New York City Subway Centennial

The New York City Subway celebrated 100 years in 2004.

The New York City subway has come a long way since it was first put into use in 1904. New York City subway fares were originally just 5 cents and the first NYC subway fare hike wasn't until 1948 when subway fare was raised to 10 cents. When the New York City subway first opened there were 9 miles of track, today, there are 842 miles of track, 660 of them currently in use.

The New York City subway consists of 468 stations, 277 of them are underground. Believe it or not, it's possible to ride the subway 31 miles without a tranfer -- on the A train beginning at 207th Street-Inwood in Manhattan and ending at Far Rockaway-Mott Ave. in Queens. There are over 31,000 turnstiles in the New York City subway and 734 information booths. Approximately 4.5 million passengers ride the subway daily, totalling 1.384 billion rides in 2003.

New York City Subway Map

Events to Commemorate the New York City Subway Centennial

• The Subway at 100: General William Barclay Parsons and the Birth of the NYC Subway at the New York Public Library on Madison & 34th Streets, through September 30, 2004
• New York Transit Museum Tours, Lectures & Exhibits events throughout the city
• The City Beneath Us: Building the New York Subway at the New York Transit Museum in Brooklyn Heights, through January 2005
• Around Town Underground collection of photographs, on exhibit at the New York Historical Society on 77th and Central Park West until November 7
• Subway Centennial at the Museum of the City of New York, on Fifth Avenue and 103rd Street from October 13- Winter 2005