Broadway Express/ Sea Beach Local
An N train ofR46s approaching30th Avenue
Note: Dashed red line shows late night service via theMontague Street Tunnel. Dashed pink line shows limitedrush hour service to/from96th Street.
Northern end	Astoria–Ditmars Boulevard(all times) 96th Street–Second Avenue(limited rush hour service)
Southern end	Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue
Stations	28 (weekdays) 32 (weekends) 45 (late night service) 22 (limited service)
Rolling stock	R46 R68 R68A (fleet shared with the)[1][2] (Rolling stock assignments subject to change)
Depot	Coney Island Yard
Started service	June 22, 1915; 110 years ago (1915-06-22)
Route map Legend  N  ​ W  Astoria–Ditmars Boulevard Astoria Boulevard 30th Avenue Broadway 36th Avenue 39th Avenue ​Main Street viaFlushing Queensboro Plaza ​Hudson Yards viaFlushing Forest Hills viaQueens Boulevard Queens Manhattan Lexington Avenue–59th Street Fifth Avenue–59th Street plannedSecond Avenue Subway  Q  ( N  R  limited rush) 96th Street 86th Street 72nd Street plannedSecond Avenue Subway ​Jamaica via63rd Street Lexington Avenue–63rd Street ​Downtown &Brooklyn via6th Avenue 57th Street–Seventh Avenue 49th Street ( northbound) Times Square–42nd Street switches to express tracks during weekdays 34th Street–Herald Square 28th Street 23rd Street 14th Street–Union Square Eighth Street–New York University Prince Street daytime viaManhattan Bridge late nights via Lower Manhattan Canal Street ​Uptown &the Bronx via6th Avenue City Hall Cortlandt Street Rector Street Whitehall Street–South Ferry  W  weekdays ( R  late nights) no regular service viaNassau Street Montague Tunnel Manhattan Brooklyn Court Street Jay Street–MetroTech Myrtle Avenue DeKalb Avenue ​Brighton Beach &Coney Island viaBrighton Atlantic Avenue–Barclays Center Union Street Ninth Street Prospect Avenue 25th Street 36th Street Ninth Avenue bypassed local section Fort Hamilton Parkway 50th Street 55th Street 62nd Street bypassed local section 71st Street 79th Street 18th Avenue 20th Avenue Bay Parkway  R  W  (limited rush hours) Coney Island viaWest End 45th Street 53rd Street 59th Street Bay Ridge via4th Avenue Eighth Avenue Fort Hamilton Parkway New Utrecht Avenue 18th Avenue 20th Avenue Bay Parkway Kings Highway Avenue U 86th Street  W  (limited rush hours) Manhattan &the Bronx viaWest End ​ Manhattan &Queens viaCulver orBrighton Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue  N   D  F   <F>  Q  Legend Lines used by the and Other services sharing tracks with the and Unused lines, connections, or service patterns  N  Termini of services Cross-platform interchange Platforms on different levels This diagram: view talk edit

TheN Broadway Express/Sea Beach Local^[3] is arapid transit service in theB Division of theNew York City Subway. Its route emblem, or "bullet," is colored yellow, since it uses theBMT Broadway Line inManhattan.^[4]

The N operates 24 hours daily betweenDitmars Boulevard inAstoria, Queens, andStillwell Avenue inConey Island,Brooklyn; limited rush hour service originates and terminates at96th Street on theUpper East Side ofManhattan instead of Ditmars Boulevard.^[5][3][6] Weekday daytime service makes express stops between34th Street–Herald Square in Manhattan and59th Street inBrooklyn and all stops elsewhere. Weekend daytime service is the same as weekday daytime service, except trains make all stops in Manhattan between 34th andCanal Street. Overnight service makes all stops along the full route, serves theFinancial District ofLower Manhattan and uses theMontague Street Tunnel to travel between Manhattan and Brooklyn instead of theManhattan Bridge.^[a]

The N was originally theBrooklyn–Manhattan Transit Corporation's4 service, running along the BMT Sea Beach Line to the Manhattan Bridge. The 4 used theBMT Nassau Street Line in Lower Manhattan from 1915 to 1917, after which it ran express on the BMT Broadway Line. The 4 became the N in 1961. The N ran local in Queens along theIND Queens Boulevard Line toForest Hills–71st Avenue from 1976 until 1987, when it switched terminals with the R. From 1986 to 2004, reconstruction on the Manhattan Bridge forced the N to run local on the Broadway Line via the Montague Street Tunnel.

