  Flushing Local Flushing Express | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Western end | 34th Street–Hudson Yards | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Eastern end | Flushing–Main Street | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stations | 22 (local service) 15 (southbound express service) 18 (northbound express service) 8 (super express service)[a] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rolling stock | R188[1][2] (Rolling stock assignments subject to change) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Depot | Corona Yard | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Started service | 1915; 110 years ago (1915) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The7 Flushing Local and<7> Flushing Express[3] are tworapid transit services in theA Division of theNew York City Subway, providinglocal andexpress services along the full length of theIRT Flushing Line. Their route emblems, or "bullets", are colored purple, since they serve the Flushing Line.[4]
The 7 operates 24 hours daily betweenMain Street inFlushing, Queens and34th Street–Hudson Yards inChelsea, Manhattan, making all stops along the full route. Additional service operates along the full route and makes express stops in Queens betweenMets–Willets Point and74th Street–Broadway during rush hours in the peak direction instead of making all stops; these trains labeled as<7> Express trains. Super express service operates after special events atCiti Field or theUSTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in the southbound direction only.
In normal service, <7> trains make express stops between Mets–Willets Point andQueensboro Plaza. The route started operations in 1915 when the Flushing Line opened. Since 1927, the 7 has held largely the same route, except for a one-stop western extension fromTimes Square toHudson Yards on September 13, 2015.
On June 13, 1915, the first test train on theIRT Flushing Line ran betweenGrand Central andVernon Boulevard–Jackson Avenue, followed by the start of revenue service on June 22.[5] The Flushing Line was extended one stop from Vernon–Jackson Avenue toHunters Point Avenue on February 15, 1916.[6][7] On November 5, 1916, the Flushing Line was extended two more stops east to theQueensboro Plaza station.[8][9][7] The line was opened from Queensboro Plaza to Alburtis Avenue (now103rd Street–Corona Plaza) on April 21, 1917.[8][10][11][12] Service to111th Street was inaugurated on October 13, 1925, withshuttle service running between 111th Street, and the previous terminal at Alburtis Avenue on the Manhattan-bound track.[13][14]
On March 22, 1926, Flushing Line service was extended one stop westward from Grand Central toFifth Avenue, when that portion of the Flushing Line was opened.[15][16]: 4 The line was extended toTimes Square almost exactly a year later, on March 14, 1927.[17]: 13 [18] Though an eastward extension toWillets Point Boulevard opened on May 7 of the same year,[19][17]: 13 service was provided by shuttle trains for the first week, untilthrough service was inaugurated.[20][21] The eastern extension toFlushing–Main Street opened on January 21, 1928.[22]
The service on the Flushing Line east of Queensboro Plaza was shared by theInterborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) and theBrooklyn–Manhattan Transit Corporation (BMT) from 1912 to 1949; BMT trains were designated 9, while IRT services were designated 7 on maps only.[23] The IRT routes were given numbered designations in 1948 with the introduction of"R-type" rolling stock, which containedrollsigns with numbered designations for each service.[24] The Flushing route became known as the 7.[25]
Express trains began running on April 24, 1939, to serve the1939 New York World's Fair.[26] The first train leftMain Street at 6:30 a.m.local time. IRT expresses ran every nine minutes between Main Street and Times Square, with BMT expresses having a similar frequency, running just between Main Street and Queensboro Plaza. The running time between Main Street and Queensboro Plaza was 15 minutes and the running time between Main Street and Times Square was 27 minutes. Express service to Manhattan operated in the morning rush between 6:30 and 10:43 a.m. Express service to Main Street began from Times Square for the IRT at 10:50 a.m. and the BMT from Queensboro Plaza at 11:09 a.m., continuing until 8 p.m.[27]
On October 17, 1949, the joint BMT/IRT operation of the Flushing Line ended, and the Flushing Line became the responsibility of the IRT.[28] After the end of BMT/IRT dual service, theNew York City Board of Transportation announced that the Flushing Line platforms would be lengthened to 11 IRT car lengths, and theBMT Astoria Line platforms extended to 10 BMT car lengths. The project, to start in 1950, would costUS$3,850,000 (equivalent to $50,300,000 in 2024). The platforms were only able to fit nine 51-foot-long IRT cars, or seven 60-foot-long BMT cars beforehand.[29][30]
