Mets–Willets Point station (LIRR)

Mets–Willets Point (formerly Shea Stadium) is a station on the Long Island Rail Road's Port Washington Branch in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park, Queens, New York City. Prior to 2021, the station would normally be open only during New York Mets home games, the U.S. Open tennis tournament, major events, and emergencies. The station has been served full-time since 2023.

Mets–Willets Point
The station, during the 2007 U.S. Open.
General information
LocationMeridian Road (Flushing Meadows Park)
Queens, New York
Coordinates40.7525°N 73.8437°W / 40.7525; -73.8437
Owned byLong Island Rail Road
Line(s)Port Washington Branch
Distance6.7 mi (10.8 km) from Long Island City[1]
Platforms3 island platforms
Tracks6
ConnectionsNew York City Subway:
"7" train"7" express train​ trains at Mets–Willets Point
Local Transit NYCT Bus: Q48
Construction
AccessibleNo; accessibility planned
Other information
Station codeSHA
Fare zone1
History
Opened1939
Rebuilt1964
Electrified750 V (DC) third rail
Previous namesWorld's Fair (1939–1946)
United Nations (1946–1952)
World's Fair (1961–1966)
Shea Stadium (1966–2008)[2]
Passengers
2012—20140 (seasonal service)[3]
Rank125 of 125 (seasonal service)
Services
Preceding station Long Island Rail Road Following station
Woodside
toward Penn Station or Grand Central
 Port Washington Branch Flushing–Main Street
toward Port Washington

Although Mets–Willets Point was originally not part of CityTicket, it was added to the CityTicket program in August 2011,[4] and fares are collected before boarding during games and special events.

History

The station, which opened in time for the 1939 New York World's Fair, included a modernistic structure above the tracks that could accommodate up to 18,000 passengers per hour. Resembling an airplane hangar, it combined both Art Deco and Bauhaus features,[5] and was also in close proximity to the Railroads on Parade exhibit.[6]

The inaugural run of the Seaboard Air Line Railroad's Silver Meteor began at this station on February 2, 1939, having been dedicated at the New York World's Fair. Future runs of the train began their trips at New York Penn Station.[7]

Between 1946 and 1952, the station was known as United Nations Station. Flushing Meadows-Corona Park was the temporary site of the U.N. General Assembly, and had shuttle buses to their temporary headquarters in Lake Success at the time. Once the UN moved to its permanent home on the east side of Midtown-Manhattan, the station closed. However, it was reopened again with its original name on January 11, 1961, and the 1939 World's Fair ramp was expanded for the 1964 New York World's Fair to connect the Flushing Meadows–Corona Park to Shea Stadium, which opened that same year (though it was not part of the World's Fair). After the World's Fair closed in 1965, the station was named for Shea Stadium in 1966.

When the Elmhurst station closed in 1985, Shea Stadium station became the westernmost station on the Port Washington Branch before merging with the LIRR Main Line at Winfield Junction. As of 2003, a portion of track from the Whitestone Branch, which diverged just east of the station, was still visible next to the westbound track.

Following the 2009 closure and demolition of Shea Stadium, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority renamed the station to Mets–Willets Point, matching the name of the adjoining subway station and omitting the corporate-sponsored name, Citi Field, associated with the current stadium. The MTA was unsuccessful in achieving a similar naming rights deal and would not post the name for free. Had the naming rights deal been achieved, the station would have been known as Citi Field.[8]

Prior to 2021, the station would normally be open only during New York Mets home games at Citi Field (Shea Stadium prior to 2009), the U.S. Open tennis tournament at the USTA National Tennis Center, major events such as concerts, and during emergencies. In February 2021, the station began to be open full time and was served by all trains while Citi Field was being used as a COVID-19 vaccination site.[9][10] Full-time service ended after the COVID-19 vaccination site closed. After receiving feedback from customers, the MTA decided to resume 24/7 service at the station in April 2023, with trains serving the station every 30 minutes in each direction.[11][12]

Fans ascending from the platform to the walkway to Citi Field, during the Mets' 2014 Home Opener game.
Fans streaming into the station following the conclusion of a September 2008 Mets game at the former Shea Stadium.

Planned renovation and accessibility

In September 2014, the MTA announced renovation plans for the Mets–Willets Point LIRR station, which would see its current active platform (see below) extend in length from eight cars to 12 cars, including the installation of an elevator, which would connect to the New York City Parks Department boardwalk leading to Flushing Meadows–Corona Park, making the station fully ADA accessible. The project was scheduled to be completed in time for the 2016 baseball season, but as of 2020, the elevator has not been installed.[13]

Cancelled AirTrain station

On January 20, 2015, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced a plan to build AirTrain LaGuardia, a people mover running along the Grand Central Parkway and connecting the station to LaGuardia Airport.[14][15] The project would have included the renovation of the Willets Point LIRR station, which would have become fully accessible.[16] In May 2017, Parsons Brinckerhoff was hired to design the AirTrain;[17] at the time, construction was projected to start in 2019.[18]: 35  Transportation advocates criticized the plan as being overly roundabout.[19] In October 2021, Kathy Hochul, who succeeded Cuomo as governor after his resignation, directed PANYNJ to pause the AirTrain project.[20] The PANYNJ presented 14 alternatives in March 2022,[21][22] and the AirTrain LGA project was canceled in March 2023 in favor of increased bus service.[23][24]

Station layout

The Port Washington Branch has six tracks at this station. This station has three high-level island platforms. The north platform, adjacent to Tracks 1 and 2, the two main tracks, is eight cars long. The center platform, adjacent to Tracks 3 and 4, is also eight cars long. The south platform, adjacent to Tracks 5 and 6, is six cars long. Only the north platform is currently in use; the other tracks have not been used in regular passenger service since the 1964–65 World's Fair. The stairwells leading to the other platforms are blocked off, the platforms are in disrepair, and the tracks are rusted over. The other tracks nonetheless comprise Shea Yard and are used for train storage.[25] The platforms are decorated in the Mets team colors, blue and orange. East and west of the station, the six tracks merge into two tracks.

