of the segment from Hudson Yards to the north of Grand Central.{{Cite web|url=http://web.mta.info/mta/news/books/pdf/181113_1400_CPOC.pdf|title=Capital Program Oversight Committee Meeting November 2018|date=November 2018|website=mta.info|publisher=Metropolitan Transportation Authority|access-date=November 26, 2018}}

Completely independent of the CBTC installation is the 7 Subway Extension, which features both CBTC signals and fixed-block signaling. The extension also increased line capacity.

{{Main|7 Subway Extension|34th Street–Hudson Yards (IRT Flushing Line)}}

File:7Line 8313 (6801443789).jpg

In the 1990s, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) began exploring the possibility of a Flushing Line extension to New Jersey.{{cite web |url=https://wagner.nyu.edu/files/faculty/publications/Olympics_in_NYC_2012_REPORT_110711.pdf |title=HOW NEW YORK CITY WON THE OLYMPICS |publisher=New York University |work=Rudin Center for Transportation Policy and Management, Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service |date=November 2011 |access-date=September 11, 2015 |author=Mitchell L. Moss}} In 2001, a business and civic group convened by Senator Charles Schumer argued that a proposed westward extension of the Midtown office district could not be accomplished without a subway extension, saying:{{cite book |title=Preparing for the Future: A Commercial Development Strategy for New York City: Final Report |publisher=Group of 35 |year=2001 |url=https://www.scribd.com/doc/118950748/Group-of-35-Report-June-2001 |access-date=September 12, 2015 |page=56}}

{{blockquote|The long blocks along the avenues make the walk as long as 20 minutes to the westernmost parts of the area. In addition, there is no convenient link from Grand Central Station or elsewhere on the east side of Manhattan, making the Far West Side a difficult commute for workers from parts of Manhattan, Queens, Westchester and Connecticut.}}

An extension of the Flushing Line was then proposed as part of the New York City bid for the 2012 Summer Olympics.{{cite web |url=http://www.hydc.org/html/project/subway.shtml |title=No. 7 Subway Extension |author= |website=Hudson Yards Development Corporation |access-date=July 3, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150209053224/http://www.hydc.org/html/project/subway.shtml |archive-date=February 9, 2015 }}{{cite news |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/07/nyc-subway-underground-rail-second-avenue-subway_n_2637601.html |title=NYC Transit Projects: East Side Access, Second Avenue Subway, and 7 Train Extension |last1=Dobnik |first1=Verena |date=February 7, 2013 |website=Huffington Post |access-date=July 24, 2013}} The City wanted to get funding before July 2005, at which time the International Olympic Committee would vote on funding, but due to budget shortfalls, the MTA could not pay to fund the extension. After New York City lost their Olympic bid, the government of New York City devised a rezoning plan for the Hudson Yards area and proposed two new subway stations to serve that area.{{cite web |title=New York Comes in a Disappointing Fourth Place |website=WNYC |last=Bernstein |first=Andrea |date=July 6, 2005 |url=https://www.wnyc.org/story/84177-new-york-comes-in-a-disappointing-fourth-place/ |access-date=September 12, 2015}}{{cite web|url=http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/pdf/hyards/hy_chap11_g2_fgeis_final.pdf |title=NO. 7 SUBWAY EXTENSION-HUDSON YARDS REZONING AND DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM |publisher=nyc.gov |access-date=September 26, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304215819/http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/pdf/hyards/hy_chap11_g2_fgeis_final.pdf |archive-date=March 4, 2016 }} The subway extension was approved following the successful rezoning of about 60 blocks from 28th to 43rd Streets, which became the Hudson Yards neighborhood.{{cite news |title=What Rises in the West? Uncertainty |first=Joyce |last=Purnick |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/20/nyregion/20matters.html |newspaper=The New York Times |date=January 2, 2005 |access-date=March 6, 2010}} In October 2007, the MTA awarded a $1.145 billion contract to build an extension from Times Square to Hudson Yards.{{cite web |url=http://newyork.construction.com/projects/TopProjects06-08/1-5.pdf |title=Top New York Projects |date=June 2008 |page=27 |work=New York Construction |access-date=February 28, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110708191505/http://newyork.construction.com/projects/TopProjects06-08/1-5.pdf |archive-date=July 8, 2011 }}{{cite press release |publisher=New York City Mayor's Office |date=December 3, 2007 |title=Mayor Bloomberg and Governor Spitzer Announce Start of Construction on #7 Subway Extension |url=http://www.nyc.gov/html/om/html/2007b/pr437-07.html |access-date=February 28, 2010}}