On March 12, 1953, two 9-car super express trains began operating from Flushing–Main Street to Times Square in the morning rush hour.[31][32] The super expresses stopped atWillets Point before skipping all stops to Queensboro Plaza, bypassing theWoodside andJunction Boulevard express stops. The running time was cut down to 23 minutes from 25 minutes.[33] Beginning August 12, 1955, four super expresses operated during the morning rush hour.[34] On September 10, 1953, two express trains from Times Square were converted to super express trains in the evening rush hour.[33] Super express service was discontinued in the morning rush and evening rush, on January 13, 1956,[35][36] and December 14, 1956, respectively.[35] Holiday and Saturday express service was discontinued on March 20, 1954.[37]
On November 1, 1962, fiftyR17s (numbers 6500–6549) were transferred from the Mainline IRT to the 7, allowing for ten-car operation. This was the first time that the IRT ran ten-car trains without a second conductor.[38] With the1964–1965 World's Fair inFlushing Meadows–Corona Park in April 1964, trains were lengthened to eleven cars.[39][40] The Flushing Line received 430 newR33 andR36 "World's Fair" cars for this enhanced service.[41]: 137
From May 13, 1985, to August 21, 1989, the IRT Flushing Line was overhauled for improvements, including the installation of new track, repair of station structures and to improve line infrastructure. The project cost $70 million.[42] Temporary platforms were built at local stations along the line when track work was being performed on local track in station areas to provide access to trains.[43]
The major element was the replacement of rails on the Queens Boulevard viaduct. This was necessitated because the subway was allowed to deteriorate during the 1970s and 1980s to the point that there were widespread "Code Red" defects on the Flushing Line, and there were some pillars holding elevated structures that were so shaky that trains would not run if the wind exceeded 65 mph (105 km/h). <7> express service was suspended for the duration of the project; however, extra 7 service was provided forMets games and Flushing Meadows Park events. During the project, delays of up to 10 minutes on weekdays, and 20 minutes on weekends were expected. TheNew York City Transit Authority (NYCTA) had considered running express bus service to replace <7> express service, but decided against it as it would require hundreds of buses, which the NYCTA did not have. During the construction project, the NYCTA operated 25 trains per hour on the local track, three fewer than the 28 trains per hour split between the local and express beforehand. Running times on the 7 were lengthened by ten minutes during the project.[44]
The project was completed in June 1989, six months ahead of its scheduled completion of December 1989.[45] The NYCTA held a public hearing on June 29, 1989, concerning its proposed reinstatement of express service. The NYCTA proposed implementing express service in July 1989 to coincide with changes in regularA Division schedules. It began to plan options to reinstate express service in 1988. Options were presented to local community boards, including the service pattern in place before May 1985, the continuation of all-local service, Super Express service running nonstop between Willets Point and Queensboro Plaza andSkip-Stop Express service.[46]
Before May 1985, express service operated to Manhattan from 6:30 to 9:45 a.m. and to Main Street from 3:15 to 7:30 p.m. Expresses ran every three minutes on average and locals ran every six minutes; due to the uneven split in service, in practice one express train would be followed two minutes later by another express train, and then an additional four minutes would elapse until the next express train arrived. This split between expresses and locals was in place due to high demand for express trains. Express trains that arrived four minutes after the previous trip had carried twice as many passengers than the expresses that arrived two minutes afterward. With the elimination of express service and the unreliable merge at33rd Street, service reliability had increased, with on-time performance often exceeding 95%.[46] Keeping local-only service was dismissed as it would not have saved times for the large number of riders boarding east of Junction Boulevard heading to Manhattan, because it did not provide for the most efficient use of subway cars, and because it did not provide an attractive alternative to the overcrowdedQueens Boulevard Line. Super express service was dismissed as the demand for local service would require two or three locals for every express, replicating the problem of the pre-1985 service pattern. Skip-stop service was dismissed for limiting the capacity of the line to 24 trains per hour, from the line's capacity of 30 trains per hour under other service patterns for express service.[46]