M Mezzanine Walkway to Flushing Meadows–Corona Park, Tennis Center, CitiField, Roosevelt Avenue, "7" train"7" express train​ trains
P
Platform level
Track 1 ←      Port Washington Branch toward Penn Station or Grand Central Madison (Woodside)
Island platform, doors will open on the left or right
Track 2      Port Washington Branch toward Great Neck or Port Washington (Flushing–Main Street) →
Track 3 ← No regular service →
Island platform, not in service
Track 4 ← No regular service →
Track 5 ← No regular service →
Island platform, not in service
Track 6 ← No regular service →

References
  1. Long Island Rail Road (May 14, 2012). "TIMETABLE No. 4" (PDF). p. VI. Retrieved August 6, 2022.
  2. "LIRR Station History". trainsarefun.com. Archived from the original on January 6, 2011. Retrieved June 24, 2010.
  3. "2012-2014 LIRR Origin and Destination Report : Volume I: Travel Behavior Among All LIRR Passengers" (PDF). Metropolitan Transportation Authority. August 23, 2016. PDF pp. 15, 199. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 17, 2019. Retrieved March 29, 2020. Data collection took place after the pretest determinations, starting in September 2012 and concluding in May 2014. .... 2012-2014 LIRR O[rigin and ]D[estination] COUNTS: WEEKDAY East/West Total By Station in Numerical Order ... Mets-Willets Point
  4. "MTA LIRR'S Discounted Weekend 'CityTicket' Now Good for Travel to Mets-Willets Point Station" (Press release). Long Island Rail Road. August 4, 2011. Archived from the original on August 18, 2012. Retrieved June 12, 2012.
  5. "Long Island Gets Modernistic Station at World's Fair". Railway Age: 823–826. May 13, 1939. Retrieved January 16, 2010.
  6. "Railroad Building; The Eastern Railroads Presidents' Conference". 1939nyworldsfair.com.
  7. Aprile Rickert (February 20, 2021). "Charlestown donates historic railcar to Louisville nonprofit".
  8. Neuman, William (May 11, 2009). "Stadium Is Citi Field, but the Subway Stop Has Other Ideas". The New York Times. Retrieved September 2, 2009.
  9. Healy, Marc C. (February 9, 2021). "LIRR Adds Mets-Willets Point Stop To Accommodate Vaccinations At Citi Field". The Wave. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
  10. "Port Washington Branch timetable". Retrieved May 11, 2022.
  11. Pozarycki, Robert (April 21, 2023). "Let's go Mets-Willets Point! LIRR bringing 24/7 service to station serving Citi Field and U.S. Open's home". amNewYork. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
  12. "LIRR service to Mets-Willets Point goes 24/7 on Monday". Newsday. April 23, 2023. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
  13. "ADA Accessibility Planned for LIRR's Mets-Willets Point Station As Part of $9.7 Million Renovation That Includes a New Elevator" (Press release). Long Island Rail Road. September 4, 2014. Retrieved October 27, 2014.
  14. Durkin, Erin (January 20, 2015). "Andrew Cuomo announces $450M plan to build AirTrain connecting LaGuardia Airport to the subway". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on January 21, 2015. Retrieved January 21, 2015.
  15. Honan, Katie. "Cuomo Announces AirTrain to LaGuardia Airport from Subway, LIRR". DNAinfo. Archived from the original on January 20, 2015. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
  16. Honan, Katie (February 9, 2016). "Mets-Willets Pt. 7 Train Station Getting $48M Overhaul, MTA Says". DNAinfo New York. Archived from the original on November 27, 2022. Retrieved October 20, 2022.
  17. Rivoli, Dan (May 9, 2017). "NYC firm hired for $14.6M to develop LaGuardia AirTrain proposal". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on May 12, 2017. Retrieved May 9, 2017.
  18. "PANYNJ Proposed Capital Plan 2017-2026" (PDF). Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. January 11, 2017. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 2, 2017. Retrieved February 7, 2017.
  19. Kessler, Eve (March 16, 2021). "Cuomo's 'Wrong Way AirTrain' Boondoggle Moves Ahead". Streetsblog NYC. Archived from the original on May 20, 2022. Retrieved August 17, 2022.
  20. Duggan, Kevin (October 12, 2021). "Port Authority pauses $2.1B LaGuardia AirTrain plan to review alternatives at Hochul's request". AM New York. Archived from the original on June 11, 2022. Retrieved August 17, 2022.
  21. Duggan, Kevin (March 2, 2022). "Port Authority reveals possible alternatives to LaGuardia AirTrain". AM New York. Archived from the original on June 10, 2022. Retrieved August 17, 2022.
  22. Nessen, Stephen (March 3, 2022). "After scrapping Cuomo's AirTrain, Port Authority releases 14 other options". Gothamist. Archived from the original on August 17, 2022. Retrieved August 17, 2022.
  23. McGeehan, Patrick (March 13, 2023). "Plans to Build AirTrain to La Guardia Are Officially Scrapped". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on March 14, 2023. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  24. "LaGuardia AirTrain NYC: Hochul scraps plan and MTA, Port Authority improve bus service". ABC7 New York. March 13, 2023. Archived from the original on March 13, 2023. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
  25. August 8, 2007 Storm Report (Report). Metropolitan Transportation Authority. September 20, 2007. Retrieved July 29, 2023.

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