149th Street was a station on the demolished IRT Third Avenue Line. It was located in "The Hub" in the South Bronx, at the intersection of 149th Street, Third Avenue, Willis Avenue, and Melrose Avenue. Opened as an express station in 1887 and later operating as the line's southern terminus, the station closed in 1973 and was demolished by 1977 due to political pressure in the area.
Station layout
The station was built as an express station, with three tracks and two island platforms; the center express track was completed by 1916. North of the station, a spur track curved from Third Avenue east onto Westchester Avenue to connect with the IRT White Plains Road Line. A signal tower was located in between the mainline and the spur track. After it became the line's southern terminal in 1955, the center track was removed and the platforms were connected into one large island platform. A diamond crossover switch was installed north of the station to relay terminating trains.
History
The station was originally opened on June 16, 1887 by the Suburban Rapid Transit Company. On July 10, 1905, the undergroundThird Avenue–149th Street station of the IRT White Plains Road Line was opened, and free transfers were provided between the two stations. In October 1911, the 149th Street Crosstown Trolley Line between Longwood and Harlem opened, in addition to the Third Avenue trolley line of the Third Avenue and Union Railway system. Between 1913 and 1916 during the Dual Contracts, the center track was added to facilitate express service along the line. Around this time, the name "The Hub of the Bronx" emerged due to the area's status as a major transportation, commercial, and amusement center. In 1921, a seven-car train derailed crossing the spur track north of the station, destroying a control tower and causing a fire on the trestle. Thirty passengers were injured, and the second of the wooden elevated cars was damaged beyond repair. On May 12, 1955, the Third Avenue elevated was closed south of 149th Street, ending service on the line between the Bronx and Manhattan. 149th Street station became the southern terminus of the Third Avenue Line. In the 1960s under the Program For Action, the city planned to close the remainder of the line, which fell into disrepair and was credited for blight in the area. The station closed on April 29, 1973 and was demolished in 1977.
Current status
From 1973 to 2013, the Bx55 limited bus replaced elevated service between The Hub and Gun Hill Road. Free transfers, first via a paper transfer and later by MetroCard, were given between the bus and the 149th Street subway station. In 2013, the Bx55 was eliminated, replaced by the Bx15 limited bus which terminates at Fordham Plaza. Service to Gun Hill Road is provided by the parallel Bx41 Select Bus Service route along Webster Avenue.
