Extending the Flushing Line to Bayside

Vanshnookenraggen

The 7 train, a core subway line that connects Flushing-Main St, the true Chinatown of New York to 34 St-Hudson Yards in Midtown Manhattan has always been considered a superior line. It cuts through Queens like a steel blade and checks all the boxes as it runs frequently, has solid express service (for the most part, except for when the structure ages to be over 110 years old and needs to be replaced hindering full express service for 5 years!), and has relatively good transit connections in Manhattan. However, the line has always felt short. Clocking in at only 16 miles long, many feel as though the 7 train has more to offer.

There have been various proposals over the years to extend the 7 to various different places, with some suggesting they should extend it to New Jersey, more specifically to Secaucus, to provide a direct subway link to New Jersey for the first time, others feel the line should be extended deeper into Manhattan to better serve the Chelsea neighborhood, however, one of the most captivating proposals for this line in the last decade has been rather to to extend the 7 past it’s eastern terminal of Flushing east to somewhere in Northeast Queens.

Northeast Queens has always been considered a transit desert; having very limited options for transportation. People who live there rely on infrequent and inefficient bus service, and for those that live close enough to the Port Washington Branch, expensive and infrequent train service.

Therefore, with that said, the proposal to extend the 7 eastward in it’s home borough should feel fitting. While currently crowded and constrainted in that respect, parituclary during the rush hour, with the proper set of investments, the  

And Although the MTA has more important priorities right now, this is definitely a project they could pursue more maybe 10-15 years down the line as its a project that, while likely very expensive, would benefit a TON of riders.

The Proposal

There have been a couple of proposals related to the extension of the (7) further into Northeast Queens with the less frequented proposal being to have a branch off the (7) train, most likely elevated, branching of somewhere near 111 St, turning south for a little bit before turning east, running along the Long Island Expressway and Kissena Blvd before terminating in Springfield Gardens. The other one is for a new line to be constructed, heading northeast out of Flushing-Main St, heading north towards College Point stopping at Northern Blvd before turning East towards Whitestone. Possible extensions could be made to one day extend the (7) to Bayside, which is what many people would like to see, and was originally planned to happen almost 100 years ago.

Planned 7 extension in 1935

I personally believe that this is the more likely of the two, as it would serve an area that is in desperate need of further transit development, and while both are in areas that can be considered “transit deserts” In theory, we could possibly get both extensions, possibly having an 11 train make the run northeast towards College Point and have the 7 train run along the LIE to Springfield Blvd. This is one of those projects that we will just have to see. 

Capacity Gains

Before I wrap up this post, I'd like to mention that another benefit of having the 7 terminate somewhere besides Main St would be the likely capacity gains. If you’ve ridden the 7 train during the rush hour then you’d know that Flushing is not a great terminal. Unlike many other good subway terminals, such as 34 St-Hudson Yards, it does not feature tail tracks, rather bumper blocks on the end of all 3 station tracks (further adding insult to the injury by slowing trains down). Therefore, Flushing struggles to keep up with the demand, which is quite a bit (running trains out of there roughly every 2 minutes for a good part of the rush hour). To prevent a complete meltdown of the line, the MTA has some 7 trains end in Mets-Willets Pt, allowing for some trains to avoid the congestion, however, that doesn’t prevent Flushing from being severely capacity limited. Extending the 7 eastward would hopefully allow for a proper terminal to be built, one that can handle the level of service needed on this very crowded line. This will also account for the growth that Queens will continue to see.

In conclusion, this is one of those subway extensions that I feel strongly about. Being a big proponent of the Flushing Line myself, I’ve seen how much an extension of the (7) further east could help NYC. It could bring much needed service to some of the largest transit deserts while also helping to improve capacity along one of the most conjested lines. I personally even know someone who lives in Bayside and would love to be able to take the subway in from there. but instead gets the bus to Flushing.