BMT Franklin Avenue Line
The
Franklin Avenue Line (also known as the
Franklin Avenue Shuttle and the
Brighton-Franklin Line) is a
rapid transit line of the
New York City Subway in
Brooklyn,
New York City. All service is provided full time by
Franklin Avenue Shuttle trains.
The Franklin Avenue Line was part of the original main line of the
Brooklyn, Flatbush and Coney Island Railway or
Brighton Beach Line, later known as the
BMT Brighton Line. It formally opened on
August 18,
1878, about six weeks after the rest of the Brighton Line opened. This portion of the Brighton Beach Line represented a routing compromise. The BF&CI would have preferred a more direct route to downtown Brooklyn, but instead had to settle for a route which took it north to the
Bedford station of the
Long Island Rail Road, where Brighton trains could operate to the latter railroad's terminal at Flatbush and Atlantic Avenues.
The LIRR, however, gained control of the
New York and Manhattan Beach Railway, a competitor of the BF&CI, and breached its agreement to provide equal access to the Flatbush Avenue terminal. After the
1882 season, the Brighton was forced to end its trains at Bedford, a situation which soon led to
bankruptcy.
In
1896, the Brighton, now the
Brooklyn and Brighton Beach Railroad gained a connection with the
Kings County Elevated Railway by means of a ramp and short
elevated railway, connecting to the former line at Franklin Avenue and Fulton Street. This enabled the KCERR to operate its steam-powered elevated trains on the Brighton Road via the Franklin Avenue
right-of-way, providing Brighton riders with direct service to downtown
Manhattan via the Brooklyn Bridge.
The KCERR connection was still less than ideal, and the
Brooklyn Rapid Transit company, which ended up as the lessor of both the KCERR and B&BB roads, negotiated a more direct
subway route under Flatbush Avenue as part of Contract 4 of the
Dual Contracts of 1913. Construction of this new connection indirectly contributed to the worst rapid transit wreck in world history, known as the
Malbone Street Wreck or
Brighton Beach Line Accident when, on
November 1,
1918, a five-car
wooden elevated train left the tracks and crashed into one of the new tunnel walls, killing at least 93.
On
August 1,
1920, the new subway opened and became the new main line for the Brighton Line. At that time, the Franklin Avenue alignment was established as the
Brighton-Franklin Line and disconnected from the trackage to
Brooklyn Bridge and Manhattan. The line continued to operate elevated train service on the Brighton Beach main line until
1928.
For the summer excursion season of
1924, the Franklin Avenue Line was upgraded for the operation of six-car subway trains, and assigned the BMT number 7. Services used the Brighton Line during most daytime hours. During warm weather, express services ran to
Coney Island on weekend days.
After city ownership in
1940 Brighton-Franklin services gradually declined. A major blow to through service viability occurred in
1954 when the
D train of the Division was extended to Coney Island via the
Culver Line, deprived the Franklin of a major source of transfer traffic, consisting of passengers from
Harlem and
the Bronx, who now had a more direct route to Coney Island. Brighton-Franklin express service ended by
1959, and the Franklin Avenue Line became a full-time shuttle in
1963.
1878: August 18 — What is now the Franklin Avenue Shuttle opens as the last portion of the
Brooklyn, Flatbush & Coney Island Railway to open, six weeks later than the rest of the line. It enables BF&CI excursion trains to connect to the
Long Island Rail Road at
Bedford, New York for access to downtown
Brooklyn. The line runs on the surface from Atlantic Avenue (Bedford Terminal) to Park Place, then in an open cut to connect to the rest of the line at
Prospect Park.
1896:. A ramp and short
elevated railway connect the line to the
Kings County Elevated Railway and KCERy trains begin running between
Brooklyn Bridge and
Brighton Beach. BF&CI trains continue to run from Bedford Terminal, but this service is soon abandoned, though the track connections are retained.
1899: First
electrification on the Brighton Line, including the Franklin Avenue Line, is accomplished using
trolley wire. Trains that use
third rail in elevated service raise
trolley poles at Franklin Avenue station. Some passenger steam operates under different circumstances for several more years.
1905-1906: The last remaining
grade crossings are eliminated in the vicinity of Park Place by building an elevated structure to connect the old elevated structure and the open-cut portion. In the ensuing years, some existing bridges are strengthened or replaced and some of the elevated trackage placed on
concrete-retained
embankment.
1920: August 1 — The Brighton Beach Line is connected to the
BMT Broadway Line subway via a connection under
Flatbush Avenue, and at the same time track connections to the Fulton Street El are severed so that through service to Brooklyn Bridge is no longer possible. Subway trains from New York and elevated trains from Franklin Avenue share operations to
Coney Island.
1924: For the summer season, platforms on the line are extended and modified for the operation of subway trains.
1928: The last elevated trains run on the Franklin Avenue Line
1963: The last through trains via the Brighton Line, a short running of the Brighton Beach Local, ends. The Franklin Avenue Line is now a full time shuttle.
1999: The line is reopened after a complete rebuild, which included rebuilding the support infrastructure and stations. The MTA considered abandoning the line in the late 1990s due to the line's deteriorization; community pressure convinced them to rebuild the shuttle instead.
The Franklin Avenue Shuttle was completely rehabilitated in 1998/1999, after consideration for abandonement by the MTA. Community pressure forced the MTA to rehabilitate rather than abandon the line, and as a result most of the supporting infrastructure and stations were completely rehabilitated upon the reopening of the line in 1999.
At Franklin Avenue and Fulton Street, where the
BMT Fulton Street Line elevated railway had given way to the
IND Fulton Street Line subway, a large station is present with modern conveniences, elevators and escalators, providing an easier transfer between the shuttle and the IND line. From that station, most of the original steelwork from elevated days has been removed and replaced with heavier construction. The line runs on a single track from Franklin/Fulton to another new station at Park Place. Though this portion of the line uses much of the reinforced viaduct from 1903-1905, it is virtually new as of 1999.
After Park Place, the line broadens from one to two tracks and the right-of-way transforms from 1999 reconstruction to near-original 1878 right-of-way, including the original railroad-style tunnel under Eastern Parkway, at the south end of which is the rehabilitated Botanic Garden station of 1928.
All three of the above stations have been attractively rebuilt or rehabilitated, including distinctive artwork, masonry and ironwork funded by
MTA New York City Transit's "Arts in Transit" program.
From Botanic Garden, the line continues on original 1878 roadbed to its connection with the main part of the Brighton Beach Line at Prospect Park. Before entering Prospect Park, most trains switch to the northbound track to enter the station, where the shuttle terminates.
The Franklin Avenue Line is
chained BMT O (letter "O").
Chaining zero
Chaining zero is
BMT Eastern, located at the intersection of the line of the
Brooklyn Bridge and the
Chambers Street station on the
Nassau Street Line by way of the now-dismantled original BMT
Brooklyn Bridge Elevated Line and the former
BMT Fulton Street Line. The chaining
ties at Franklin Avenue station.
Railroad directions
Railroad north is toward Franklin Avenue, generally corresponding to
compass north.
Track numbering
| From | To | Track arrangement | Comments | | Franklin Avenue | through Park Place | O2 | bi-directional single track |
| S. of Park Place | Prospect Park north end | O1-O2 | O1 is southbound |
| Prospect Park station | | A1-A3-A4-A2 | A1 is rarely used
A3 and A4 are Brighton main line
A2 is the regular Franklin stub |
| - |
