The Jamaica Line is a rapid transit line of the BMT Division of the New York Subway. Rapid transit describes a type of urban rail transportation, generally including subway and elevated lines in the U.S., Metros in most other countries, and U-Bahnen in Germany. ... A 1914 map showing what was at the time the proposed expansion for the BRT. The only major differences from what was built is that a new 60th Street Tunnel was used rather than the Queensboro Bridge, the Manhattan-side Brooklyn Bridge connection was never built, and several lines ended... South Ferry station 125th Street station The New York City Subway is a large rapid transit system in New York City, New York, United States. ...

The Jamaica Line runs from the Marcy Avenue, where it connects with the line over the Williamsburg Bridge to compass east of the 121st Street (BMT Jamaica Line station) where it continues as a lower level subway, the BMT Archer Avenue Line to Jamaica Center. It is served by the J, Z and M services. Fireworks on opening night, 1903. ... This article describes subways as mass transit lines. ...

Historical background

The Jamaica Line includes the oldest existing elevated structure on the New York City subway system, as well as some of the newest.

The current line includes portions of lines built at different times under different names and several different companies. The portion from Marcy Avenue (originally from Broadway Ferry, dismantled) to the line's junction with the Lexington Avenue L was built by the Union Elevated Railroad and leased to the Brooklyn Elevated Railroad for operation. Later these companies combined as the Brooklyn Union Elevated Railroad. At Lexington Avenue, the line operated over the structure of the Lexington Avenue L, also known as the Old Main Line, the original elevated line in Brooklyn to Cypress Hills station, located on Crescent Street at the intersection of Jamaica Avenue near the Brooklyn-Queens border. The entire operation was leased to the BRT, which described its elevated lines with the capital letter "L" (in common with Chicago, but unlike Manhattan and Boston), and was known as the Broadway L. For other meanings, see Brooklyn (disambiguation). ... Queens is geographically the largest of the five boroughs of New York City in the United States, and the most ethnically diverse county in the U.S. It is coterminous with Queens County in the State of New York and is located on western Long Island. ... The Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company (BRT) was a transportation holding company formed in 1896 to acquire and consolidate transit facilities in Kings County, now Brooklyn, New York. ... For other uses, see Manhattan (disambiguation). ... Alternative meanings: Boston (disambiguation) The 18th-century Old State House in Boston is surrounded by tall buildings of the 19th and 20th centuries. ...

This portion of the Jamaica Line includes a variety of structures. From Marcy Avenue to a point just before Alabama Avenue (BMT Jamaica Line station) the line operates on the structure of the old Broadway L and Lexington Avenue L lines, but substantially rebuilt and upgraded to a three-track line around World War I under the Dual Contracts of 1913. From Alabama Avenue to just before the current Cypress Hills station, the Jamaica Line operates on the oldest elevated structure in New York City, the steel-reinforced cast iron line of the original Old Main Line. Ypres, 1917, in the vicinity of the Battle of Passchendaele. ... The Dual Contracts of 1913 were contracts for the construction and/or rehabilitation and operation of rapid transit lines in the City of New York. ... Midtown Manhattan, looking north from the Empire State Building, 2005 New York City (officially named the City of New York) is the most populous city in the state of New York and the entire United States. ... Steel framework Steel is a metal alloy whose major component is iron, with carbon being the primary alloying material. ... Cast iron usually refers to grey cast iron, but can mean any of a group of iron_based alloys containing more than 2% carbon (alloys with less carbon are carbon steel by definition). ...

At Cypress Hills, the line turns northeast onto Jamaica Avenue on what was known as the Jamaica Avenue Line, a Dual Contracts structure. This structure has provisions on its entire length for three tracks, but a center track was never built, with the except of a layup track at 111th Street (BMT Jamaica Line station) and another between 160th and 168th Streets on the now-demolished original end of the line.

After 121st Street, the line turns into the Archer Avenue Subway, opened in 1989, and one of the newest on the system, ending at Jamaica Center station. 1989 is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Broadway (Brooklyn) Line services over the years

The following major service changes have been made on the Broadway (Brooklyn) Line, not counting Myrtle Avenue-Chambers Street Line services (BMT 10/M): Current bullet The M Nassau Street Local is a service of the New York City Subway. ... Current bullet The M Nassau Street Local is a service of the New York City Subway. ...

The K was discontinued in 1976, and all J trains made all stops from then until the 1988 opening of the BMT Archer Avenue Line.

The line name

From its accession by the BRT to and beyond city ownership in 1940, the portion of the line from its western terminus to Cypress Hills was known as the Broadway L or the Broadway-Brooklyn Line. Beyond that point it was known as the Jamaica Avenue Line. Subsequent to city takeover, the dividing line between the Broadway and Jamaica Avenue Lines was often considered to be the more westerly station at Eastern Parkway, now known as Broadway Junction.

Since the discontinuance of separate Broadway-Brooklyn services, the entire line is now known as the Jamaica Line.