Lexington Avenue–63rd Street station

Lexington Avenue–63 Street
Lexington Avenue–63 Street
	Upper platform
Station statistics
Address	Lexington Avenue & East 63rd Street; New York, New York
Borough	Manhattan
Locale	Upper East Side, Lenox Hill
Coordinates	40°45′53″N 73°57′59″W / 40.764649°N 73.966398°W
Division	B (BMT/IND)
Line	BMT 63rd Street Line; IND 63rd Street Line
Services	F (all times) <F> (two rush hour trains, peak direction); N (limited weekday rush hour service only); Q (all times); R (one a.m. rush hour trip in the northbound direction only)
System transfers	With MetroCard or OMNY only:; 4 (all times); 5 (all times except late nights); 6 (all times) <6> (weekdays until 8:45 p.m., peak direction); N (all times); R (all times except late nights); W (weekdays only) at Lexington Avenue/59th Street ; (Transfer stations are not accessible)
Transit	NYCT Bus: M101, M102, M103; MTA Bus: BxM1
Structure	Underground
Depth	155 feet (47 m)
Levels	2
Platforms	2 island platforms (1 on each level); cross-platform interchange
Tracks	4 (2 on each level)
Other information
Opened	October 29, 1989
Rebuilt	January 13, 2011 to January 1, 2017 (for Second Avenue Subway)
Accessible	ADA-accessible
Opposite-; direction; transfer	Yes
Former/other names	Lexington Avenue
Traffic
2023	3,736,349 8.2%
Rank	81 out of 423
Services
Services
Former services
Former services
Location
Track layout
	Two levels split
	below this point
Street map
Station service legend
Symbol	Description
	Stops all times except late nights
	Stops all times
	Stops rush hours only (limited service)
	Stops rush hours in the peak direction only (limited service)
	Stops weekdays during the day
	Stops weekends and weekday evenings

The Lexington Avenue–63rd Street station (formerly Lexington Avenue) is a New York City Subway station in Lenox Hill, Manhattan, shared by the IND and BMT 63rd Street Lines. Located at the intersection of Lexington Avenue and 63rd Street, it is served by the F and Q trains at all times; <F> trains during rush hours in the peak direction; limited rush hour N trains; and one A.M. rush hour R train in the northbound direction only.

The station has two platform levels; trains headed southbound to downtown and Brooklyn use the upper level, while trains headed northbound to uptown and Queens use the lower level. This is one of the deepest stations in the subway system, requiring several banks of long escalators or elevators.

Construction started at this station in 1969, but as a result of the New York City fiscal crisis in 1975, the station did not open until 1989. Originally, the station was intended to be a transfer point for Sixth Avenue/Queens Boulevard and Broadway/Second Avenue services. As such, the station was designed to allow for cross-platform interchanges on both levels. However, construction of the Second Avenue Subway was halted in 1975 during the station's construction. As a result, the north side of the station, intended for service to Second Avenue, was hidden with a temporary orange brick wall, and space intended for an exit at Third Avenue was left unused. While the south side of the station opened for service in 1989, the north side was only used for storing trains.

In 2007, construction resumed on the Second Avenue Subway, and the north side of the station was renovated so it could be used. The orange wall on the platform was removed, while beige-white wall tiles were installed on the station walls adjacent to the tracks. The unopened entrance at Third Avenue was fitted with multiple elevators, and the station's false ceiling was removed. The first phase of the Second Avenue Subway opened on January 1, 2017, and ridership has increased at the station since then.