Head-End View From Grand Central to Harlem 125st

The view from the front window as our train makes its way out of Grand Central Terminal.

[@vettebecker1]

Nice job, I think i could ride trains in and out of grand central all day. Watching the train switch all the tracks coming out of the terminal was neat.

[@OregonRailfan83]

Love all those double-slip switches!

[@OregonRailfan83]

Plus the train left from the Lower Level! A lot of activity under quiet majestic Park Avenue!

[@scdevon]

It's amazing how many double slip switches there were in the tunnels. Great stuff. The rails, switches, ballast and ties seem to last forever in the stable underground environment. That stuff looks like it's been in place undisturbed for a very long time.

[@simplyo26]

Thanks for a clear view of the switches outside of GCT.

[@ERA3733]

The first one was the long-closed 59th Street Station, while the second was the long closed 86th Street Station. Both were retained as emergency exits

[@travelsonic]

Not true, 59th, 72nd, 86th street platforms were all regular stations at one point, each closed as stations for one reason or another involving the development of mass transit in Manhattan.

[@user-ix5yh1br9z]

凄い迫力！　地下なのにこんなに線路がいっぱい！

[@66kprdwd]

59th st and 72 st along with 86 st are all emergency exits.

[@briannaacosta8168]

Thanks again I really get to the airport to get together and

[@AaronJrBrundidge]

5:13 off we go!!!!!!!!!!!!! after 4 mins and 52 secs on my wristwatch according to train departure

[@66kprdwd]

1:08 Terminal approach 1:33 Terminal Approach 2:58 Terminal Proceed 3:15 Terminal Proceed 3:46 Proceed Cab

[@acps110]

Very Nice!

[@MrBiloxiSean]

They were stations.

[@PikalaxALT]

@timcoyle50 They are one of the discontinued stations. Either 72nd St. or 86th St.

[@PikalaxALT]

Perhaps they were at one point intended as passenger stations but were later cancelled.

[@66kprdwd]

They never were passenger stations. They have always been used as emergency exits.

[@travelsonic]

Used to be a station long ago before being used as emergency exists today. :D

[@AaronJrBrundidge]

7:53 97th Street Portal and M7As

[@CTValleyRailVideos]

@timcoyle50 those are emergency exits.

[@kevinhoward9593]

I feel like GCT is operating way above its operating capacity. I mean 750,000 people use it a day. I mean a train probably leaves every 3 minutes.

[@AaronJrBrundidge]

M2/M4s soon to come on TS2020

[@rwboa22]

Where's Otis?

[@CTValleyRailVideos]

@acps110 Thanks

[@timcoyle50]

On the way out you passed two small platforms in the tunnel. What are they for?

[@AaronJrBrundidge]

0:20 train to 10 mph restriction to begin

[@jimmygt4]

how many destinations are there for trains leaving gct? it seems that all the tracks just eventually lead in to a just a couple coming out in to day light. how far north do they go.?

[@MrTrickysticks]

+jimmygt4 The railroad splits into 3 lines; The Hudson line goes along the Hudson River towards Croton-Harmon and Poughkeepsie, the Harlem line goes towards White Plains, Southeast, and some service Wassaic, while the New Haven line serves Stamford, New Haven, and two branches: Danbury and New Canaan. The stops I've listed are 'terminals' of sorts, as in trains will likely leave GCT with these destinations in mind. There are exceptions during rush hours that are in between these stops. The Waterbury branch doesn't have direct trains to Grand Central because it's very, very far. Look up a Metro North map on google if you'd like for more details :)

[@pnaw10]

Adding to the previous response, you are correct -- all the dozens of tracks within GCT merge down into just 4 tracks by the time trains reach 59th Street. Also worth noting: GCT actually has two levels of platforms, so what you see in the first part of this video is just a fraction of what's actually there. Decades ago, when the New York Central railroad owned GCT and ran all of the trains in and out of GCT, one level was for long-distance trains and the other was for commuter trains. When Amtrak was created, it took over the long-distance service but was split between GCT and Penn Station, with no direct connection between the two. By 1991, Amtrak had restored an old connection allowing it to split off from the Hudson Line just north of MNR's Spuyten Duyvil station and run down the west side of Manhattan into Penn Station. Since Amtrak moved out, MNR has had both levels of GCT all to itself.

[@victoriacyunczyk]

There is also a branch to Waterbury.

[@raakone]

Right now it's those three main Metro North lines (Hudson, Harlem, and New Haven) with some trains going onto branches of the New Haven, especially during rush hour. With the exception of the New Haven mainline and New Canaan branches, the only trains to go all the way are dual-mode P32 Genesis hauled trains, as otherwise electrification stops at certain points, but pure diesel trains are banned from the Grand Central tunnels. In the past, Amtrak used this station for trains headed north, and on certain occasions "Empire Service" trains have returned this way when the Spuyten-Duyvil (spelling?) bridge is not available, but otherwise it's been just a commuter station since 1991.

[@RellyOhBoy]

That would have been the quickest way to move trains between Penn Station and GCT. That triangular piece of land at Spuyten Duyvil where the West Side and Hudson Lines converge at the mouth of the Harlem river ship canal there was a single track that connected the 2 sections, its gone now. Not sure how long its been missing.

[@redbird1train855]

Which train model was this?

[@AaronJrBrundidge]

Budd M2s

[@AaronJrBrundidge]

this train to New Haven has 6 cars

[@grad201187]

Are there no railway signals here? is it all automatic?

[@jayzo]

grad201187 It's using cab signalling. The driver has a device in the cab which tells him the state of the signal and speed he should be travelling at (don't quote me on it, I'm not from area, however the European Cab signalling system does have this).

[@TuckertonRR]

grad201187 theres a load of signals that i can see

[@AaronJrBrundidge]

@@TuckertonRR if I may, we can only feature signals at intersection of the track line, in the cab signalling, we have ATC, Automatic Train Control

[@georgemurphy2579]

Oh yes. These were interlocking signals, which are within any give interlocking. In this case, GCT is a large one with many switches. They have to be governed by aotomatic signals and the ones you saw were called "low" signals because they are close to the ground. You saw "slow approach" and several "slow clear" signals as the equipment was leaving the terminal. Slow clear is red over green and means that the train is diverging to another track at slow speed.

[@HungryGuyStories]

Train traffic jam...

[@aubreywallace7918]

it never reached Ct

[@eoinpkav152]

No it just stopped at Harlem 125th

[@AaronJrBrundidge]

A solid 10 minute travel

[@Nurvington]

Not a cab ride, you're standing at the front door of an M-2 passenger car.

[@jazminqua77]

It says head end not cab.

[@briannaacosta8168]

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[@eoinpkav152]

What?