Nereid Avenue
Nereid Avenue is the penultimate stop on the White Planes Road elevated line and the origin/terminal point for all 12 peak directions only rush hour 5 trains that run to Manhattan & Brooklyn only in the morning and return only in the evening. It is also the scheduled origin point of 4 AM rush hour 2 trains (as of the June 26, 2022 schedule), and a terminal point that I’ve noticed on countdown clocks for Uptown 2 trains during rush hours but couldn’t find any trains actually scheduled for Nereid Avenue after consulting the 2 train schedule in December 2023.
The reason for trains terminating here is two-fold: the 2 track stub-end Wakefield-241 Street terminal can’t handle all the capacity of the frequent rush hour service on the White Plains Road Line, and the Nereid Avenue Interlocking into the 239 Street yard is only accessible from the south via a flying junction, where the through Wakefield-bound track has a flyover above the two yard lead tracks (into the middle track and what was the Wakefield-bound track). Trains that have terminated at 241 Street that want to go to the yard must be fumigated of passengers at 241 Street, backtrack to Nereid Avenue, be switched onto the middle track at Nereid Avenue, reverse direction in the vicinity of this station before entering the train yard.
The 5 train’s peak direction rush hour service has exclusively terminated here since the Spring of 1995. This was done to reduce passenger confusion because before that <5> trains were on the subway map and some ran all the way to 241 Street, but a mixture of rush hour 2 and 5 trains still terminated at Nereid Avenue due to the previously mentioned capacity issues.
The station itself is a simple two side platform station for the three-track elevated line. The middle track is never used in regular passenger service. The station was renovated (with temporary platforms along each platform and all trains stopping on the middle track) from 2004 to 2005. Today these platforms have cream colored windscreens with green trimlines and mesh windows allowing views out to the surrounding neighborhood. The ends of the platforms are exposed with a low black fence and white lampposts.
To leave the station, two staircases lead down from each platform to a station house with windows overlooking the cross streets nestled beneath the elevated structure. Inside are High Exit Turnstiles closest to the 241 Street-bound platform’s staircases, next to this is the token booth followed by the bank of 3 turnstiles and then the MVMs. To leave the station house doors lead out to streetstairs down to the NW and SE corners of Nereid Avenue (238 Street) and White Plains Road.
Photos 1-5: December 18, 2004; 6-20: February 1, 2005; 21-32: April 2, 2013;
