New York City Subway map

 

 

A Vignelli-style unofficial map of the New York City Subway system in 2018; note that this may not reflect temporary changes in service.

 

 

2013 edition of the official Hertz-style subway map; note that this may not reflect temporary changes in service.

Many transit maps for the New York City Subway have been designed since the subway’s inception in 1904. Because the subway was originally built by three separate companies, an official map for all subway lines was not created until 1940, when the three companies were consolidated under a single operator. Since then, the official map has undergone several complete revisions, with intervening periods of comparative stability.

The current iteration of the New York City Subway map dates from a design first published in 1979. The official map has evolved gradually under the control of the Marketing and Corporate Communications Department of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). The 1979 design was created by the MTA Subway Map Committee, chaired by John Tauranac, which outsourced the graphic design of the map to Michael Hertz Associates.

The MTA released an interactive version of the map for digital devices in 2020, designed and built by Work & Co.^[1] The Live Subway Map combines elements from the Massimo Vignelli’s diagram and the design by Hertz, and connects to a live database for real-time service updates.^[2]

Here is a list of the 20 top tourist attractions in New York and the subway lines to use from the city center and the estimated travel time:

1. Central Park – B, C, D subway lines, approximately 15-20 minutes from the city center
2. Empire State Building – B, D, F, M subway lines, approximately 15-20 minutes from the city center
3. Times Square – N, Q, R, W subway lines, approximately 5-10 minutes from the city center
4. The Metropolitan Museum of Art – 4, 5, 6 subway lines, approximately 15-20 minutes from the city center
5. The American Museum of Natural History – B, C subway lines, approximately 20-25 minutes from the city center
6. The Museum of Modern Art – E subway line, approximately 10-15 minutes from the city center
7. The High Line – A, C, E subway lines, approximately 10-15 minutes from the city center
8. The Statue of Liberty – 1 subway line, approximately 30-35 minutes from the city center
9. One World Trade Center – E subway line, approximately 15-20 minutes from the city center
10. The Brooklyn Bridge – J, Z subway lines, approximately 20-25 minutes from the city center
11. The Guggenheim Museum – 4, 5, 6 subway lines, approximately 15-20 minutes from the city center
12. The New York Public Library – 4, 5, 6 subway lines, approximately 10-15 minutes from the city center
13. St. Patrick’s Cathedral – B, D, F, M subway lines, approximately 5-10 minutes from the city center
14. The National September 11 Memorial & Museum – E subway line, approximately 15-20 minutes from the city center
15. The Whitney Museum of American Art – 1 subway line, approximately 15-20 minutes from the city center
16. The New Museum – F subway line, approximately 10-15 minutes from the city center
17. The Frick Collection – 6 subway line, approximately 10-15 minutes from the city center
18. The Roosevelt Island Tramway – F subway line, approximately 20-25 minutes from the city center
19. The New York Botanical Garden – B, D subway lines, approximately 30-35 minutes from the city center
20. The Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum – C subway line, approximately 25-30 minutes from the city center.