There is one new station at 34th Street and Eleventh Avenue to serve Hudson Yards. The MTA originally planned for another station at 10th Avenue and 41st Street but eliminated it due to lack of funding.{{Cite news|title=Transit Board Approves Funding For 7 Line Extension |url=http://www.ny1.com/ny1/content/index.jsp?stid=5&aid=74957 |work=NY1 |date=October 25, 2007 |access-date=February 28, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080325054207/http://www.ny1.com/ny1/content/index.jsp?stid=5&aid=74957 |archive-date=March 25, 2008 }} The extension's opening was delayed several times due to issues in installing the custom-made incline elevators for the 34th Street station.{{cite news|url=http://www.ny1.com/content/news_beats/trans/162481/mta-s-7-line-extension-project-pushed-back-six-months|title=MTA's 7 Line Extension Project Pushed Back Six Months|work=NY1|date=June 5, 2012|access-date=June 5, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120711160459/http://www.ny1.com/content/news_beats/transit/162481/mta-s-7-line-extension-project-pushed-back-six-months|archive-date=July 11, 2012}}{{cite news|url=https://www.nypost.com/p/news/business/realestate/commercial/no_train_mos_late_BEjKsCL51LL06ZSZ58ZOiI|title=No. 7 Train 6 Mos. Late|newspaper=New York Post|first=Steve|last=Cuozzo|date=June 5, 2012|access-date=June 5, 2012}}{{cite news|last1=Fitzsimmons|first1=Emma G.|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/24/nyregion/more-delays-for-no-7-subway-line-extension.html?_r=0|title=More Delays for No. 7 Subway Line Extension|newspaper=The New York Times|date=March 24, 2015|access-date=March 29, 2015}} The extension eventually opened on September 13, 2015.{{cite news|last=Tangel|first=Andrew|title=New Subway Station Opens on NYC's Far West Side|newspaper=Wall Street Journal|date=September 13, 2015|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/new-subway-station-opens-on-nycs-far-west-side-1442171470|access-date=September 13, 2015}} The 34th Street–Hudson Yards station's design has been compared to that of Washington Metro stations,{{cite web | title=Various Visions of the Future in NYC's First New Subway Station in 25 Years | website=Hyperallergic | last=Meier | first=Allison | date=September 15, 2015 | url=https://hyperallergic.com/236806/various-visions-of-the-future-in-nycs-first-new-subway-station-in-25-years/ | access-date=September 17, 2015}} or to those of stations along London's Jubilee Line Extension.{{cite web| title=A Tour of NYC's Newest Subway Station With Its Architect | website=Curbed NY | last=Lange | first=Alexandra | date=September 21, 2015 | url=https://ny.curbed.com/archives/2015/09/21/a_tour_of_nycs_newest_subway_station_with_its_architect.php | access-date=September 24, 2015}}{{cite web |url=http://inhabitat.com/nyc/new-york-citys-7-line-extension-is-ahead-of-schedule-under-budget/ |title=New York City's 7 Line Extension is Ahead of Schedule & Under Budget |work=Inhabitat |date=January 19, 2012 |access-date=May 13, 2014 |author=Coen, Amanda |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140301001716/http://inhabitat.com/nyc/new-york-citys-7-line-extension-is-ahead-of-schedule-under-budget/ |archive-date=March 1, 2014 }}

In early 2012, the 45th Road–Court House Square station was closed for a complete renovation, which included the addition of elevators and a connection to the Court Square–23rd Street station complex.{{cite news|title=Court Square on the No.7 Line Re-Opens|url=http://www.mta.info/news/2012/04/02/court-square-no7-line-re-opens|access-date=July 28, 2016|work=Metropolitan Transportation Authority|date=April 2, 2012|archive-date=October 22, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201022211010/http://www.mta.info/news/2012/04/02/court-square-no7-line-re-opens|url-status=dead}} Additionally, several stations along the line, including Vernon Boulevard–Jackson Avenue, Queensboro Plaza, 33rd Street, and 46th Street, are slated to receive elevators as part of the 2020–2024 MTA Capital Program.{{Cite web|url=http://www.mta.info/news/2018/04/26/funding-subway-station-ada-accessibility-approved|title=Funding For Subway Station ADA-Accessibility Approved|date=April 26, 2018|website=www.mta.info|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180428093833/http://www.mta.info/news/2018/04/26/funding-subway-station-ada-accessibility-approved|archive-date=April 28, 2018|access-date=April 27, 2018}}

As part of the 2015–2019 Capital Program, the MTA would renovate the 52nd, 61st, 69th, 82nd, 103rd and 111th Streets stations, a project that has been delayed for several years. Conditions at these stations were among the worst of all stations in the subway system.{{cite web | title=MTA To Overhaul Six Stations on the 7 Line, Currently in Design Phase | website=Sunnyside Post | last=Murray | first=Christian | date=November 19, 2019 | url=https://sunnysidepost.com/mta-to-overhaul-six-stations-on-the-7-line-currently-in-design-phase | access-date=April 29, 2020}} Work was supposed to begin in mid-2020 but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City.{{cite web | title=MTA's Plan To Overhaul Six Stations on 7 Line is Moving Forward | website=Sunnyside Post | date=July 6, 2021 | url=https://sunnysidepost.com/mtas-plan-to-overhaul-six-stations-on-7-line-is-moving-forward | access-date=March 20, 2023}} The MTA hired Judlau Contracting as the contractor for the project; in March 2023, Judlau leased space near the 82nd Street station for a construction office.{{cite web | last=Hallum | first=Mark | title=Judlau Contracting Leases 14K SF for Jackson Heights Office | website=Commercial Observer | date=March 14, 2023 | url=https://commercialobserver.com/2023/03/judlau-contracting-lease-rockfarmer/ | access-date=March 20, 2023}}{{cite web | title=MTA project to renovate five 7 train subway stations draws near as contractor leases command center in Jackson Heights | website=Jackson Heights Post | date=March 17, 2023 | url=https://jacksonheightspost.com/mta-renovate-7-train-stations-command-center-jackson-heights | access-date=March 20, 2023}} {{As of|March 2023}}, the MTA planned to begin renovating the 61st, 82nd, and 111th Street stations in 2023; the 52nd and 69th Street stations in 2024; and the 103rd Street station in 2025.{{cite web | title=Improving the 7 Line | website=MTA | date=March 9, 2023 | url=https://new.mta.info/project/flushing-line | access-date=March 20, 2023}}

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• [http://www.nycsubway.org/wiki/IRT_Flushing_Line IRT Flushing Line], nycsubway.org (text used with permission)
• [http://thethirdrail.net/0011/64wf3.html BMT and IRT Joint Operation] on the Flushing Line

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