New York City is a premier vacation destination for many visitors from within the United States and from around the world. Estimates are that at least 4 million people visit New York City every year, that’s roughly half the number of the city’s entire permanent population! One of the favorite things to do when visiting the city is to take a ride on New York City’s famous subway; it’s also the easiest and fastest way to get around. Here’s some information that should make it easier for you to travel in the NYC subway.
Some basic information first
MTA NYC transit is the mass transit agency that runs 24-hour-a-day bus and
subway service throughout the entire city of New York and its outer boroughs,
with ridership reaching an astounding seven million persons every day…that
translates to more than 2 billion people using NYC Transit’s buses and trains
to get to work, play, visit restaurants, you name it, every year! The NYC
subway is the country’s largest and most complex, running to a total of 468
stations along about 660 miles of track.
The Routing System
While many other transit systems around the world and around the country use
colors for signifying their routes, the NYC subway has so many that it uses
numbers and letters as well as colors. Savvy New Yorkers however know that
going by the numbers and letters gets you around better and easier than just
using the colors.Numbered routes for the subway are the
1,2,3,4,5,6,7, and 9, lettered routes are the A, B, C, D, E, F, G, J, L, M, N,
Q, R, S, V, W, and Z. What this means is that instead of relying on or asking
someone about the “Red line”, it’s best to think about or mention the numbers 1,
2, or three lines. Also, they don’t go by the term “line”, most people in NYC
just refer to them as trains. For example, “Can you tell me how to get to the
number one train?” With only a single fare and a little ingenuity, you can
travel across the entire city and its five boroughs because the subway’s 27
routes are interconnected with many of the lines allowing for across-the-platform
transfers to express or local trains.
Entering the subway
First things first, when you get to a subway station entrance there’s
usually a colored globe on a pole. A green globe tells you that this entrance
is open and is staffed by a Station Agent 24-hours a day. A red globe tells you
that the entrance may only be open part-time, may be closed, or may be open but
not be staffed by any personnel. Also, you should look for the sign that’s
usually above the stairs to the subway (whether underground or elevated) that
tells you which trains (what line) runs there. Once you enter the station there
should be a Customer Information
Center bulletin board near the
station booth, on it you'll find the latest subway map and information about
changes in service.