23rd Street station (BMT Broadway Line)

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23rd Street station on the BMT Broadway Line is an underground local station in Manhattan’s Flatiron District, at the intersection of 23rd Street, Broadway, and Fifth Avenue. It has two side platforms and four tracks.

Services
- R train: runs at all times except late nights
- W train: operates on weekdays
- N train: runs on weekends and during late nights
- Q train: runs during late nights only

History
- Opened January 5, 1918, as the Broadway Line was extended north from 14th Street–Union Square.
- Platforms were lengthened in 1927 to accommodate eight-car trains.
- City took over BMT operations in 1940.
- Renovated in the 1970s to handle ten-car trains.
- In 1999, a passing incident led to Kendra’s Law, improving treatment for some mental health cases.
- Major refurbishment in 2001 added ADA safety features, restored tiling, upgraded lighting and signage, and a public address system.
- In 2002, the station received the artwork Memories of Twenty-Third Street by Keith Godard, plus mosaics of hats worn by notable Flatiron District figures.

Layout and artwork
- The station has two side platforms and four tracks. The two center tracks are used by N and Q trains; the outer tracks are used by local R and W trains.
- Artwork includes Memories of Twenty-Third Street and decorative mosaics of famous locals’ hats, such as Oscar Wilde, Sarah Bernhardt, and W. E. B. Du Bois.
- The original trim line and name tablets survive along the platforms.

Exits and fare control
- Four fare-control areas are spread along the platforms.
- North ends (Queens-bound side) feature regular and high exit-only turnstiles, a full-time token booth, and four street stairs: two to the northeast corner of Broadway and 23rd Street (outside Madison Square Park) and two to the southeast.
- South ends (Brooklyn-bound side) have regular and high exit-only turnstiles, a former customer assistance booth, and two street stairs: one to the southeast corner of 23rd Street and Fifth Avenue (outside the Flatiron Building) and one to the northwest corner of Broadway and Fifth Avenue.
- An additional fare-control area on the Queens-bound side is unstaffed, with High Entry-Exit Turnstiles; a second area on the Brooklyn-bound side is exit-only.
- A crossunder (connecting the platforms) was closed in the 1990s and is now used only for station facilities.