Original designation for the Sea Beach Line

1967–1979 bullet

NX bullet, used in 1967–1968

Diamond N bullet, used in 1979–1986 to note local service to Whitehall Street

The route that is now the N was originallyBMT service 4, known as theSea Beach Line orSea Beach Express.^[8]

On June 22, 1915, the currentBMT Sea Beach Line opened, replacing a street level "el" that branched off of theFifth Avenue El with the formerBMT West End Line. Originally, it used the south tracks of theManhattan Bridge, which at that time connected to theBMT Nassau Street Line.^[9][10] Trains began running express between Pacific Street and 59th Street with the extension of the Fourth Avenue Line to 86th Street.^[11]

On September 4, 1917, the first part of theBMT Broadway Line and the north side tracks of the Manhattan Bridge opened. Trains ran from14th Street–Union Square toConey Island–Stillwell Avenue, now using the bridge's northern tracks.^[9][12] On January 15, 1918, service was extended toTimes Square–42nd Street.^[11]

Weekday and Saturday summer trains leaving Coney Island between 6:37 a.m. and 8:37 p.m. began running non-stop between Kings Highway and 59th Street on August 1, 1920. Trains that started at Kings Highway made local stops. On November 14, 1920, weekday rush hour trains, and Saturday AM rush hour trains began skipping Myrtle Avenue and DeKalb Avenue.^[11]

Between 1924 and 1926, trains skipped Myrtle Avenue and DeKalb Avenue during weekday rush hours, and on Saturday southbound between 12:01 p.m. and 6:57 p.m. Between 4:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. weekdays, and Saturdays southbound between 12:01 p.m. to 6:57 p.m., the rear two cars at Canal Street were restricted to boarding only (no exiting the train). In June 1931, trains skipped Myrtle Avenue and DeKalb Avenue between 7 a.m. and 12:30 a.m. weekdays, and between 10:30 a.m. Sunday to 12:30 a.m. Monday. Trains skipped 36th Street during the morning rush hour in the northbound direction. Between 1933 and 1937, the hours in which trains skipped Myrtle Avenue and DeKalb Avenue were 7 a.m. until midnight weekdays.^[11]

On June 29, 1950, trains began running express in Brooklyn during late nights. As of June 28, 1951, every other morning rush hour train no longer terminated at Kings Highway.^[11]

On May 2, 1957, service was extended north via the express tracks from Times Square to57th Street–Seventh Avenue, and trains stopped bypassing 36th Street during the AM rush hour. In fall 1959, trains began stopping atDeKalb Avenue during midday hours. Previously, they bypassed DeKalb Avenue at all times except late nights. Beginning on January 1, 1961, trains bypassedDeKalb Avenue during rush hours only. In addition, on weekday and Saturday evenings, late nights, and all day Sundays, they ran local on the BMT Fourth Avenue Line.^[11]

The N designation began to appear whenR27 subway cars were moved to the service in April 1961.^[8][9]

The NX designation was used for arush hour peak-direction "super-express" service along the express tracks of the Sea Beach Line, beginning in the AM rush hour atBrighton Beach on theBMT Brighton Line, running through Coney Island, and then following the N route to57th Street–Seventh Avenue. (Reverse in the PM rush hour.) This short-lived service began on November 27, 1967 (with the opening of theChrystie Street Connection)^[13] and ended April 12, 1968, due to low ridership. Starting on Monday, April 15, 1968, the five NX trips instead ran as N trips.^{[8][9][14][11]}

On December 31, 1972, all late night trains began running local in Brooklyn. Late weekday evening trains, weekend southbound trains, and northbound early weekday trains began stopping at 53rd Street and 45th Street.^[11]

