137th Street–City College station


137th Street–City College is a local station on the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line of the New York City Subway. Located at the intersection of 137th Street and Broadway in Hamilton Heights, Manhattan, it is served by the 1 train at all times. The station serves the nearby City College of New York and Riverbank State Park.

History

Operation of the first subway began on October 27, 1904, with the opening of the original 28 stations of the New York City Subway from City Hall to 145th Street on the West Side Branch including the 137th Street station.
In 1948, platforms on the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line from 103rd Street to 238th Street were lengthened to to allow full ten-car express trains to stop at this station. Previously, the station could only hold six-car local trains. The platform extensions were opened in stages. On April 6, 1948, the platform extension opened for stations from 103rd Street to Dyckman Street, with the exception of 125th Street.
In 1981, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority listed the station among the 69 most deteriorated stations in the subway system. As a result, one of future U.S. president Barack Obama's first community organizing efforts after graduating from Columbia University was in conjunction with drawing attention to the poor condition of the station. In 1984 or 1985, Obama, who was working for the New York Public Interest Research Group, was among the leaders of May Day efforts to bring attention to the subway system, particularly the station serving CCNY. Obama traveled to stations to get people to sign letters addressed to local officials and the MTA. Obama was photographed holding a sign saying "May-Day! May-Day!! Sinking Subway System!"
On January 2, 2007, film student Cameron Hollopeter suffered a seizure in the station and fell off the platform onto the tracks. Wesley Autrey saved his life as a train was approaching. Autrey was given numerous awards and prizes, and his two daughters were given a scholarship.
In 2019, the MTA announced that the station would become ADA-accessible as part of the agency's 2020–2024 Capital Program.

Station layout

This station has three tracks and two side platforms. In the past, it was sometimes used as a terminal station. There are switches north of the station that allow northbound trains to enter the underground 137th Street Yard, then return to the other side of the station for the next trip south. The center express track that passes through the station is currently unused in revenue service.
Just south of the station, the tracks emerge from underground onto the Manhattan Valley Viaduct. The line is elevated at 125th Street, and then underground once again at 116th Street–Columbia University, allowing trains to maintain a relatively level grade while passing through highly uneven terrain.
Prior to the discontinuation of the 9 on May 27, 2005, this station was the northernmost local stop shared by the 1/9 skip-stop service. All stations to the north were served by either the 1 or the 9, or were transfer stations between the services.
The mosaics are in pink and black. The ceramic cartouche is also in pink and shows a three-faced figure. The three faces represent "Respice", "Adspice", and "Prospice", and are an emblem of the nearby City College.

Exits

Each platform has two exits:
The station was often shown on the TV drama New Amsterdam, though the inside shots were taken at the Grand Central Shuttle station.