The NYCTA created a service plan with the goals of maintaining existing levels of reliability, having local service run at existing levels or higher than the pre-1985 level, and providing faster running times. The NYCTA proposed the reintroduction of express service, running to Manhattan between 6:30 and 10 a.m. (changed to 6:30 to 9:45 a.m. at the time of implementation)[45] and to Flushing between 3:15 and 8:15 p.m.. Express service would bypass61st Street–Woodside, allowing one express train to run for every local, with expresses and locals both running every four minutes. The operation of expresses and locals at even frequencies was expected to aid in the even spacing of trains arriving at 33rd Street. The fast express service was expected to discourage riders boarding north of Junction Boulevard to transfer to the crowded Queens Boulevard Line.[46] The elimination of Woodside as an express stop was done in part because trains at the station would be held up by passengers transferring between the local and the express, which led to delays at the 33rd Street merge, negating the time savings.[47][48] On July 28, 1989, theMetropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Board approved the change by a vote of 5–3.[49] <7> express service was restored on August 21, 1989, pushed back from July.[50][51]: 17 Express service saved six minutes from Main Street to Manhattan and four minutes from Junction Boulevard.[45] In September 1989, 200 riders and Republican Mayoral candidateRudolph Giuliani rallied at the 61st Street station to protest the elimination of express service.[47] Express service resumed stopping at Woodside on a six-week test basis on February 10, 1992, after pressure from community opposition.[52]
In the mid-1990s, the MTA discovered that the Queens Boulevard viaduct structure was unstable, as rocks that were used to support the tracks asballast 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.[53] The work began on April 5, 1993.[54][55] When the viaduct reconstruction finished on March 31, 1997, ahead of schedule, full <7> express service was reinstated.[56] Throughout this entire period, ridership grew steadily.[57] On November 6, 2000, express service was extended from 9 p.m. to 10 p.m..[58]
The 7 Subway Extension, which travels west and south to 34th Street and 11th Avenue, near theJacob K. Javits Convention Center inHudson Yards, was delayed five times.[59] The34th Street–Hudson Yards station, originally scheduled to open in December 2013, then pushed to May 2014. And then pushed again to September 13, 2015, and has been serving passengers ever since.[60] However, the overall station construction project was not completed until early September 2018.[61][62]
In 2010, New York City officials announced they were considering a further extension of the service across theHudson River to theSecaucus Junction train station in New Jersey.[63] Though the project was supported by New York City mayorMichael Bloomberg and New Jersey governorChris Christie,[64] MTA chairmanJoseph Lhota announced in 2013 that the New Jersey extension would not be pursued, in favor of theGateway Tunnel project, which entails a new tunnel to Manhattan for Amtrak and NJ Transit trains.[65] As part of a joint effort between thePort Authority of New York and New Jersey, the MTA, andNJ Transit, this extension was considered again in February 2018.[66][67][68]
In 2008, the MTA started converting the 7 service to accommodatecommunications-based train control (CBTC). Originally expected to cost $585.9 million, the installation of CBTC was intended to allow two additional trains per hour as well as two additional trains for the7 Subway Extension, providing a 7% increase in capacity.[69] At the former southern terminal, Times Square, service on the 7 was limited to 27 trains per hour as a result of thebumper blocks there. The new southern terminal at 34th Street–Hudson Yards hastail tracks to store rush-hour trains and can increase the service frequency to 29 trains per hour.[69] New CBTC-compatible cars for the A Division (the R188 contract) were delivered from 2013 to 2016.[69] In October 2017, the CBTC system was activated from Main Street to74th Street.[70]: 59–65 On November 26, 2018, following numerous delays, CBTC was activated on the remainder of the 7 route.[71]
From June 26, 2023, until 2026, <7> express trains are making all stops between Queensboro Plaza and 74th Street–Broadway due to renovations along the Flushing Line.[72][73]
The 7 operates with 11-car sets; the number of cars in a single 7 train set is more than in any other New York City Subway service. These trains, however,are not the longest in the system, since a train of 11 "A" Division cars is only 565 feet (172 m) long, while a standardB Division train, which consists of ten 60 foot (18 m) cars or eight 75 foot (23 m) cars, is 600 feet (180 m) long.[74]
The 7, throughout almost all its history, has maintained a separate fleet from the rest of the IRT, starting with theSteinway Low-Vs. The Steinways were built between 1915 and 1925 specifically for use in theSteinway Tunnel. They had special gear ratios to climb the steep grades (4.5%) in the Steinway Tunnel, something standard Interborough equipment could not do.[75]
