On Thursday the MTA put the notice up on their website that on Sunday, in honor of the Sunday All Star Game Festivities (The Futures Game) that the SMEE Museum Train, also known as the Train of Many Colors will make 3 round trips beginning at 1:00pm from Times Square to Flushing running Express towards Flushing and local back in regular revenue service. It’s rare to find Museum Trains on the Flushing Line and with the incoming CBTC installation who knows the next time they will be able to be out on the Flushing Line.
I started my day on the A train down to 42 Street and walked through the tunnel to the 7 platforms at Times Square–(7 Photos) running into Joe on the platform, a railfan that I remembered but hadn’t seen in years. The train came in 5 minutes late at 1:04 with the usual photo taking.
We get on the train and decide to sit in the R11. I begin the main reason I ride these historic trains, to get pictures out the open windows. First some photos stopping at Grand Central.
Then at Hunterspoint Avenue (Subway)–(1 Photo). We then curved onto the elevated structure and I got some photos of Hunterspoint Avenue (LIRR)–(3 Photos) with the perspective from the 7 train. We then curve around and over the LIRR’s Arch Shops with an M1 looking half abandoned sitting at its high-level platform that isn’t a passenger station
We stop at Court Square–(3 Photos), Queensboro Plaza and then I get some out the window photos of Sunnyside Yard. I notice two Private Varnish Cars sitting in the yard. A big problem for private car owners visiting New York City is that there isn’t a decent place to park Private Rail Cars for easy access for guests to sleep on board and explore the city during the day.
I get distracted chatting as we take the express track stopping at only Woodside and Junction Blvd. We then rise up onto the Flying Express above 11 Street that feels very slow now, the opposite of flying like on the express runs of the 7 train that I remember.
At Willets Point-Mets the railfans are out in droves on the middle platform as we leave, or at least they had just gotten off of our train.
Then its over the Flushing River.
and back underground for the final stop on the 7 train at Flushing-Main Street. The train is so long at 11 cars that my front and rear photos don’t come out at all.
We decide its time to get some better train photos and take the next regular 7 train back to 103RD St-Corona Plaza–(17 Photos)
We can’t ride the train since the much better photo is on the opposite platform so we use the cross under again and head down to 33rd Street–(17 Photos) for the Flushing Express shot with the Skyline.
I say goodbye to the other railfans here because I want to get one last ride on the Museum train, I ride out to Junction Blvd–(1 Photo) where I use the mezzanine to cross-under, not the overpass to crossover because that’s only accessible (plus an emergency staircase) by elevators. On the Manhattan-bound platform I find this new StationVision Television Screen with messages about how its under test. I guess the NYC Subway is taking queues from PATH.
I realize that the viewpoints from the Manhattan-bound platform aren’t too good and take the next train to 90TH St-Elmhurst Ave–(11 Photos)
This time I get more out the window photos at 82ND St-Jackson Heights–(1 Photo), 74TH St-Broadway–(1 Photo), 69TH St-Fisk Av–(1 Photo) and 46TH St-Bliss St–(1 Photo)
I get another set going over the Sunnyside Yard.
We then arrived at Queensboro Plaza–(3 Photos)
I get off at Court Square–(15 Photos) and get photos of the Train of Many Colors Leaving the station.
Now comes my other goal of the day, photographing the G.O.s on the R then J trains. I head downstairs the escalators to the G Train Mezzanine–(5 Photos). I then remember that the Greenpoint Tunnel is closed for post-Sandy repairs and trains are terminating at Nassau Avenue. There a few MTA employees milling about and I like the fact that shuttle buses are running to both Nassau Avenue and all the way to Lorimer Street on the L so riders changing from the L to the G don’t get stuck with having to wait for the G train for one-stop and then the G Shuttle Bus. The staircases down to the platform are taped off.
I then head through the Citigroup connecting tunnel–(1 Photo). I continue walking and head to 23RD St-Ely Av–(1 Photo). This F train is waiting for me
It turns out all Manhattan-bound trains from Queens Blvd are running through the 53 Tunnel today. The F is diverted because of the Second Avenue Subway construction at Lexington Avenue-63 Street, the R is diverted because the south side of the Manhattan Bridge is closed for routine work before the Montague Street Tubes are closed for 14 Months. Apparently the storm damaged tunnel can’t handle all three lines, the N,Q,R so the N,Q are replacing service through the tunnel and the R is rerouted via 6th Avenue and the northside of the bridge. I take the F train to 5TH Av/53RD St–(5 Photos) where I get pictures first of an E train passing through and then my R train.
I take the R train to 14 Street (6 Avenue)–(2 Photos)
There I head down to the L train at take it Myrtle Avenue–(2 Photos) and start seeing the signs that because of a track work requiring busing between Myrtle Avenue-Broadway and Broadway Junction the J is heading up to Metropolitan Avenue replacing the M.
I head up to the Wycoff Avenue–(6 photos plus 1 of Artwork) and the elevated M platform.
Much to my surprise the J train destination signs aren’t saying Metropolitan Avenue but Broadway Junction. Inside the FIND displays are off and Listen For Announcement is rolling across the interior signs. The announcements are made manually. I can’t believe that the MTA wouldn’t have programmed an option for the J train to Metropolitan Avenue, it seems like a relatively probable routing. I get some photos out the door at Seneca Avenue–(4 Photos) of the station that looks nearly complete.
I continue north and end up at Fresh Pond Road–(17 Photos) that now has a tactile warning strip and not much else. There large blue plywood enclosures at the southern end of the platform The next southbound train is just leaving so I’m stuck there for 12 minutes and don’t get a photo from the much better north side of the platform.
Heading back towards Manhattan I get a photo of the skip Central Avenue sign at Knickerboker Avenue–(1 Photo)
I continue back to Manhattan. At Myrtle Avenue–(1 Photo) I notice the changed stopboards that now included the position of the 8 car R32s that the J is grabbing from the C, so the C can use its normal R160s for the Summer Hot Season since the R32s have a bit of an air conditioning issue in summer (I keep looking for the R160 C trains and just haven’t had good luck finding one)
I head back to Essex Street and down to the F platform at Delancey Street–(1 Photo). Here I see some R32s entering the station and it takes me a minute to figure out why. Then I realize that the C is being diverted to F and its a C train.
The C train is perfect to end my railfanning trip on. I’m meeting friends near Penn Station so I head up there and relax for twenty minutes in the ClubAcela before a night out.