On August 30, 1976, weekday N service was extended north over the BMT60th Street Tunnel Connection toForest Hills–71st Avenue to replace the discontinuedEE. While many N trains ran the full route from Coney Island to 71st Avenue, via the Manhattan Bridge and Broadway Express, some trains ran local during the rush hours only (southbound in the AM rush hour, and northbound in the PM rush hour) betweenWhitehall Street–South Ferry inLower Manhattan andForest Hills–71st Avenue, which had been the former EE route;^[15] these trains were noted with diamond N bullets from 1979. Trains stopped terminating at Kings Highway in the AM rush hour.^[11]

On January 24, 1977, as part of a series of NYCTA service cuts to save $13 million, many subway lines began running shorter trains during middays. As part of the change, N trains began running with four cars between 9:30 a.m. and 2:15 p.m.^[16] On August 27, 1977, N service was cut back during late nights, only operating between36th Street andConey Island.^[17] Northbound trains ran express between 59th Street and 36th Street while southbound trains ran local.^[11]

On November 26, 1984, evening rush hour trains that terminated at Kings Highway were extended to Coney Island.^[18]

Reconstruction of theManhattan Bridge between 1986 and 2004 disrupted N service, usually rerouting it via theMontague Street Tunnel. On April 26, 1986, the north side tracks (leading to theIND Sixth Avenue Line) were closed and services that normally ran on them were moved to the south side, running via theBMT Broadway Line. Because of the large amount of train traffic now running on those tracks, rush hour and midday N service was rerouted via the Montague Street Tunnel, making local stops in Manhattan and Brooklyn, though evening, night and weekend trains continued to use the bridge and express tracks in Brooklyn.^[8][9] Late evening trains that ran via the bridge also ran local in Brooklyn heading southbound. Six trains only ran between Continental Avenue and Whitehall Street in the AM rush hour, while six trains only ran between Canal Street and Continental Avenue in the PM rush hour.^[18] TheM, which was rerouted from theBMT Brighton Line to theBMT West End Line, replaced the N as the weekday express on the Fourth Avenue Line.^[9][19] Starting on April 28, 1986, one Q train ran to Continental Avenue at 7:05 a.m., and returned in service as an N train, and an N train arriving at Continental Avenue at 3:25 p.m. began returning in service as a B train. These special B and Q trips no longer ran after May 23, 1987.^[18]

As part of the New York City Transit Authority's proposed service plan to serve the new Archer Avenue Line upper level, the N would have been extended to Jamaica Center during weekdays. When N trains terminated at 71st Avenue or57th Street–Seventh Avenue during weekends and evenings, G trains would have been extended to Jamaica Center, and during late nights a G train shuttle would have run between Jamaica Center andVan Wyck Boulevard. This service plan would have allowed E and F trains to remain on the Queens Boulevard mainline toward 179th Street.^[20][21][22] The final service plan, which took effect on December 11, 1988, had the extension served by E trains, with R trains extended to 179th Street.^[23]

On May 24, 1987, the N swapped northern terminals with theR. The N was switched toAstoria–Ditmars Boulevard, while theR went toForest Hills–71st Avenue.^[24]: 16 This was done to give the R direct access toJamaica Yard; previously, the N had direct access to bothJamaica Yard andConey Island Yard, and the R, running from Bay Ridge to Astoria, lacked direct access to any yard.^[25] This change was intended to improve the appearance and reliability of service on the R, since all trains on the Astoria and Broadway Lines were part of the graffiti-free program.^[24]: 16 Trains ran via the Manhattan Bridge during late nights and weekends. Some trains went into service at 86th Street during the AM rush hour put-ins.^[18] Between November 23, 1987, and May 13, 1988, one D train arrived at Ditmars Boulevard at 7:12 a.m. and returned in service as an N train.^[18]

When the north side of the Manhattan Bridge reopened and the south side was closed on December 11, 1988, the N began running local in Manhattan and via the Montague Tunnel at all times. In order to replace B service^[b] to Ditmars Boulevard, additional N service was provided during rush hours. Trains continued to run express in Brooklyn betweenPacific Street and59th Street/Fourth Avenue evenings and weekends.^[27][28][18]