In 1938, an order ofWorld's Fair Lo-V cars was placed with theSt. Louis Car Company. These cars broke from IRT "tradition" in that they did not have vestibules at each car end. In addition, because the IRT wasbankrupt at the time, the cars were built as single ended cars, with train controls for the motorman on one side and door controls for the conductor on the other.[76][77]
Starting in 1948,R12s,R14s, andR15s were delivered to the 7. On November 1, 1962, fiftyR17s (6500–6549) were transferred from the Mainline IRT to the 7, allowing for ten-car operation. This was the first time that the IRT ran ten-car trains without a second conductor.[38]
In 1964, picture windowR33S andR36 cars replaced the older R12s, R14s, R15s, and R17s in time for the 1964 New York World's Fair. Early in 1965, the NYCTA placed a strip map indicating all the stations and transfer points for the 7 in each of its 430 cars, helping World's Fair visitors. This innovation was not used for other services and as they shared rolling stock with each other; it was possible for cars to have the wrong strip maps.[78]
The 7 was the last route to run using "Redbird" cars, and the 7's fleet consisted entirely of R33S/R36Redbird trains until February 2002. In 2001, with the arrival of theR142/R142A cars, the Transit Authority announced the retirement of all Redbird cars. From January 2002 to November 2003,Bombardier-builtR62A cars from other routes gradually replaced all of theRedbird cars on the 7. The first R62As entered service on the 7 route on February 19, 2002.[79] On November 3, 2003, the last Redbird train made its final trip on this route, making all stops between Times Square and the then-named Willets Point–Shea Stadium.[80] Several Redbird cars running on this service were decorated with Mets logos and colors during the2000 World Series against theNew York Yankees, as the Flushing Line runs adjacent toCiti Field and the former location ofShea Stadium.[81]
local train
express trainBy 2008, all R62As on the 7 were upgraded withLED lighted signs to distinguish between express and local trains. These signs are located on therollsigns that are found on the side of each car. The local is a green circle around the 7 bullet while the express is a red diamond. Previously, the rollsigns showed either a (7) (within a circle) or a <7> (within a diamond) with the word "Express" underneath it.[82]
The R62As were displaced by theR188s from January 2014 to March 30, 2018, in preparation for theautomation equipment for the Flushing Line. The displaced R62As were returned to the6 train, from which manyR142As were taken and converted to R188s.[83][84] The first train of R188 cars began operating in passenger service on November 9, 2013. By 2016, most of the CBTC-equipped R188 train sets were on the 7, and by March 30, 2018, the last R62A trains were displaced by the R188 cars.[85][86] Eleven of the R188 cars have green circle/red diamond LED signs and a LED numbered-route display, similar to those on the R62As that formerly operated on the 7 route.[87]
The 7 is unofficially nicknamed the "International Express"[88] and the "Orient Express",[89] in part because it travels through several differentethnic neighborhoods populated byimmigrants, especially alongRoosevelt Avenue, and also because it was the principal subway route to the 1964–65 New York World's Fair.[90][91] On June 26, 1999, First LadyHillary Clinton and U.S. Transportation SecretaryRodney E. Slater designated the 7 route as aNational Millennium Trail (under the name "International Express"), along with 15 other routes including theLewis and Clark National Historic Trail and theUnderground Railroad.[92][93]
The following table shows the line used by the 7 and <7>, with shaded boxes indicating the route at the specified times:[94]
| Line | From | To | Tracks | Times | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | ||||
| all times | rush hours, peak direction | ||||
| IRT Flushing Line (full line) | Flushing–Main Street | 74th Street–Broadway | express | ||
| local | |||||
| 74th Street–Broadway | 33rd Street–Rawson Street | local | |||
| Queensboro Plaza | 34th Street–Hudson Yards | all | |||
<7> trains typically run express east of Queensboro Plaza. As of June 2023[update], due to structural renovations on the IRT Flushing Line, <7> trains only run express east of 74th Street–Broadway.[95]
In addition to regular local and rush-hour express services, "Super Express" service to Manhattan is also provided afterNew York Mets games weeknights and weekends atCiti Field, as well as afterUS Open tennis matches. The Super Express trains start atMets–Willets Point and operating express to Manhattan, also bypassingJunction Boulevard,Hunters Point Avenue andVernon Boulevard–Jackson Avenue.[96] As of 2023, Super Express trains only bypass Hunters Point Avenue and Vernon Boulevard–Jackson Avenue due to work on the IRT Flushing Line.[3]
The 7 and <7> run on the IRT Flushing Line in their entirety.[3] Stations in blue denote stops served by Super Express game specials.
