The Canal Street station (formerly Canal Street–
Holland Tunnel
The Holland Tunnel is a vehicular tunnel under the Hudson River that connects the New York City neighborhood of Hudson Square in Lower Manhattan to the east with Jersey City in New Jersey to the west. The tunnel is operated by the Port Author ...
) is an express
station on the
IND Eighth Avenue Line
The IND Eighth Avenue Line is a rapid transit line in New York City, United States, and is part of the B Division of the New York City Subway. Opened in 1932, it was the first line of the Independent Subway System (IND), and the ''Eighth Avenu ...
of the
New York City Subway. Located at the intersection of
Canal Street, Vestry Street, and
Sixth Avenue (Avenue of the Americas) in
Lower Manhattan, it is served by the
A and
E trains at all times, and the
C train at all times except late nights.
History
The station opened on September 10, 1932, as part of the city-operated
Independent Subway System
The Independent Subway System (IND or ISS), formerly known as the Independent City-Owned Subway System (ICOSS) or the Independent City-Owned Rapid Transit Railroad (ICORTR), was a rapid transit rail system in New York City that is now part of th ...
(IND)'s initial segment, the
Eighth Avenue Line between
Chambers Street and
207th Street. Construction of the whole line cost $191.2 million. Service at this station was provided with express service from its onset.
On February 17, 1953, the
New York City Board of Transportation
The New York City Board of Transportation or the Board of Transportation of the City of New York (NYCBOT or BOT) was a city transit commission and operator in New York City, consisting of three members appointed by the mayor. It was created in ...
installed two devices at either end of the station to alert police of passers-by above of emergencies in the station. The devices, which cost $1,100, were called "Call-a-Cop." In the station agent booth, an agent could set off an alarm bell and turn on a red warning light aboveground at Canal and Walker Streets on Sixth Avenue by lightly pushing on a treadle. The warning lights were placed atop eight-feet tall metal poles located at subway entrances. This device would have been installed at other stations if the pilot here was successful.
Station layout
This station has four tracks and two
island platform
An island platform (also center platform, centre platform) is a station layout arrangement where a single platform is positioned between two tracks within a railway station, tram stop or transitway interchange. Island platforms are popular on ...
s, which are each approximately long. There are two
diamond crossover
A railroad switch (), turnout, or ''set ofpoints () is a mechanical installation enabling railway trains to be guided from one track to another, such as at a railway junction or where a spur or siding branches off.
The most common ty ...
s allowing express trains to cross to the local track or local trains to cross to the express track. One is located to the south of the station for downtown (southbound) trains and the other is located to the north of the station for uptown (northbound) trains; this can be a bottleneck for trains in either direction. The platforms are offset, and a signal tower is located at the south end of the southbound platform.
This underground station is located on
the street of the same name, which is the boundary of
SoHo
Soho is an area of the City of Westminster, part of the West End of London. Originally a fashionable district for the aristocracy, it has been one of the main entertainment districts in the capital since the 19th century.
The area was develo ...
and
Tribeca
Tribeca (), originally written as TriBeCa, is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan in New York City. Its name is a syllabic abbreviation of "Triangle Below Canal Street". The "triangle" (more accurately a quadrilateral) is bounded by Canal Stree ...
. The station sits one block west from the entrance to the
Holland Tunnel
The Holland Tunnel is a vehicular tunnel under the Hudson River that connects the New York City neighborhood of Hudson Square in Lower Manhattan to the east with Jersey City in New Jersey to the west. The tunnel is operated by the Port Author ...
outside of the Tribeca North Historic District.
Much of the surrounding area is characterized by its historic
loft architecture.
Several public parks are located near the station. Above the north end of the station at Canal Street and 6th Avenue are
Albert Capsouto Park,
Duarte Square
Juan Pablo Duarte Square, usually shortened to Duarte Square, is a triangular park in Hudson Square, in Lower Manhattan, New York City. The park, operated by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation (NYC Parks), is bound by Sullivan ...
