David Rosenstein's Blog

To start with our connections for the IBX, we are going to look at the 4th Avenue station. The MTA advertises this station to connect with the R train at Bay Ridge Ave. This will be an important connection for Bay Ridge and 4th Ave Local riders, allowing them to access the rest of Brooklyn without having to go downtown and connect through Atlantic Ave. However, this connection is very disappointing to me, but I am unsure what the best way to fix it is.

Here is the track plan laid out in the 2022 Planning and Linkages Study from the MTA. While it is very possible that this is out of date, I believe that this is the most up to date information that we have in the public. This has the station placed under the Gowanus Expressway, near 5th Avenue. For clarity I recreated this image in QGIS

Lets start with the obvious here: what an awful station placement. The MTA better be running trains every 2 min on this line, because the amount of life expectancy that is going to be wasted standing under this highway waiting for an IBX train would awful. This station is also… not at 4th ave. Its only entrances are probably only going to be at 5th ave.

The Base Case – OSI as Is

So let’s start with if they keep things as is. What I would imagine they would do is to build a small station house along 5th Ave here, with stairs and elevators leading down to the platforms. This would put the walk for the out of system interchange at 8 minutes, according to Google Maps (and much longer for those with accessibility needs!!). By comparison the OSI at Junius/Livonia is slated at 2 min and the OSI at Lex/59th-63rd is 4 min.

This is simply unacceptable. These are two stations that happen to be near each other, not a proper interchange. So to help this here are three ideas.

Option 1: Make a better exit for the OSI

This is the most basic option, and probably what I expect the MTA to do. By taking a minimal amount of property from this car dealership, a second entrance cab be made on 66 St. This would be significantly closer to Bay Ridge Ave, and also cut down on walking time to be much closer to what we have in our existing OSIs.

This is a notable improvement over the base condition, but it still is quite a walk for a transfer. An OSI this long is still going to dissuade usage of this transfer, which will make the option, particularly for Bay Ridge residents, much worse. So I went searching for something better.

Option 2: Move the platform under the Bay Ridge Towers

For starters, this will put the 4th Avenue station at… 4th avenue, which I appreciate. It would make the stop at Brooklyn Army Terminal a bit close, but it would be similar to 145st and 148-Lenox on the 3, so it isn’t unprecedented. This will cut another minute off the transfer time and also make the transfer simpler, as it will just be a simple walk down 4th ave. It will also have a much shorter walk time within the actual station which is also pretty important. Lastly, it moves the station away from the highway, which is a win for all regardless of if you are transferring.

This is the best “realistic” plan here. There is no indication that the exact station placements are finalized so the planning stages we are in now is the perfect time to make this project better (something we have already seen at Broadway Junction!).

Option 3: A direct connection to Bay Ridge Ave

This last option is an extension of the last option, but instead of relying on a OSI to Bay Ridge Ave, a tunnel providing an in system transfer would be provided to Bay Ridge Ave. Here is what that could look like:

This would require a pretty significant pedestrian tunnel connecting to both platforms at Bay Ridge Ave. Since Bay Ridge Ave has side platforms, there would also need to be some sort of connection between the platforms needed, which does not exist already.

This is quite a large amount of work for something that won’t really save any time for passengers. While I do think more passengers will use this option with a more proper interchange like this, if we have a proper “tap out then tap back in” system for our OSIs (which I personally believe is likely), then I also think that people will have more trust in the OSI system. Because of all of this, I this this option is kind of a waste of money. A transfer like this is likely going to get grimy and dank, like the transfers between the A/C/E and the rest of the trains at 42nd St, or the transfer between the 1/2/3 and the L at 14 st.

However, if the MTA was truly committed to making this station making this station have an in system transfer then they could take this plan one step further by moving the Bay Ridge Ave Station. Here is what that could look like:

(The walkway could also be combined, whatever is cheaper)

This is what I think is the best possible transfer here in a perfect world. However, it would require some major modification. First, the station would no longer really be at Bay Ridge Ave. It wouldn’t be the first misnamed station and renaming it isn’t really a huge deal, but I would be remiss not complaining about it after I complained about the name of the 4th Ave IBX station. Second, the existing entrances would need to be modified. The 96 St bound entrance on 68 St should be fine but the entrances near Bay Ridge Ave would likely need to be completely rebuilt in a similar way to the Lincoln Center entrance at 66 St – Lincoln Center on the 1. There should probably be an additional entrance on the Manhattan bound side at 68th St as well, for riders coming from that direction, and perhaps also entrances on 67th St. Third, the MTA would have to cover up the now unused space, which could probably be used for increased storage. And lastly, this would increase the amount of space between stops on the R. Given it is only one block, I don’t think this is a major factor, but it would probably upset at least someone.

While this is the best option in a vacuum, I ultimately don’t see the MTA going with it. Moving an underground station like this pretty unprecedented for the modern MTA, and they are typically subscribers of the “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” mentality, so I really don’t see them doing this. More importantly, it would seriously jack up the price of the station, something the MTA is trying to avoid with this project. But I think it is fun to see what would be the best theoretical option regardless.

Bonus Option: A New Entrance

For either of the first two options, or even the base case, I think the MTA should consider a new entrance to Bay Ridge Ave at Senator St facing North. This would shorten all the OSIs by approximately 1 min if you are transferring to a 96 st bound train, and 2 min if you are transferring to a Manhattan bound train. If the MTA doesn’t want to make a proper in system transfer due to cost reasons, then I think this is an important addition that needs to be included to make the OSI as painless as possible.

Final Remarks

To conclude, I think the most practical option the MTA should take is to put the IBX station under 4th Ave and have the exits right there, to make a relatively easy OSI with Bay Ridge Ave, with some new entrances on Senator St. This will create the easiest possible transfer between the two lines with any additional major construction work needed, adhering to the IBX’s goal of circumferential transit. If the MTA has extra money to spare, they should consider moving the Bay Ridge Ave station North one block to make an in system transfer possible, but if this money is not available, then it should not be made a priority.

If you would like to see me analyze more of the IBX, feel free to subscribe to the blog, it’s free! If you want to see the other stations I have done so far, check out the home page of this project.