On June 11, 1990, trains that were put into service at Queensboro Plaza in the PM rush hour were discontinued. Between June 10, 1990, and July 25, 1992, due to construction work in the 60th Street Tunnel, trains had to use a single track. Trains operated either between Ditmars Boulevard and Canal Street, or between 57th Street and Coney Island.^[18]

The Transit Authority and politicians pressured theNew York State Department of Transportation to resume N train service on the bridge's south side on September 30, 1990, despite warnings from engineers that the structure was unsafe and major repairs still had to be made. Trains ran express on Broadway in Manhattan (stopping at 49th Street) and Fourth Avenue in Brooklyn at all times except late nights (10 p.m. to 5 a.m.). Southbound Brooklyn expresses ran until late evenings on Saturday, not running on Sunday morning any more. Between early morning and early evenings, trains skipped DeKalb Avenue. Several trains after the AM rush hour went out of service at Kings Highway.^[18] On December 27, state inspectors forced N service to be rerouted via the Montague Street Tunnel again after discovery of corroded support beams and missing steel plates, running local on its entire route at all times.^[29][9]

In November 1993, before the Manhattan Bridge's renovation was completed, the MTA proposed restoring express N service along the Fourth Avenue Line for a six-month trial period, with the M making local stops betweenPacific Street and36th Street. Some residents ofSunset Park, Brooklyn, opposed the proposal, which they claimed would negatively impact about 7,000 daily riders at the45th Street and53rd Street stations.^[30] On May 31, 1994, the N began running express in Brooklyn between Pacific Street and59th Street–Fourth Avenue during weekday midday and rush hours, with the M running local during those times.^[31][9][32]From 1994 to May 22, 1995, the southern terminal of the N was86th Street due to rehabilitation work atConey Island–Stillwell Avenue.^[33][34] On November 4, 2001, it was cut back again as the terminal's reconstruction project continued.^[9]

From April 30, 1995, to November 12, 1995, the north side of the Manhattan Bridge was closed during weekday midday and weekends for structural repairs. Midday N service ran local in Brooklyn, replacing the M, which was cut back from9th Avenue toChambers Street. The N continued to run express during rush hours.^[35][36][37]

After theSeptember 11, 2001 attacks, N service was initially rerouted between Canal Street and Atlantic Avenue–Pacific Street and operated via theManhattan Bridge, making all stops along the full route, but was split on the evening of September 12, with the northern section operating between Ditmars Boulevard and 34th Street, and the southern section operating between Court Street and Stillwell Avenue; service in the northern section bypassed 49th Street in both directions. On September 17, N service was completely suspended and was replaced by W trains in Queens, by Q and W trains in Manhattan, and byM trains in Brooklyn.^[38][39] Normal N service was restored on October 28.^[40]

On September 8, 2002, because of the ongoing reconstruction of Coney Island terminal, weekend and late night N service was reduced to a shuttle between 86th and Pacific Streets, running express on theBMT Fourth Avenue Line. In its place, theW was extended to Manhattan and Astoria, Queens at all times; this was because the W was the only route still serving Stillwell Avenue during this part of the reconstruction.^[9][41][42]

On February 22, 2004, the Manhattan Bridge work was finally completed. The N returned to its full route in Manhattan and Queens at all times, and returned to using the Manhattan Bridge at all times except nights (via Fourth Avenue express, bypassingDeKalb Avenue). On weekdays, N trains ran express between34th Street in Manhattan and59th Street/Fourth Avenue in Brooklyn via the Manhattan Bridge, and local elsewhere; several trains ran express on the entire Broadway Line and short-turned at57th Street–Seventh Avenue or Times Square during the morning rush hour. On weekends, it made local stops in Manhattan, but ran express in Brooklyn, using the Bridge. During late nights, it ran local along its entire route via theMontague Street Tunnel, replacing theR train.^{[8][9][43][44]}

On May 29, 2005, the new Stillwell Avenue terminal was completed, and N service between 86th Street and Coney Island was restored.^[9][45]

On June 28, 2010, the N began running local in Manhattan north ofCanal Street at all times, replacing theW on weekdays which was discontinued due to budget problems, effectively adopting the weekend service pattern.^[46][47] However, the handful of short-turn N trains continued to run express in Manhattan.^{[48][49][50][51]}

