NASSAU STATION, Richmond Valley

by Kevin Walsh

Without a doubt, the most decrepit transit station of any kind in New York City (and that’s saying something, given the condition of the BMT Chambers Street station under City Hall) is the Nassau station on the Staten Island Railway, a couple of stops before its terminal at Tottenville.

The overpass over the tracks is made of what looks like corrugated tin (likely thin steel) balanced on crumbling concrete pillars. There is only room for two cars on the platforms, as most of the pair have been closed due to deteriorating conditions. The rusting railings date to the Fabulous Fifties or earlier. When I first spotted the station in the 1990s, there were wooden signs with the inscribed word “Nassau” to identify it.

Both Nassau and its sister station, Atlantic, are named for long-gone businesses including the Atlantic Terra Cotta stoneworks. For years, both have been slated for demolition with a new station on Arthur Kill Road built equidistantly between them. I did not check on that site during this jaunt, but the new station has been promised for years, and the city stopped maintenance on the two older stations long ago.

Questions? kevinjudewalsh@gmail.com

6/3/16

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