104th Street station (BMT Jamaica Line)

History

This station opened on May 28, 1917 under the Brooklyn Union Elevated Railroad, an affiliate of the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company. The former Brooklyn Manor station on the LIRR's defunct Rockaway Beach Branch, which was closed in 1962, is two blocks to the west and could be an available transfer if the Rockaway Beach Branch is reopened for train service.

Until 1966, this station was known as 102nd Street. It was then given the dual name of 102nd–104th Streets. As of 2011, station signage and the official map give the station name as 104th Street.

The Manhattan-bound platform of this station was closed for renovation from March 13, 2017, until April 11, 2018, delayed from summer 2017. The Jamaica Center-bound platform of the station closed on July 23, 2018, for repairs, and reopened to the public on December 21, 2018.

Station layout

This elevated station has two tracks and two side platforms, but there is room for a center track. Both platforms have beige windscreens and brown canopies with green frames and support columns for their entire length except for a small section at either end. Here, there are only waist-high steel fences with lampposts. The station signs are in the standard black name plate with white lettering.

The 1990 artwork is called Points of Observation by Kathleen McCarthy. It is a face-shaped wire mesh sculpture that affords a view of the street from the platforms. The artwork also appears at 111th Street and at Woodhaven Blvd.

Exits

This station has one active station house beneath the platforms near the east end. A single staircase from each platform goes down to a waiting area/crossunder, where a turnstile bank provides access to and from the station. Outside fare control, there is a token booth and two staircases to the street. One faces south and goes down to the southeast corner of 104th Street and Jamaica Avenue while the other faces west and goes down to the north side of Jamaica Avenue near the northwest corner of 104th Street. The station house has concrete flooring and windscreens going halfway up the platform stairs.

This station formerly had another mezzanine at 102nd Street. The station house and stairs to the street have been removed, all that remains is the ceiling and some support I-Beams.

References

References

1. {{Cite NYC neighborhood map. Woodhaven
2. {{NYCS const. timetable. j
3. (May 27, 1917). "To Open Jamaica Av. Line.; Nearly Two and a Half Miles Ready for Operation Tonight". The New York Times.
4. (May 31, 1917). "Jamaica Avenue 'L' is an Old Story Already". The Leader-Observer.
5. (January 15, 1918). "Report of the Public Service Commission for the First District of the State of New York, Volume 1". New York State Public Service Commission.
6. (September 21, 2018). "Phase One: Rockaway Beach Branch Sketch Assessment Final White PaperI LIRR Contract 6168C-10-09, Release "A"". Systra.
7. "www.nycsubway.org: BMT Nassau Street-Jamaica Line".
8. {{NYCS const. map
9. "Planned Service Changes for: Friday, April 13, 2018". Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
10. (April 11, 2018). "Alert Archive From April 11, 2018 to April 11, 2018: J Line - Updated Weekday and Weekend Planned Service Change". Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
11. (March 9, 2017). "J Line - Weekend and Weekday Planned Service Changes". Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
12. "Planned Service Changes for: Monday, July 23, 2018". Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
13. "Planned Service Changes for: Monday, December 17, 2018". Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
14. {{NYCS const. trackref. trackbook3
15. Cox, Jeremiah. "104 Street (J, Z Skip-Stop) - The SubwayNut".
16. "111th Street-104th Street-Woodhaven Boulevard - 75th Street - Cypress Hills - Kathleen McCarthy - Five Points of Observation, 1990-93". Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
17. "www.nycsubway.org: Artwork: Five Points of Observation (Kathleen McCarthy)".
18. (2015). "MTA Neighborhood Maps: Kew Gardens". [[Metropolitan Transportation Authority]].