From August 2, 2013, to September 14, 2014, theMontague Street Tunnel was closed forHurricane Sandy–related repairs. During this time, overnight N service was rerouted via the Manhattan Bridge, skipping six stations it normally served.^[8][52]

On November 7, 2016, the MTA restored theBMT Broadway Line services to their 2004–2010 service pattern in preparation for the rerouting of theQ train to theSecond Avenue Subway. As a result, the N train once again became a weekday express between 34th Street–Herald Square and Canal Street, with local service replaced by the restored W train.^[53][54][55] The MTA approved the service change on May 23, 2016.^[56][57] All short-turn N trains that originally terminated at 57th Street–Seventh Avenue were extended to96th Street–Second Avenue on January 3, 2017, following theopening of theSecond Avenue Subway.^{[58][59][60][61]}

In January 2017, the MTA revealed plans to rehabilitate the tunnel structure above the BMT Fourth Avenue Line's express tracks between36th Street and59th Street. As a result, from July 30, 2018, to July 29, 2019, N trains ran local along that section at all times.^{[62][63][64][65]} Between October 21, 2019, and May 4, 2020, N trains terminated at 86th Street so work could be completed to protect Coney Island Yard from flooding. An out-of-system transfer was available between the N at 86th Street and the F atAvenue X station.^[66][67]

The N began running local in Manhattan in March 2020 after the W was temporarily suspended due to theCOVID-19 pandemic;^[68] regular N and W service was restored in June.^[69][70] In May 2020, the N began operating local along Fourth Avenue on most weekends to provide a transfer to the F at Fourth Avenue–Ninth Street, since the F was suspended south ofChurch Avenue due to construction on theIND Culver Line.^[71] In August 2023, midday headways on the N were reduced to eight minutes.^[72][73]

The following table shows the lines used by the N, with shaded boxes indicating the route at the specified times:^{[74][5][6][75][76][7]}

For a more detailed station listing, see the articles on the lines listed above.^[3]

Station service legend
	Stops 24 hours a day
	Stops every day during daytime hours only
	Stops every day during overnight hours only
	Stops everyday during overnight hours and weekends during daytime hours only
	Stops during weekday daytime hours only
	Stops during weekday rush hours in the peak direction only
	Station closed
	Stops rush hours only (limited service)
	Stops rush hours in the reverse-peak direction only (limited service)
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

