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Overview

Opened: 3/16/1906

Transfer here to: IND 8th Avenue/Fulton Street/Rockaway Line

We now enter the deepest section of the IRT: the Washington Heights Mine Tunnel. This is two-track round tunnel section blasted through bedrock. The stations along this stretch, 168th Street, 181st Street, and 191st Street, all use elevators to access the fare control and the street. The three deep tunnel stations are among the grandest stations in the subway system. All are of round, bored tunnel construction, approximately 8 to 10 stories beneath the street.

Aside from City Hall, 168th Street is probably the grandest of the original IRT stations. It features an extremely high ceiling for most of the station with the ends being regular flat ceilings. The south transition to low ceiling features marble-like accents. There are two low crossover bridges inside the tunnel arch, from which you can watch trains passing below. The crossovers are lit by low street lamp-style fixtures (mercury vapor); there mercury vapor lights along the platforms as well. The two-tone tile is unglazed brown brick on the bottom with a "dirty" tan brick on top. The typical IRT mosaics are found along the platforms. There is a closed stairway leading up from the extreme north end of the northbound platform leading to an unknown location.

The original elevators were double-deckers, near the northern of the two crossover bridges. They were destroyed in the building of the IND and the space is now a vent chamber. The northern north overpass extends into the wall; look on top of the wall behind the overpass and you'll see a scissor gate leading to the elevators. The original elevator shafts are still visible, there is a window looking into the shaftway. At the rear of the shaftway is a closed-off passage leading to the theory that the original elevators had separate front and rear exits for arriving and departing passengers.

The present elevators, recently modernized, are on the west side of the station and are used to access the fare control and the IND 8th Avenue Subway mezzanine.

Photo Gallery

Image 126 (125k, 640x480) Photo by: Richard Brome Location: 168th Street	Image 130 (53k, 480x640) Photo by: Richard Brome Location: 168th Street	Image 2859 (155k, 1024x681) Photo by: Joe Testagrose Location: 168th Street	Image 3298 (148k, 1024x690) Photo by: Joe Testagrose Location: 168th Street	Image 8149 (150k, 1024x682) Photo by: Steve Zabel Collection of: Joe Testagrose Location: 168th Street
Image 11394 (58k, 750x562) Photo by: Robbie Rosenfeld Location: 168th Street	Image 26561 (137k, 820x620) Photo by: Ted Siuta Location: 168th Street	Image 26562 (119k, 820x620) Photo by: Ted Siuta Location: 168th Street	Image 30485 (117k, 1044x788) Photo by: David Pirmann Location: 168th Street	Image 67021 (188k, 1044x701) Photo by: David Pirmann Location: 168th Street
Image 67022 (200k, 701x1044) Photo by: David Pirmann Location: 168th Street	Image 77349 (205k, 1044x712) Photo by: David M. Kelly Location: 168th Street	Image 77350 (150k, 1044x712) Photo by: David M. Kelly Location: 168th Street	Image 77352 (202k, 1044x712) Photo by: David M. Kelly Location: 168th Street	Image 119000 (245k, 1044x699) Photo by: John Dooley Location: 168th Street

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