Editing 63rd Street lines (section)

{{short description|New York City Subway lines}}
{{for|the section of tunnel running under the East River|63rd Street Tunnel}}
{{Use American English|date=February 2025}}
{{good article}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}}
{{Infobox rail line
|name= BMT/IND 63rd Street Lines
|image= {{rint|nycs|F|size=50}} {{rint|nycs|Fd|size=50}} {{rint|nycs|Q|size=50}}
|image_width= 150px
|caption= The IND 63rd Street Line is served by the [[F (New York City Subway service)|F]] and [[Fd (New York City Subway service)|&lt;F&gt; Express]].<br/>The BMT 63rd Street Line is served by the [[Q (New York City Subway service)|Q]].<br/>Limited BMT service is also provided by the [[N (New York City Subway service)|N]] and [[R (New York City Subway service)|R]].
|type= [[Rapid transit]]
|system= [[New York City Subway]]
|locale = [[Manhattan]] and [[Queens]]
|start= West of [[Lexington Avenue–63rd Street (63rd Street Lines)|Lexington Avenue–63rd Street]], Manhattan
|end= South of [[72nd Street (Second Avenue Subway)|72nd Street]], Manhattan; West of [[36th Street (IND Queens Boulevard Line)|36th Street]], Queens
|stations= 3
|open={{start date and age|1989|10|29}} (IND)<br />{{start date and age|1995|05|01}} (temporary usage of BMT)<br />{{start date and age|2017|01|01}} (permanent usage of BMT)
|owner       = [[Government of New York City|City of New York]]
|operator    = [[New York City Transit Authority]]
|daily_ridership= 25,326<ref name="ridership">{{NYCS const|riderref|weekday}}</ref>
|character= Underground
|linelength=
|tracks= 2–4
|gauge= {{track gauge|ussg}}
|electrification= 600 [[Volt|V]] [[Direct current traction]] [[Third rail|3rd rail]]
|map={{63rd Street Line|inline=1}}
|map_state = collapsed
}}

The '''IND 63rd Street Line''' and '''BMT 63rd Street Line''', also referred to as the '''63rd Street Crosstown''', '''Crosstown Route''',<ref name=":9">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/01/05/archives/more-work-on-new-manhattanqueens-subway-slated.html|title=More Work on New Manhattan-Queens Subway Slated|last=Burks|first=Edward C.|date=1976|work=The New York Times|access-date=February 9, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=February 10, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180210002608/http://www.nytimes.com/1976/01/05/archives/more-work-on-new-manhattanqueens-subway-slated.html|url-status=live}}</ref> or '''Route 131-A''',<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://nytm.pastperfectonline.com/photo/30EED2A3-9632-4871-997B-666832264070|title=Map of Modified 63rd Street Crosstown Line: 63rd Street Line (IND)|date=March 1972|website=nytm.pastperfectonline.com|publisher=New York City Transit Authority|access-date=July 3, 2016|archive-date=February 9, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180209182211/http://nytm.pastperfectonline.com/photo/30EED2A3-9632-4871-997B-666832264070|url-status=live}}</ref> are two [[rapid transit]] lines of the [[B Division (New York City Subway)|B Division]] of the [[New York City Subway]] system. The two lines run under 63rd Street on the [[Upper East Side]] of [[Manhattan]], with a [[cross-platform interchange]] at the [[Lexington Avenue–63rd Street (63rd Street Lines)|Lexington Avenue–63rd Street]] station.

Each line consists of two tracks in a stacked configuration, with the southbound tracks of each line parallel to each other on the upper level, while the northbound tracks are parallel on the lower level. Crossover connections between each line's respective tracks are located just to the west of the Lexington Avenue station. The IND line, the southern of the two lines, is served by [[F (New York City Subway service)|F]] trains at all times; it connects the [[IND Sixth Avenue Line]] in Manhattan to the [[IND Queens Boulevard Line]] in [[Queens]]. It uses the upper level of the bi-level [[63rd Street Tunnel]] to travel under the [[East River]] between Manhattan and Queens. The northern, BMT, line is served by the [[Q (New York City Subway service)|Q]] train at all times, although a limited number of [[N (New York City Subway service)|N]] and [[R (New York City Subway service)|R]] trains also serve the line during rush hours. Also known as the Second Avenue Connection,<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|url=http://web.mta.info/capital/pdf/WEB2015-2019Program_reduced.pdf|title=MTA Capital Program 2015–2019 Renew. Enhance. Expand.Amendment No. 2 As Proposed to the MTA Board May 2017|date=May 24, 2017|website=mta.info|access-date=May 24, 2017|archive-date=April 2, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200402222007/http://web.mta.info/capital/pdf/WEB2015-2019Program_reduced.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>{{Rp|128}} it links the [[BMT Broadway Line]] to the [[Second Avenue Subway]], both in Manhattan.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://web.mta.info/news/pdf/MTA%202017%20Final%20Proposed%20Budget%20November%20Financial%20Plan%202017-2020%20Volume%202.pdf|title=MTA 2017 Final Proposed Budget November Financial Plan 2017 – 2020 Volume 2 November 2016|date=November 16, 2016|website=mta.info|publisher=Metropolitan Transportation Authority|access-date=November 17, 2016|archive-date=May 17, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170517072012/http://web.mta.info/news/pdf/MTA%202017%20Final%20Proposed%20Budget%20November%20Financial%20Plan%202017-2020%20Volume%202.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> The crossover between the lines has been used in the past during service disruptions as well as during the [[Manhattan Bridge]] closures in the late 1990s.

These lines were conceived as part of the [[Metropolitan Transportation Authority]]'s [[Program for Action|1968 expansion plans]], and along with the [[Archer Avenue lines]] and a small section of the Second Avenue Subway, they were the only portions of the plan to be completed before it was scaled back due to fiscal issues. The IND 63rd Street Line was originally planned to be extended further east into Queens as a super-express bypass of the IND Queens Boulevard Line. After these plans were abandoned in the mid-1970s, it was commonly referred to as a "subway to nowhere" because it ended one stop into Queens, without any infrastructure connecting to other subway lines in Queens. The 63rd Street Tunnel lay unused for over a decade, and its lower level, intended for future [[Long Island Rail Road]] (LIRR) service, was completed solely to support the subway line above it.

The IND 63rd Street Line between Queens and Manhattan opened on October 29, 1989, and was connected to the Queens Boulevard Line on December 16, 2001. The BMT 63rd Street Line in Manhattan was only used for regular service starting in 2017, when the [[History of the Second Avenue Subway#2007–2017: First phase|Second Avenue Subway's first phase]] opened.