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Kings Highway (BMT Brighton Line)
Encyclopedia
Kings Highway is an express station
on the BMT Brighton Line
of the New York City Subway
. Served by the Q
train at all times and by the B
on weekdays, it is located at Kings Highway
between East 15th and East 16th Streets on the border of Midwood
and Sheepshead Bay
neighborhoods of Brooklyn
.
This station has four tracks and two island platform
s. It has three fare control areas at street level—two to Kings Highway/East 16th Street and one to Quentin Road/East 16th Street. The two mezzanine
s at Kings Highway, located directly underneath the subway embankment
, were constructed in the original BMT format, but fully renovated in the 1980s, during which two identical sets of porcelain enamel artwork (Kings Highway Hieroglyphs by Rhoda Andors) were installed, one set in each mezzanine. The entrance on the south side is normally the full time entrance/exit, containing two staircases to each platform, while the one on the north is HEET access only, containing three turnstile
s, a staircase to each platform and its MetroCard
Vending Machine
s were installed on the sidewalk.
The normally part-time Quentin Road mezzanine, located to the east of the embankment, was built sometime in the 1950s or 1960s to accommodate growing passenger flow; this is evidenced by its newer-style tiling and signage. Platform extensions are clearly present at the north end of the station. It has a token booth, turnstile bank, and two staircases to each platform with the southbound side requiring a short walk.
South of Kings Highway are crossover switches that allow trains to switch from the local tracks to the express ones, and vice versa; these are used when trains must terminate here during construction on the Brighton Line. Before Brighton signal replacement during the 1990s, a switch tower was in operation about 150 feet south of the station, facing the southbound local track; this tower has been abandoned, and control of the switches has passed to a master tower at DeKalb Avenue. During the signal replacement, a new signal electrical tower was installed over the express tracks at the south end of the station.
This station is currently undergoing reconstruction, which includes installation of ADA-accessible
elevators and rebuilding of the platforms and station houses. A temporary platform was used to provide service that would normally stop at the closed platform.
Metro station
A metro station or subway station is a railway station for a rapid transit system, often known by names such as "metro", "underground" and "subway". It is often underground or elevated. At crossings of metro lines, they are multi-level....
on the BMT Brighton Line
BMT Brighton Line
The BMT Brighton Line is a rapid transit line of the B Division of the New York City Subway in Brooklyn, New York City, United States. Local service is provided at all times by the Q train. The Q is joined by the B express train on weekdays...
of the New York City Subway
New York City Subway
The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system owned by the City of New York and leased to the New York City Transit Authority, a subsidiary agency of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and also known as MTA New York City Transit...
. Served by the Q
Q (New York City Subway service)
The Q Broadway Express is a service of the New York City Subway. It is colored yellow on the route sign, on station signs and the official subway map, as it represents a service provided on the BMT Broadway Line through Manhattan....
train at all times and by the B
B (New York City Subway service)
The B Sixth Avenue Express is a rapid transit service of the New York City Subway. It is colored orange on route signs, station signs, and the official subway map, since it runs over the IND Sixth Avenue Line in Manhattan....
on weekdays, it is located at Kings Highway
Kings Highway (Brooklyn)
Kings Highway is a broad avenue that passes mostly through areas in the southern part of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The west end is at Bay Parkway and 78th Street. East of Ocean Avenue the street becomes mostly residential, tending generally east, then northeast, then north through...
between East 15th and East 16th Streets on the border of Midwood
Midwood, Brooklyn
Midwood is a neighborhood in the south central part of the New York City borough of Brooklyn, New York, USA, roughly halfway between Prospect Park and Coney Island. The neighborhood is within Community District 14...
and Sheepshead Bay
Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn
Sheepshead Bay is a bay separating the mainland of Brooklyn, New York City from the eastern portion of Coney Island, the latter originally a barrier island but now effectively an extension of the mainland with peninsulas both east and west...
neighborhoods of Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
.
This station has four tracks and two island platform
Island platform
An island platform is a station layout arrangement where a single platform is positioned between two tracks within a railway station, tram stop or transitway interchange...
s. It has three fare control areas at street level—two to Kings Highway/East 16th Street and one to Quentin Road/East 16th Street. The two mezzanine
Mezzanine (architecture)
In architecture, a mezzanine or entresol is an intermediate floor between main floors of a building, and therefore typically not counted among the overall floors of a building. Often, a mezzanine is low-ceilinged and projects in the form of a balcony. The term is also used for the lowest balcony in...
s at Kings Highway, located directly underneath the subway embankment
Embankment (transportation)
To keep a road or railway line straight or flat, and where the comparative cost or practicality of alternate solutions is prohibitive, the land over which the road or rail line will travel is built up to form an embankment. An embankment is therefore in some sense the opposite of a cutting, and...
, were constructed in the original BMT format, but fully renovated in the 1980s, during which two identical sets of porcelain enamel artwork (Kings Highway Hieroglyphs by Rhoda Andors) were installed, one set in each mezzanine. The entrance on the south side is normally the full time entrance/exit, containing two staircases to each platform, while the one on the north is HEET access only, containing three turnstile
Turnstile
A turnstile, also called a baffle gate, is a form of gate which allows one person to pass at a time. It can also be made so as to enforce one-way traffic of people, and in addition, it can restrict passage only to people who insert a coin, a ticket, a pass, or similar...
s, a staircase to each platform and its MetroCard
MetroCard
The MetroCard is the payment method for the New York City Subway rapid transit system; New York City Transit buses, including routes operated by Atlantic Express under contract to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority ; MTA Bus, and MTA Long Island Bus systems; the PATH subway system; the...
Vending Machine
Vending machine
A vending machine is a machine which dispenses items such as snacks, beverages, alcohol, cigarettes, lottery tickets, consumer products and even gold and gems to customers automatically, after the customer inserts currency or credit into the machine....
s were installed on the sidewalk.
The normally part-time Quentin Road mezzanine, located to the east of the embankment, was built sometime in the 1950s or 1960s to accommodate growing passenger flow; this is evidenced by its newer-style tiling and signage. Platform extensions are clearly present at the north end of the station. It has a token booth, turnstile bank, and two staircases to each platform with the southbound side requiring a short walk.
South of Kings Highway are crossover switches that allow trains to switch from the local tracks to the express ones, and vice versa; these are used when trains must terminate here during construction on the Brighton Line. Before Brighton signal replacement during the 1990s, a switch tower was in operation about 150 feet south of the station, facing the southbound local track; this tower has been abandoned, and control of the switches has passed to a master tower at DeKalb Avenue. During the signal replacement, a new signal electrical tower was installed over the express tracks at the south end of the station.
This station is currently undergoing reconstruction, which includes installation of ADA-accessible
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 is a law that was enacted by the U.S. Congress in 1990. It was signed into law on July 26, 1990, by President George H. W. Bush, and later amended with changes effective January 1, 2009....
elevators and rebuilding of the platforms and station houses. A temporary platform was used to provide service that would normally stop at the closed platform.
External links
- Station Reporter — B Train
- Station Reporter — Q Train
- Artwork: "Kings Highway Hieroglyphics", Rhoda Yohai Andors (1987)
- The Official Subway and Rail Art Guide
- MTA's Arts For Transit — Kings Highway (BMT Brighton Line)
- The Subway Nut — Kings Highway Pictures
- Kings Highway entrance — south side from Google Maps Street View
- Kings Highway entrance — north side from Google Maps Street View
- Quentin Road entrance from Google Maps Street View