Pro Tip: Most Crowded Subway Cars Are In The Front

Yeah this looks about right (lizzard_nyc)

Your sacred subway prewalking rituals may be paying off: according to numbers crunched by the MTA on F and L trains, the most crowded subway car is the the one in the front. The smelliest? Whichever one holds that person who uses the only six square inches of free space on the train to bust open a bag of McDonald's.

In the numbers that were obtained by the Daily News, L trains that began in Canarsie had 191 riders in the first car of the train by the time it hit the Bedford stop, compared to 143 people in the last car. 191 is 46 more than the allowed maximum capacity, but dammit we were due at Rosemary's fifteen minutes ago.

"That's why I come to the end of the platform, because it's less crowded," a 54-year-old design consultant tells the paper. "I don't like being crushed like a sardine. It makes me angry." If the MTA could figure out how to power the trains on silent rage we'd all ride for free.

A particular train's car capacity also has to do with where stairs and station entrances are located. MTA spokesperson Kevin Ortiz points out that the 6 train generally has more riders in the center cars because that's where the stairwells are, but Straphangers Campaign spokesman Gene Russianoff knows better. "Either way, it's sardine city."

At the very least you can help cut down the amount of time that you're forced to trudge amongst the numb masses like so much cattle by engaging in the aforementioned "prewalking" (yes, there's an app for that). And this animated .gif that shows us the construction of the subway, line by line, helps us appreciate how expansive the system really is. It may be crowded in there—and yes you'll probably get sick from that woman's sneeze—but at least we're not paying for gas.

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Christopher Robbins in News on January 8, 2012 3:55 PM

Comments [rss]

megabillzilla

If you think McDonalds is the smelliest thing going on on NYC Subways, I envy your commute.

YetAnotherRIer

I've been trying to find out the legal capacity of a subway car but couldn't find anything. I don't think the number used here (145) is anywhere near correct because the most current subway cars were built to hold almost 250 passengers. Anybody got some pointers?

Tower18

Also, any train going through Penn Station is busy in the front (downtown direction) or rear (uptown direction) because that's where the easy entrance to Penn is.

Inconcievable de Impublishable

There should be a seat for every rider. Straphangers should not exist.

Timmy_Boy

I used to cruise the last car for some dirty rides after work, but I've always been disappointed to find nothing :(

Emmily_Litella

You are about 50 years too late for that. Guys would unscrew the light bulb in the last vestibule (last car) of the pre-war IRT cars (retired 1964) and give each other something akin to a lap dance.

ANGRYGOD11

The original Tea Party.

ronshapley

dirty ride ???

ANGRYGOD11

All things being equal, riding in the first car isn't a ritual. Its safety.
Its the only car sure to have a conductor/MTA employee.

tim_f

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tim_f

I hope the conductor isn't in the first car. The train operator is located in the first car and the conductor is in the middle of the train in either the 4th or 5th car, depending on if it's an 8 car train (R46) or a 10 car train (R32, R143, R160, etc).

Brian Fletcher

Hate to burst your safety bubble, but I can guarantee you if any crazy sh#@ goes down, that MTA conductor is locking his door and he ain't coming out till the smoke clears.

da_phonz

I once did witness a conductor come out to tell a drunk girl to calm down and quit hanging from the pole. She didn't really listen, and he just went back in his room and stared out the glass for few moments. The whole thing was weird. But if she had a knife, I agree, he definitely wouldn't have opened the door.

ANGRYGOD11

I wouldn't trust anyone from the MTA to spit on me if I was on fire. But, their presence could possibly encourage street scum to consider another car.

sluggita

I am an unrepentant prewalker, and almost always get a seat, if I want one. (R line, don't always want to sit) There's a prewalker app? F'ing genius!

cyncity.org

LOL, this is completely untrue for 95% of actual train lines. The most crowded cars are the ones near the entrances to the platform. For most, this is the middle of the platform. For some stations, it is at the 2 ends. However, during rush hour, you are more likely going to get a seat in the middle cars because of the high turn over. I love how you can poll one or two lines, give numbers that technically don't even make sense, and suddenly it is the truth.

ronshapley

1 train lead cars are empty

schmeep

Agreed, although I highly doubt that you laughed out loud.

cyncity.org

It was more of an angry scoff, but yes indeed, you are correct.

nicemarmot

Completely agreed. It's always whatever cars are closest to the entrances, which makes sense, cuz you know, people are lazy as hell. If you're talking about a platform with a lot of entrances, then people will be better spread out, but usually not.