A Guide To New York Transit Museum, New York City

Things to do

New York Transit Museum is located in the former Court Street station in downtown Brooklyn. Although the museum is located in Brooklyn, the displays here cover the greater New York area too, including commuter rails and buses. The location of the museum was once a functioning subway station opened in 1936, but because of other nearby stations, Court Street Station did not see much traffic and was closed in 1946. What makes the station unique is that it was essentially frozen in time until the museum opened in the 70s. After some cleaning, the station looked as it did the day it closed.

Tour the museum

Despite the station being opened in the 1930s and closed in the ‘40s, New York Transit Museum has a ton of interesting exhibits, with rail cars and subways spanning hundreds of years on display. There are 20 different subway and elevated rail cars featured here, with the oldest one being from 1907. Visitors to the museum can sit in the vintage cars, at the wheel of a bus or walk through the vintage turnstiles and feel like they took a step back in time to another era. On top of all the interesting vehicles on display, there are several displays and exhibits showcasing the immense amount of work and technology that went into building the New York transit system throughout the years.

Have a party

New York Transit Museum is available for parties as well. For those with kids interested in trains can book the museum for children’s birthday parties. Adults and kids will have a tour dedicated to seeing all the vintage vehicles and can even go inside them and look around for themselves. Interactive tours are available for both adults and kids and there is a special scavenger hunt activity as well.

Things to buy

Apparel

The museum has a great gift shop on-site that is a fun place to visit after ending your tour of New York Transit Museum. Buy a retro t-shirt featuring the MTA’s old logos and vintage styled or perhaps a pair of socks with the subway map printed on them. If those items don’t interest you and you want something specific, how about a baseball hat with your favorite train line on it?

Books

Everything from coffee table books to children’s books can be found here. Read about the history of the MTA and what went into building the extensive subway system in New York while looking at pictures of vehicles from bygone eras. For the littles ones, the children’s books are informative and fun and feature cute and colorful drawings and pictures of trains and vehicles.

Decoration items

There are also some pretty cool decoration items for those looking for a unique souvenir that says ‘New York City’. Decorative signs and plaques of iconic New York landmarks, for example. There are also notepads and mouse pads as well as posters and signs for sale.

Travelers tips

Accessibility

New York Transit Museum is wheelchair accessible and has elevator access to get in and out of the museum. Just mention it ahead of time to the museum authorities and an attendant will help you out. For hearing-impaired visitors, a sign-language interpreter is also available. However, requests for the interpreter must be made two weeks in advance.

Service animals

For those traveling with service animals, animals are allowed on the premises and specialized guides for the blind can be booked too. Please let the museum know in advance if you require these services.

How to get there

Bus

There are plenty of options for reaching the museum, especially by public transport. By bus, B25, B26, B38, B41, B45, B52, B57, B61, B62, B63, B65, and B103 buses stop nearby.

Subway

Take the subway to New York Transit Museum! Court Street-Borough Hall Station is the closest subway stop with the 2, 3, 4, 5, R and W trains going here. From Jay Street - MetroTech Station, the A, C, F, F, R, and W trains stop here.

How to get tickets

Tickets to the museum can only be booked on-site. Admission for adults is 10 USD, for kids between 5 and 17 years of age and seniors, the price is 5 USD. Museum members get access for free.

New York Transit Museum information

New York Transit Museum

Address: 99 Schermerhorn St, Brooklyn, NY 11201, United States

Opening hours: Tue - Fri: 10am - 4pm; Sat - Sun: 11am - 5pm (closed on Mon)

Price: 5 USD onwards

Website: New York Transit Museum

Department of Tourism: Visit New York City

News and Updates for New York Transit Museum: Around Brooklyn: Early photos on display at Transit Museum | View rarely seen photos of New York City’s subway system from its construction in the early 1900s