, and Grand Canal Court. At the south end of the station at Walker Street is Tribeca Park. Several blocks to the west at the end of Canal Street are Canal Park and
Hudson River Park
Hudson River Park is a waterfront park on the North River (Hudson River) that extends from 59th Street south to Battery Park in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The park, a component of the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway, stretches and ...
.
St. John's Park formerly existed two blocks west of the station; the site is now occupied by Holland Tunnel exit ramps.
Track layout
South of this station, the tracks split into two levels and cross at a
flying junction
A flying junction or flyover is a railway junction at which one or more diverging or converging tracks in a multiple-track route cross other tracks on the route by bridge to avoid conflict with other train movements. A more technical term is " g ...
.
These were intended to allow for the construction of a future junction with a
proposed line under Worth Street as part of the
IND Second System
Since the opening of the original New York City Subway line in 1904, and throughout the subway's history, various official and planning agencies have proposed numerous extensions to the subway system. The first major expansion of the subway s ...
. The proposed route would have run under
Worth Street
Worth Street is a two-way street running roughly northwest-southeast in Manhattan, New York City. It runs from Hudson Street, TriBeCa, in the west to Chatham Square in Chinatown in the east. Past Chatham Square, the roadway continues as Oliver ...
and East Broadway, and crossed the
East River
The East River is a saltwater tidal estuary in New York City. The waterway, which is actually not a river despite its name, connects Upper New York Bay on its south end to Long Island Sound on its north end. It separates the borough of Quee ...
to Brooklyn. The
bellmouths for this proposed route are visible from the E train headed towards and coming from the World Trade Center station. On the tunnel wall where the turnout is, there is an arrow painted with the words reading: "Worth St." written next to it.
Exits
The station contains six open exits. Only one exit is located at the station's namesake –
Canal Street – at the northeast corner of
Sixth Avenue and Canal Street. The other exit leading from the northern section of the station leads to the south side of Laight Street, between Sixth Avenue and St. Johns Lane. At the center of the station there are exits to the northwest and northeast corners of Sixth Avenue and
West Broadway
West Broadway is a north-south street in the New York City borough of Manhattan, separated into two parts by Tribeca Park. The northern part begins at Tribeca Park, near the intersection of Avenue of the Americas (Sixth Avenue), Walker Street a ...
. At the southern end of the station there are two exits. One exit leads to the northeast corner of Walker Street and Sixth Avenue, while the other leads to the
AT&T Building.
The station also has three closed exits. One exit, located at the southern end of the station, led to the southeast corner of Walker Street and West Broadway. The other two are located in a passageway that extends further north than the current northernmost open exit; one led to the southeast corner of
Grand Street and Sixth Avenue.
The passageway currently houses employee facilities.
References
External links
*
* nycsubway.org â€
A Gathering Artwork by Martin & Munoz (unknown date)* Station Reporter â€
* Station Reporter â€
* Station Reporter â€
* Station Reporter â€
* MTA's Arts For Transit â€
* [https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=spring+st+%26+6+Av+nyc&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=34.450489,76.552734&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=6th+Ave+%26+Spring+St,+New+York&ll=40.72199,-74.005494&spn=0.003854,0.013433&z=17&lci=transit&layer=c&cbll=40.722024,-74.005355&panoid=TAZqLzxpulognOCFV4xaxA&cbp=12,118.28,,2,2.88 Canal Street entrance from Google Maps Street View]
Laight Street entrance from Google Maps Street ViewWest Broadway entrance from Google Maps Street ViewBeach Street — Walker Street entrance from Google Maps Street ViewPlatforms from Google Maps Street View
{{NYCS stations navbox by line, 8ave=yes
IND Eighth Avenue Line stations
Sixth Avenue
New York City Subway stations in Manhattan
New York City Subway stations located underground
Railway stations in the United States opened in 1932
1932 establishments in New York City
Tribeca
SoHo, Manhattan