Peteralan

This all very interesting and helpful. When I stayed in UWS I always caught my train at the W72 stop. I could never work out which train was express and what stops the express stopped at so I always caught a local. However they always seemed to get quickly to where I wanted.

jenskar2

has anyone pointed out that with all the construction on the subway lines, many stations are festooned with posters for special service instructions and it can take a phD in transit, if such exists, to figure them out? Also, it's simply not true that you can't incorporate an east/west turn into a north/south run, depending on the train and where you want to go.
my advice, do get on of the apps (which won't work underground) and then try to figure out what you're doing on a route specific basis. Ask for help, we don't bite.

nycguy10002

At an express station the local train is the train on the track closest to the side wall. The express train is the one on the inner track.

At one time on some of the lettered line it was easy to tell a local from an express. The express had a single letter (A) while the local had double letters (AA). The MTA did away with that back in the late 1970's.

When looking at a subway map (the official one) - express stations are indicated by a white circle. Local stations are indicated by a black circle. Also under the station name the trains that stop there are shown. If the letter or number is in bold black then it stops there almost all the time. If the letter or number is in plain black type then the train stops there during late night hour or only during mid-day hours.

The reason I mentioned the official subway map is because the ones issued by travel companies tend not to differentiate between local and express.

Also look at the signs above the platform (next to the stairwell). Those signs will indicate if the route is local or express.

BigRuss

>

This is nitpicking rubbish. The D is an express, period. I stated what the service is based upon what the MTA says it is and Doug was incorrect on each point I analyzed.

The OP should view the map and rely on the map and expect the services to act in accordance with their descriptions because contingency plans will be stated on the train or listed at the station, if necessary.

Contingencies, emergencies, and unexpected shifts in train scheduling are irrelevant to the normal analysis. In the subway, there are tons of places for trains to be re-routed (A on F tracks from W 4th to Jay St; F on express tracks between Av X or so and Bergen St; any express on any local's track at any place where they are together) but telling the OP it MAY happen at some possible point in time can only confuse issues.

Rely on the map and the service descriptions on the MTA website and understand that changes occur.

bspielman

Hopstop takes into account planned outages when determining optimal routing. Emergencies, on the other hand, are just that, emergencies.

eileenleft

Transit things I learned on my recent trip to New York:
Be sure to ask the driver where to catch the return bus before you get off the initial bus.
New Yorkers are often very helpful, in their brisk way, when you get off the train and look confused about where to go next.
Once closed, the train doors cannot be re-opened, even if the train hasn't moved.
Have a great time!

nytraveler

You might want to consider looking up one of the threads with the rules of riding the subways. (Do NOT stare at other passengers. Don;t try to hold the door open with a limb or object. - there are a couple of threads)

To note: in Manhattan train and bus schedules have nothing to do with reality. Times are not even meant to be adhered to. All that listing will tell you is if the train will come every 3 minutes (as in rush hour when they run as close together as physically possible) or 5/6 minutes (middle of the day) or 15 minutes (middle of the night). In rush hours buses tend to come in herds, since the first to arrive gets the most passengers and takes longest to board - so those following tend to catch up to it. And you will get 3 or 4 following one another - then a 10 minute gap.

Schedules only matter in the outer boroughs where they run much less often ( the bus may only be every 30 minutes of so)

Miguel1892

Thank you for your input. I am very grateful for all of your responses.

The rules for riding the subway are AMAZING. Very helpful. I'd have linked to it, however I don't want to steal someone elses credit.

I'll be sure to provide feedback on my experiences including every time I accidentally get on the express train in the wrong direction!