Grand Central station (IRT elevated)


Grand Central was the terminal for some trains of the IRT Third Avenue Line, also known as the Third Avenue El. This station originally had one island platform and two side platforms, all connected at the west end. The tracks ended just east of the Park Avenue Viaduct ramp over Pershing Square.
It opened August 26, 1878, and served not only Grand Central Terminal but also its two predecessors, Grand Central Station and Grand Central Depot. When the El opened north of 42nd Street in September 1878, this segment was reduced to a shuttle, which connected to the mainline at the 42nd Street station, at Third Avenue.
In 1904, the Interborough Rapid Transit Company opened the Grand Central station as part of the its first subway line. Platforms for the IRT Flushing Line opened in 1915, followed by those for the IRT Lexington Avenue Line in 1918; after the Lexington Avenue Line platforms opened, the original platforms at the station were converted for use by the 42nd Street Shuttle. By this time, the El station had become obsolete and it was closed on December 6, 1923.