MTA preliminary design sketch of what Yankees-E 153rd Street station would look like. The completed station is very true to this rendering.

Timetables highlighting the new Yankees-E 153rd Street station. Hudson Line timetable from the collection of Bob Mortell.

While I generally like to feature history in our station tours, Yankees-E 153rd Street is a new station, thus I figured it would be interesting to instead check out the construction of the station. This is Metro-North’s newest station in New York (Fairfield Metro is the newest station, located in Connecticut). Historically, the New York Central offered special game day service to the old Yankee Stadium, but it required taking a train to Melrose, and either walking or taking a bus to the stadium itself. Now the stadium is just a short walk away – making Yankee Stadium extremely well connected with public transit (a subway station also services the stadium).

Flickr user Interloafer wonderfully documented the construction of Yankees-E 153rd Street station, even capturing the first train to service the station, and a shot of the first game day service. The below photos are from his collection:

  
  
 
  
 

While Yankees – E 153rd Street is designated as a Hudson Line stop, it is unique in that Harlem and New Haven Line trains service it on special game days. Using the wye at Mott Haven, trains from those two lines can move onto the Hudson Line, allowing passengers a one-seat ride to games and events. On non game days, the station is regularly accessible by trains on the Hudson Line.

An important part of the new station complex is the elevated and enclosed walkway that stretches from the station proper towards Yankee Stadium. An Arts for Transit piece was installed in this walkway, consisting of eleven mosaic panels, each measuring eighteen feet wide, and six and a half feet tall. The work is titled The Home of the Stars, and is by artist Ellen Harvey. Each panel displays a progression of time, from the sunset to the stars in the evening sky.

 
  
   
  
   
 

The Home of the Stars, an Arts for Transit piece by Ellen Harvey. Photographs of each individual panel from the artist’s website.

In the station proper, things look a bit different than at most other Metro-North stations. The rounded advertisement boards on the platform, and the large overhead dome in the mezzanine seem to resemble an airport more than a train station. This is also the only Metro-North station where you’ll find single person entry gates. On game days, you’ll need to hand in your ticket to get through these gates, in case there was not time to collect your fare on the train. The remainder of the station resembles the typical Metro-North station, complete with island platforms, wire benches, and blue trash bins.

Anyways, here are the photos I took at Yankees – E 153rd Street station… hopefully everyone out there is okay and has survived Sandy!

 
 
  
  
 
 
  
  
 
 
 
  
 
 
  
 

Below you will find a few of the brochures the New York Central printed about taking the train to Yankee Stadium for baseball and football games. With the exception of the final two (which are more current Metro-North versions), they were all printed in 1966. Special thanks to Otto Vondrak who owns and scanned most of them for me!

New York Central’s special Yankees trains, from 1966

Taking the train to the football game, 1966

The back of the card shows how to get from Melrose to Yankee Stadium, 1966

A little bit more current “Take the train to the game” brochures.

The ticker-tape parade will begin on Broadway at Battery Place at 11 AM and continue uptown along the “Canyon” to Chambers Street, ending at 12:30 PM. At 1PM a ceremony will be held at City Hall Plaza, where Mayor Michael Bloomberg will present the Bronx Bombers with the Keys to the City. The ceremony will end at 2:30 PM.

The extra train on the Harlem Line will make the following stops:
Southeast: 8:30 AM
Brewster: 8:33 AM
Goldens Bridge: 8:43 AM
Katonah: 8:47 AM
Mount Kisco: 8:53 AM
Chappaqua: 8:59 AM
North White Plains: 9:10 AM
White Plains: 9:14 AM
Harlem-125th St: 9:37 AM
Grand Central: 9:48 AM

From Grand Central, you can take the subway, 4 or 5 train downtown to any of the following stations:
Fulton Street, Wall Street, Bowling Green or Brooklyn Bridge–City Hall. Additional subway and bus information can be found here.

Also, for anyone who rides the train in the Wassaic area, trains will not be running this weekend due to bridge work, November 7th and 8th. Instead, buses will ferry riders down to Southeast. These buses will follow the normal train schedule.