Which nyc subway to take

Carts that are larger than 30 inches in length or width are not allowed. Items that could be a hazard, interfere with MTA operations, or block traffic. Your safety is our biggest priority. If you have a disability that prevents you from using the subway or bus, you might be eligible for our paratransit service. Close Menu. Search Search. We have detected you are using an out-of-date browser. We no longer support this browser, so parts of the site might not work as you expect them to.

We recommend updating your browser to the latest version. Riding the subway Updated Jul 7, Find out about fares, maps, transfers, how to get on the right train, how to get help, and more. Tips for riding Masks are still required on board trains and inside of subway stations. Waiting for your train Stand back from the platform edge , especially when trains are entering and leaving the station. Boarding and riding Let others exit the train before you board. Hold on when the train is moving.

Keep bags and personal items where you can see them. It delays service for everyone. See fare details. How to pay the subway fare Using a MetroCard Hold the card so the black magnetic strip is facing you and on the bottom of the card. Note: You cannot use an unlimited MetroCard within 18 minutes of swiping it. You need to set up your device for contactless payment before you can use it with OMNY.

Learn more about OMNY. Swipe your MetroCard with the logo and the black barcode facing you and the clipped corner on the upper right. Tap a contactless card or a digital wallet at OMNY readers to pay the fare. Finding stations and trains Stations Subway stations are usually on corners of streets. Look for green metal railings near entrances and exits. Many also have green globe lamps. Some stations are in the middle of blocks, near business entrances, incorporated inside buildings, along parks, or otherwise tucked away, so look closely.

Black and white signs at the entrance tell you what lines the stop serves and which direction trains go. Some stations have trains that go in both directions.

Some only have trains going in one direction. All of these signs have arrows showing which way to go. Many stations have booths near the turnstiles. You can ask the station agent for help if you need it. If you again refer to the map key, you'll see that the black or white "bars" indicate that you can catch trains from multiple lines at that station.

Another way the map indicates that more than one train line runs on a particular route is that several letters or numbers are listed along the route. For an example, find Central Park on your map. If you look immediately to the left you'll see that the A, C, B and D trains all run along Central Park on the west side and you can transfer between those 4 train lines at any of those stations along the way. Uptown or Downtown If you are riding the subway in Manhattan, navigating the subway system is very easy.

Manhattan is set up so that the streets run across town from east to west, and the avenues run north and south. The southernmost part of Manhattan, or Downtown, has named streets, but as you travel uptown and reach 1st street, navigation is simple from there.

So, as logic would tell you, if you're entering the subway system at 14th street and you're trying to get to 59th street you need an uptown train. Here are a few more subway map reading tips. Make note of the station before Very helpful if the train is crowded or you're traveling with a group.

It works conceptually the same in other boroughs with local trains tracks generally being on the outside and express trains tracks on the inside. Remember that I only described some of the common layouts above, and that each station really does have different floorplans.

To confirm that you are standing at the correct platform on the correct side, look for the large black signs that are parallel to the train's track and do not have any arrows. They look like this:. As you can see, these signs tell you the service designation A , the train's direction downtown , but more importantly the name of the very last station of the train.

By looking at the very last station of a particular train on the map, you can determine whether that train is going in the right direction for you.

Remember that signs with arrows do not indicate the platform you are standing on. This confuses tourists all the time. They see the following sign and think that the A, C, E, and 7 trains or 1, 2, 3, and S trains stop here:. Instead, these signs are telling them to keep walking to the left or right to reach those trains.

A New York subway train consists of a series of passenger cars. While there are doors between the cars, it is illegal and very dangerous to move between them.

Most trains have 10 cars which make them long enough to cover an entire platform. However, the C, J, Z, M have only 8 cars, while the G train is especially short, so you might have to stand in the middle of the platform for those. Although trains do run on set schedules , it probably suffices to just go down into the station and wait for the next train, which should arrive anywhere between minutes during rush hour and minutes at night. The subway system runs 24 hours per day and never closes You've heard that New York never sleeps, haven't you?

With some exceptions you could catch nearly any train at 4 a. Most stations are equipped with displays that indicate how long you have to wait for the next train s :. These displays tell you the order of trains 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, etc. Some displays also tell you the side of the platform you should expect the train to arrive on the 14th St.

The first line always displays the next approaching train 1. If the first line turns yellow and is blinking, it means that the train just entered the station. Oftentimes, you can also find these large displays showing the expected time of arrival for the next train along with the next stations the approaching train will go to:.

Because a single platform can service different trains, you want to confirm that an approaching train is indeed the train you are waiting for. Most trains will have the name of the service and the name of the last station on the side of the car:. Once the train car's doors open, you should also hear the conductor's announcement from inside the car e. The next stop is 72nd Street"; audio. Before you board the train, please let passengers exit first before you enter. Once you enter the car, be sure to walk all the way in to let others behind you come in as well.

Trains can be very crowded during rush hour. It's normal to find yourself sandwiched between people. Also make sure to find a pole to hold on to as the train's sudden acceleration and movements can easily throw you off balance. The next thing to do after entering a car is to look for the route map that indicates the stations you will encounter on the service. Some route maps have tiny light bulbs:.

The large lighted arrow on the end indicates the direction of travel in relation to the map. Yellow lights indicate subway stations that are coming up. I took this picture on a train from the 59th St.

The last stop of this train is Bowling Green. When the train enters Grand Central, its yellow light will also blink.

The next station is 49th St.