169th Street

169th Street runs beneath Hillside Avenue in Jamaica, Queens, one stop short of the busy transit hub at Jamaica Center. This is a working neighbourhood station on the Queens Boulevard line, serving the diverse residential streets of central Jamaica and the shoppers who fill nearby Jamaica Avenue. Riders here board the E and F trains for the long haul across Queens toward Manhattan.

Come up from the platforms and you are in the middle of one of Queens' most vibrant commercial districts, where South Asian, Caribbean and Latin American communities give the streets their character. The stretch of Hillside and Jamaica Avenues nearby is packed with shops, groceries, jewellery stores and restaurants that draw people from across southeast Queens.

Station Overview

169th Street opened in 1937 as part of the Independent Subway System's Queens Boulevard line and is served by the E and F trains. It sits in the heart of Jamaica, Queens, well east of Manhattan. The station is a below-ground local stop, the last before the line reaches its eastern terminals nearby.

Lines and Connectivity

The E train runs express across much of Queens and continues through Midtown Manhattan to the World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan. The F train takes the longer route through Queens and Manhattan and on into Brooklyn, reaching Coney Island at its far end. From 169th Street both give you a one-seat ride toward the major job centres of Manhattan, and a short ride the other way brings you to Jamaica Center and its connections to buses and the AirTrain for JFK Airport.

Station Layout and Structure

169th Street is an underground station beneath Hillside Avenue, with entrances on the street corners feeding down to a mezzanine and the platforms below. Signs on the platform level separate the Manhattan-bound trains from those heading east the short distance to Jamaica Center, so check the direction before boarding.

Accessibility

According to our data this station is listed as accessible, but 169th Street is an older local stop, so anyone relying on step-free access should confirm live lift and elevator status on the MYmta app before travelling. The nearby Jamaica Center and Sutphin Boulevard stations offer well-established accessible facilities if you need a guaranteed step-free route.

Travel Tips

• Pay by tapping OMNY with a contactless card, phone or OMNY card, or swipe a MetroCard. The fare is one flat rate no matter how far across Queens and Manhattan you ride.
• For JFK Airport, ride the E or F one stop east to Jamaica Center, or use Sutphin Boulevard for the AirTrain connection.
• The E is the faster express toward Manhattan, so time your platform choice if both trains are running.

Nearby Attractions

Jamaica Avenue Shopping District - a few minutes south. A long, lively commercial strip of shops, groceries and eateries reflecting the many communities of southeast Queens.

Rufus King Park - a short walk southwest. A leafy green square around the historic Rufus King Manor, one of the oldest houses in Queens and a small museum.

York College - a ride or longer walk south. Part of the City University of New York, with a large campus serving the surrounding neighbourhoods.

Jamaica Center - one stop east. The transit and shopping heart of the area, with bus links across Queens and the AirTrain toward JFK.

Timings and Best Time to Travel

The E and F trains run 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with wider gaps between trains overnight. Weekday rush hours bring the heaviest crowds as commuters head into Manhattan, and the eastbound platform fills in the evenings as people return home. Midday and early afternoon are the most relaxed times to travel.