Ast.		96th	Stations		Subway transfers	Connections and notes
Manhattan
Second Avenue Line (limited rush hour service only)[59][78]
—			96th Street		​Q	M15 Select Bus Service
			86th Street		​Q  ​R	M15 Select Bus Service M86 Select Bus Service
			72nd Street		​Q  ​R	M15 Select Bus Service
63rd Street Line (limited rush hour service only)[78]
—			Lexington Avenue–63rd Street		F  <F> ​​ ​Q  ​R  Out-of-system transfers withMetroCard/OMNY: 4  ​5  ​6  <6> (IRT Lexington Avenue Line at59th Street) N  ​R  ​W  (BMT Broadway Line atLexington Avenue–59th Street)
Queens
Astoria Line
		—	Astoria–Ditmars Boulevard		W
			Astoria Boulevard		W	M60 Select Bus Service toLaGuardia Airport
			30th Avenue		W
			Broadway		W
			36th Avenue		W
			39th Avenue		W
			Queensboro Plaza		W  7  <7> ​ (IRT Flushing Line)
Manhattan
Broadway Line
		—	Lexington Avenue–59th Street		​R  ​W  4  ​5  ​6  <6> (IRT Lexington Avenue Line at59th Street) Out-of-system transfer withMetroCard/OMNY: F  <F> ​​ N  ​Q  ​R  (63rd Street Lines atLexington Avenue–63rd Street)	Roosevelt Island Tramway
			Fifth Avenue–59th Street		​R  ​W
Services to 96th Street (Manhattan) and Astoria–Ditmars Boulevard (Queens) split
Broadway Line (Astoria and Second Avenue branches merge)
			57th Street–Seventh Avenue		​Q  ​R  ​W
		|	49th Street	↑	​Q  ​R  ​W	Station isADA-accessible in the northbound direction only.
			Times Square–42nd Street		​Q  ​R  ​W  1  ​2  ​3  (IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line) 7  <7> ​ (IRT Flushing Line) A  ​C  ​E  (IND Eighth Avenue Line at42nd Street–Port Authority Bus Terminal) S  (42nd Street Shuttle) B  ​D  ​F  <F> ​M  (IND Sixth Avenue Line at42nd Street–Bryant Park, daytime only)	Port Authority Bus Terminal M34A Select Bus Service
			34th Street–Herald Square		​Q  ​R  ​W  B  ​D  ​F  <F> ​M  (IND Sixth Avenue Line)	M34 / M34A Select Bus Service PATH at33rd Street Amtrak,LIRR,NJ Transit atPennsylvania Station
		|	28th Street		​Q  ​R
		|	23rd Street		​Q  ​R	M23 Select Bus Service
			14th Street–Union Square		​Q  ​R  ​W  L  (BMT Canarsie Line) 4  ​5  ​6  <6> (IRT Lexington Avenue Line)	M14A / M14D Select Bus Service
		|	Eighth Street–New York University		​Q  ​R
		|	Prince Street		​Q  ​R
Manhattan Bridge branch
			Canal Street		​Q  ​R  ​W  6  <6> ​ (IRT Lexington Avenue Line) J  ​Z  (BMT Nassau Street Line)	Stops on the lower level, under Canal Street.
Lower Manhattan branch (night service only)
		—	Canal Street		Q  4  ​6  (IRT Lexington Avenue Line) J  (BMT Nassau Street Line)	Stops on the upper level, under Broadway.[d]
			City Hall
			Cortlandt Street		2  (IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line atPark Place) A  (IND Eighth Avenue Line atChambers Street) E  (IND Eighth Avenue Line atWorld Trade Center)	PATH atWorld Trade Center
			Rector Street
			Whitehall Street–South Ferry		R  1  (IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line atSouth Ferry)	Staten Island Ferry atWhitehall Terminal
Brooklyn
Montague Street branch
		—	Court Street		R  2  (IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line atBorough Hall) 4  (IRT Eastern Parkway Line atBorough Hall)
			Jay Street–MetroTech		R  A  F ​ (INDFulton Street andCulver Lines)
Fourth Avenue Line (tunnel and bridge branches merge)
		|	DeKalb Avenue		B  ​D  ​​Q  ​R  ​W
			Atlantic Avenue–Barclays Center		D  ​R  W  B  ​Q  (BMT Brighton Line) 2  ​3  ​4  ​5  (IRT Eastern Parkway Line)	LIRRAtlantic Branch atAtlantic Terminal
		|	Union Street		D  ​​R  ​W
		|	Ninth Street		D  ​​R  ​W  F  ​G  (IND Culver Line atFourth Avenue)
		|	Prospect Avenue		D  ​​R  ​W
		|	25th Street		D  ​​R  ​W
			36th Street		D  ​R  W
		|	45th Street		​R  ​W
		|	53rd Street		​R  ​W
			59th Street		​R  ​W
Sea Beach Line
			Eighth Avenue		W
			Fort Hamilton Parkway		W
			New Utrecht Avenue		W  D  ​R  ​W  (BMT West End Line at62nd Street)
			18th Avenue		W
			20th Avenue		W
			Bay Parkway		W
			Kings Highway		W	B82 Select Bus Service
			Avenue U		W
			86th Street		W	Southern terminal for select rush-hour trains[e]
			Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue		D  (BMT West End Line) F  <F> ​ (IND Culver Line) Q  (BMT Brighton Line)

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• New York City Subway N service to be restored to Coney Island May 29, via the Sea Beach Line

• MTA NYC Transit – N Broadway Express
• MTA Subway Time—N Train
• "N Subway Timetable, Effective November 2, 2025".Metropolitan Transportation Authority. RetrievedNovember 10, 2025.

• Brooklyn–Manhattan Transit Corporation
• New York City Subway services

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