Woodlawn
Fordham Road is an important Jerome Avenue elevated station with two side platforms for the three track line. The middle express track is unused in regularly scheduled service, only during construction or other delays involving a train blocking a local track. It is surpising that due to the fact the station services the Bronx's largest commercial district along Fordham Road, the station wasn't built as an Express stop and just a local stop.
The importance of the shopping district station meant Fordham Road was one of the original 100 "Key Stations" to recieve elevators under a 1980s legal settlement and elevators at the station opened in 2004, during renovations (at the same time as 170 Street and 176 Street) that closed the station full time for 4 months from July 5, 2004 through mid-November 2004.
Each platform is canopied in their mid-sections with the ends of the platforms (for about two cars) exposed with just a low-lying fence. The platforms are canopied with green and cream-colored windscreens running along each platform. There are glass windows in the middle of the windscreens to allow views down wide and busy Fordham Road.
To leave the station passengers go down two staircases in the middle of each platform and through doors on lower landings into a station house. There are additionally platform elevators (in green and cream enclosures) down to the mezzanine from each platform, these are set back from the platform and a short distance from the platform staircases, the elevators are set back from the platforms a little bit, with a farely large set back for the Downtown platform elevator. This was done so the platform elevators can be over the sidewalks (specifically near the NE and NW corners of Fordham Road and Jerome Avenue) to allow support structures to extend down to the sidewalk and not require ramps (see Astoria Blvd for an example) that would have reduced vehicle clearence for the required underside elevator mechanical equipment.
The station mezzanine nestled beneath the tracks is larger than most Jerome Avenue Line station mezzanines. It includes a couple areas with ancilary, non-public rooms. The two staircases lead down from each platform right near two seperate banks of turnstiles with the token booth (and a MetroCard-operated gate) between them. To reach the platform elevators passageways lead beyond these staircases. These passageways go stright for the Bronx-bound platform, shifting left, along the passagway to the streetstair to the NW corner outside of fare control for the Manhattan-bound platform elevator. The elevator shafts have green metalwork and translucent small glass blocks allow some light into the shafts.
To reach the street there are streetstairs down to all four corners of Fordham Road and Jerome Avenue. Elevated passageways lead to most streetstairs because Fordham Road turns slightly to the Southwest after crossing Jerome Avenue under the station. This extra wide intersection includes a turn lane bay. With elevated passageways required to reach the streetstairs to both the NW and SW corners. The single street elevator and staircase to the SE corner are closest to the turnstiles, with a bit of a passageway (that follows the passagway to the Bronx-bound elevator) to the NE corner, this passageway primarily goes around the staircases up to the platforms.
1: December 21, 2003; 2-3: March 23, 2004; 4-12: February 10, 2007;
