This station opened on February 1, 1917, along with the rest of the Astoria Line, which was originally part of the IRT, as a spur off the IRT Queensboro Line, now the IRT Flushing Line. Trains ran between Grand Central and Astoria. On July 23, 1917, the Queensboro Bridge spur of the elevatedIRT Second Avenue Line opened. At that time, all elevated trains to Queensboro Plaza used the Astoria Line while all subway trains used the Corona Line, though this was later changed with trains alternating between branches. This station started to be served by BMT shuttles using elevated cars on April 8, 1923. On October 17, 1949, the Astoria Line became BMT-only as the tracks at Queensboro Plaza were consolidated and the platforms on the Astoria Line were shaved back to allow through BMT trains to operate on it. Service was initially provided by the Brighton Local weekdays & Broadway - Fourth Avenue Local at all times.
Station renovations
The platforms at this station, along with six others on the Astoria Line, were lengthened to to accommodate ten-car trains in 1950. The project cost $863,000. Signals on the line had to be modified to take into account the platform extensions. Under the 2015–2019 MTA Capital Plan, the station underwent a complete overhaul as part of the Enhanced Station Initiative and was entirely closed for several months. Updates included cellular service, Wi-Fi, USB charging stations, interactive service advisories and maps. The award for Package 2 of the renovations, which covered renovations at the 30th Avenue, Broadway, 36th Avenue, and 39th Avenue stations, was awarded on April 14, 2017, to Skanska USA. This station was closed entirely from July 2, 2018 and reopened on January 24, 2019, slightly earlier than expected. A previously demolished entrance to the northeast corner of Broadway and 31st Street was added once again to improve access. In 2019, the MTA announced that this station would become ADA-accessible as part of the agency's 2020–2024 Capital Program.
Station layout
This station has two side platforms and three tracks. The center track is not used in revenue service, but it had been used regularly as recently as 2002. The station contains wooden canopies with transite and wooden mezzanines, but only the southbound platform has windscreens. The station has a narrow crossover in its mezzanine that allows for passengers to change their direction of travel at the station.
Exits
The mezzanine is configured like 30th Avenue. Outside of fare control, street stairs descend to all corners of Broadway and 31st Street. An exit-only stair from the northbound platform descends to the east side of 31st Street between Broadway and 34th Avenue.
