Mets–Willets Point station (LIRR)

Mets-Willets Point
Mets-Willets Point
	The station, during the 2007 U.S. Open.
General information
Location	Flushing Meadow Park, south of Roosevelt Avenue; Flushing, NY
Line(s)	Port Washington Branch
Platforms	2
Connections	New York City Subway; Template:NYCS-bull-small at Willets Point–Shea Stadium; NYCT Bus;
Other information
Fare zone	1
History
Opened	1939
Rebuilt	1964
Previous names	World's Fair(1939-1946); United Nations(1946-1952); World's Fair(1952-1966)
Services

40°45′09″N 73°50′37″W / 40.752516°N 73.843725°W / 40.752516; -73.843725

Mets-Willets Point (formerly Shea Stadium) is a seasonal-use station on the Long Island Rail Road's Port Washington Branch, located near Roosevelt Avenue in Flushing, in the New York City borough of Queens.

The station is used only during New York Mets home games at Citi Field (Shea Stadium prior to 2009) for the New York Mets, during the U.S. Open tennis tournament at the USTA National Tennis Center, and in emergencies. Shea Stadium is not part of CityTicket, and fares are collected before boarding when the station is in use.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority will not include Citi Field in the station's name. This is due to the fact that the Mets refused to pay the MTA a fee to change the name of the station to that of the new ballpark.^[2]

History

The station opened in time for the 1939 New York World's Fair, which included a modernist covered ramp above the tracks. Between 1946 and 1952, the station was known as United Nations station. The 1939 World's Fair ramp was expanded for the 1964 New York World's Fair to connect the Flushing Meadows–Corona Park to Shea Stadium, which opened that same year (though it was not part of the World's Fair).

As of 2003, a portion of track from the Whitestone Line circa 1864 was still visible next to the track heading Westbound. There were two main platforms (one with an Orange overhang, one with a Blue), but only the Orange one is still used as the Blue one is gated off, but does have a freight train stop there on that track once in a while.

Fans streaming into the station following the conclusion of a September 2008 Mets game at Shea.

Platform and track configuration

This station has three high-level island platforms. The north platform, adjacent to Tracks 1 and 2, the two main tracks, is eight cars long. The center platform, adjacent to Tracks 3 and 4, is also eight cars long. The south platform, adjacent to Tracks 5 and 6, is six cars long. The Port Washington Branch has six tracks at this location.