The Q-Brighton Local via Broadway Express is a subway train service of the New York City Transit Authority.

Current service

The Q train runs 24/7 between Coney Island in the Borough of Brooklyn to 57th Street and 7th Avenue in the Borough of Manhattan, both in the City of New York.

Service operates on the Brighton Beach Line of the former BMT Division in Brooklyn, crosses the Manhattan Bridge and then operates of the BMT Broadway Line in Manhattan.

Communities served by the Q include Coney Island, Brighton Beach, Sheepshead Bay, Homecrest, Midwood, Flatbush and Downtown Brooklyn in Brooklyn, and Chinatown, Greenwich Village-New York University, Union Square, Herald Square and Times Square in lower and midtown Manhattan.

The Q trains operates in tandem with the B train on the Brighton Beach Line weekdays between approximately 6 am and 9 pm (0600-2100). During that time period, B trains provide express service on the Brighton Line, while the Q train always provides local service.

Service history

The designation Q was first used on newly-arrived R27 class equipment in 1960 to describe the service of the Brighton Beach Express (No. 1 in BMT nomenclature). This service was similar to the current Q service, except that it ran express in both Brooklyn and Manhattan between approximately 6 am and 9 pm on weekdays, and terminated at Brighton Beach rather than Coney Island

At the same time, using the Independent Subway System protocol of using double letters to designate local trains, the Brighton Beach Local was signed as QT or QB, the first being used for daytime trains that operated through the Montague Street Tunnel to Manhattan, and the latter used for locals that operated over the Manhattan Bridge when the Q did not run. The current Q service is virtually identical to the former QB service, though today it runs at all days and hours.