How bad is the A?

The A, the long-distance runner

The A is the longest line in the entire New York City Subway — over 31 miles of track from Inwood–207th Street in Manhattan all the way out to Far Rockaway and Lefferts Boulevard in Queens. It's the express out of the 207th Street yard, down through Harlem and Midtown to 125th, then express to Columbus Circle and Chambers Street before splitting into its three Queens and Brooklyn branches.

No other line has the A's range. In a single trip it can take you from the northern tip of Manhattan through the heart of Upper Manhattan, express under the Financial District, then out into Queens through the neighborhoods of the Rockaways — a borough-flung endurance run that no other train attempts.

Rider well-knowns: the A between 125th and Columbus Circle is fast — the express alignment means it skips the local stops the C still makes. But the A's pride is its Queens branches: one turns east to Lefferts Boulevard, the other continues to Far Rockaway along a spur that was once a Long Island Rail Road line. That Far Rockaway stretch is its own mini-railroad, and it's why the A feels less like a subway line and more like a regional rail route in disguise.

For riders in the Rockaways the A is not optional — it's the only real train, and when it works it's a miracle of engineering. Its length is its weakness (more track, more chances to go wrong) and its glory (nobody else even tries to do what it does). A is the marathon line, and marathons are worth respect.