| Station service legend | |
|---|---|
 | Stops 24 hours a day |
 | Stops every day during daytime hours only |
 | Stops during weekday daytime hours only |
 | Stops during weekday rush hours in the peak direction only |
 | Station closed |
| Time period details | |
 | Station is compliant with theAmericans with Disabilities Act |
| ↑ | Station is compliant with theAmericans with Disabilities Act in the indicated direction only |
| ↓ | |
 | Elevator access to mezzanine only |
Lcl | Exp | Stations | | Subway transfers | Connections/Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Queens | ||||||
| Flushing Line | ||||||
| | Flushing–Main Street | | LIRRPort Washington Branch atFlushing–Main Street Q44 Select Bus Service Q90 bus toLaGuardia Airport (Terminals C and B only). | ||
| | Mets–Willets Point | ↑[b][97] | LIRRPort Washington Branch atMets–Willets Point Some rush hour trips originate or terminate at this station[c] Super Express trips to 34th Street–Hudson Yards originate at this station. | ||
| | | 111th Street | Some southbound rush hour trips originate at this station. | |||
| ↓ | | | 103rd Street–Corona Plaza | Flushing-bound trains do not stop here because of renovations until early 2026. | |||
| | Junction Boulevard | | Q72 bus toLaGuardia Airport (Terminals C and B only). | ||
| | | 90th Street–Elmhurst Avenue | ||||
| | | 82nd Street–Jackson Heights | Q33 bus to LaGuardia Airport (Marine Air Terminal only). | |||
| ↑ | 74th Street–Broadway | | E F <F> M R (IND Queens Boulevard Line atJackson Heights–Roosevelt Avenue) | Q33 bus to LaGuardia Airport (Marine Air Terminal only) Q53 Select Bus Service Q70 Select Bus Service toLaGuardia Airport (Terminals C and B only). | |
| ↑ | ↑ | 69th Street | Manhattan-bound trains do not stop here because of renovations until early 2026.[98] | |||
| | 61st Street–Woodside | | LIRRCity Terminal Zone atWoodside Q53 Select Bus Service Q70 Select Bus Service toLaGuardia Airport (Terminals C and B only). All trains stop at this station by opening their doors on the Main Street-bound platform. | ||
| ↑ | ↑ | 52nd Street | Manhattan-bound trains do not stop here because of renovations until early 2026.[98] | |||
| | 46th Street–Bliss Street | All Manhattan-bound trains stop at this station on the express track by opening their doors on the extended southbound platform. | |||
| | 40th Street–Lowery Street | All Manhattan-bound trains stop at this station on the express track by opening their doors on the extended southbound platform. | |||
| | 33rd Street–Rawson Street | All Manhattan-bound trains stop at this station on the express track by opening their doors on the extended southbound platform. | |||
| | Queensboro Plaza | | N W (BMT Astoria Line) | ||
| | Court Square | | G (IND Crosstown Line) E M (IND Queens Boulevard Line atCourt Square–23rd Street) | ||
| | Hunters Point Avenue | LIRRCity Terminal Zone atHunterspoint Avenue (peak hours only) | |||
| | Vernon Boulevard–Jackson Avenue | LIRRCity Terminal Zone atLong Island City (peak hours only) | |||
| Manhattan | ||||||
| | Grand Central–42nd Street | | 4 5 6 <6> (IRT Lexington Avenue Line) S (42nd Street Shuttle) | Metro-North Railroad atGrand Central Terminal Long Island Rail Road atGrand Central Madison | |
| | Fifth Avenue | | B D F <F> M (IND Sixth Avenue Line at42nd Street–Bryant Park) | ||
| | Times Square–42nd Street | | 1 2 3 (IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line) A C E (IND Eighth Avenue Line at42nd Street–Port Authority Bus Terminal)N Q R W (BMT Broadway Line)S (42nd Street Shuttle) | Port Authority Bus Terminal M34A Select Bus Service | |
| | 34th Street–Hudson Yards | | M34 Select Bus Service | ||
| External videos | |
|---|---|
 A Weekend at Work: Flushing Line May 2011, Metropolitan Transportation Authority; July 21, 2011; 3:42 YouTube video clip |
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| Other rapid transit in NYC |
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