Rosa Parks Hempstead Transit Center
Encyclopedia
The Rosa Parks Hempstead Transit Center is the Long Island Bus system's indoor customer facility between Jackson and West Columbia Streets in Hempstead, New York
. It is also the terminus
for the Hempstead Branch
of the Long Island Rail Road
. Serving 19 routes, the transit center is the major transfer point for customers using a second Long Island Bus route or the LIRR. Offering a waiting area, transit information, MetroCard vending machines, a news-stand and restrooms; the Hempstead Transit Center was designed to be the largest, most thoroughly developed of all of the bus terminals in the Long Island Bus system.
depot sometime between October and December 1872, on the corner of Main Street and Fulton Avenue
. When the Long Island Rail Road acquired the CRRLI in 1878, this Hempstead Station and terminus came with it, replacing the former 1839-built Hempstead Station, which ran along the original Hempstead Branch.
The station was remodeled in July 1881, and razed in 1913. A second brick station was built in February 1913. Between December 30, 1941 and 1943, service was supended when the tracks were cut back and the station was moved to Columbia Street. A temporary station was installed 1,265 feet west of its former location until work on this project was finished. Upon the completion of this move and track work, the second station was opened again. However it was gutted in a fire on December 31, 1962 and remodeled in April 1963. This station was razed in 1998 and replaced with a much more elaborate third depot which was built between 1999 and 2002.
s, each eight cars long. The east platform is adjacent to Tracks 5 and 6, and the west platform is adjacent to Tracks 7 and 8.
The Hempstead Branch has eight tracks at this location. The four tracks to the east of the platforms but not adjacent to them are used for train storage.
to redevelop Hempstead
and help bring it back to prominence as "Long Island's
hub". The original Hempstead bus terminal was located across Jackson Street on the corner of Jackson and Main streets. That area is now occupied by the Greyhound bus stop and various businesses. The new transit center can accommodate many more buses than the original terminal and allows almost half of the Long Island Bus system's routes to run through Hempstead. Although Hempstead has never reached its former level of prominence, the new terminal and railroad station, along with the establishment of many new businesses, have helped to reestablish Hempstead as the hub of Long Island.
Executive, Thomas Suozzi
announced that Hempstead Transit Center would be renamed in honor of civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks
. Suozzi said, "“To honor her memory and that of her important work, today we are renaming this vital transit hub for one of the most important figures in American history.” In addition to the renaming of the terminal, a permanent exhibit of the civil rights movement will be constructed, telling the story of the struggle for equality through the photographs of photojournalists and artists who covered the unrest of that era, including the late Moneta Sleet, Jr.
, Jim Peppler (a photographer for Newsday
), and Herbert Randall
. So far, a column in the back of the bus terminal has been renovated with black marble, engraved with a large image of Rosa Parks and her story below.
Hempstead (village), New York
Hempstead is a village located in the town of Hempstead, Nassau County, New York, United States. The population was 53,891 at the 2010 census.Hofstra University is located on the border between Hempstead and Uniondale.-Foundation:...
. It is also the terminus
Terminal Station
Terminal Station is a 1953 film by Italian director Vittorio De Sica. It tells the story of the love affair between an Italian man and an American woman. The film was entered into the 1953 Cannes Film Festival.-Production:...
for the Hempstead Branch
Hempstead Branch
The Hempstead Branch is an electrified rail line and service owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road in the U.S. state of New York. The branch begins at the Main Line at Queens Interlocking, just east of Queens Village station...
of the Long Island Rail Road
Long Island Rail Road
The Long Island Rail Road or LIRR is a commuter rail system serving the length of Long Island, New York. It is the busiest commuter railroad in North America, serving about 81.5 million passengers each year. Established in 1834 and having operated continuously since then, it is the oldest US...
. Serving 19 routes, the transit center is the major transfer point for customers using a second Long Island Bus route or the LIRR. Offering a waiting area, transit information, MetroCard vending machines, a news-stand and restrooms; the Hempstead Transit Center was designed to be the largest, most thoroughly developed of all of the bus terminals in the Long Island Bus system.
Rail terminal
Hempstead Station was originally built as a Central Railroad of Long IslandCentral Railroad of Long Island
Central Railroad of Long Island is a former railroad on Long Island built by Alexander Turney Stewart, who was also the founder of Garden City. The railroad was established in 1871, was merged with the Flushing and North Side Railroad in 1874 to form the Flushing, North Shore, and Central Railroad,...
depot sometime between October and December 1872, on the corner of Main Street and Fulton Avenue
New York State Route 24
New York State Route 24 is an east–west state highway on Long Island in New York in the United States. The route is split into two segments, with the longest and westernmost of the two extending from Interstate 295 and NY 25 in the Queens Village section of the New York City...
. When the Long Island Rail Road acquired the CRRLI in 1878, this Hempstead Station and terminus came with it, replacing the former 1839-built Hempstead Station, which ran along the original Hempstead Branch.
The station was remodeled in July 1881, and razed in 1913. A second brick station was built in February 1913. Between December 30, 1941 and 1943, service was supended when the tracks were cut back and the station was moved to Columbia Street. A temporary station was installed 1,265 feet west of its former location until work on this project was finished. Upon the completion of this move and track work, the second station was opened again. However it was gutted in a fire on December 31, 1962 and remodeled in April 1963. This station was razed in 1998 and replaced with a much more elaborate third depot which was built between 1999 and 2002.
Platform and track configuration
This station has two high-level island platformIsland platform
An island platform is a station layout arrangement where a single platform is positioned between two tracks within a railway station, tram stop or transitway interchange...
s, each eight cars long. The east platform is adjacent to Tracks 5 and 6, and the west platform is adjacent to Tracks 7 and 8.
The Hempstead Branch has eight tracks at this location. The four tracks to the east of the platforms but not adjacent to them are used for train storage.
Bus terminal
In 1993, construction on the Hempstead Transit Center was completed and it was opened to the public. In conjunction with the new railroad station, its construction was part of a plan by Mayor James A. GarnerJames Garner (politician)
James Garner is a U.S. politician from the Republican party who was mayor of the Village of Hempstead, New York from 1988 to 2005, and was the first African-American to be elected a mayor on Long Island....
to redevelop Hempstead
Hempstead (village), New York
Hempstead is a village located in the town of Hempstead, Nassau County, New York, United States. The population was 53,891 at the 2010 census.Hofstra University is located on the border between Hempstead and Uniondale.-Foundation:...
and help bring it back to prominence as "Long Island's
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
hub". The original Hempstead bus terminal was located across Jackson Street on the corner of Jackson and Main streets. That area is now occupied by the Greyhound bus stop and various businesses. The new transit center can accommodate many more buses than the original terminal and allows almost half of the Long Island Bus system's routes to run through Hempstead. Although Hempstead has never reached its former level of prominence, the new terminal and railroad station, along with the establishment of many new businesses, have helped to reestablish Hempstead as the hub of Long Island.
The "Rosa Parks" Name
On February 14, 2006, Nassau CountyNassau County, New York
Nassau County is a suburban county on Long Island, east of New York City in the U.S. state of New York, within the New York Metropolitan Area. As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,339,532...
Executive, Thomas Suozzi
Thomas Suozzi
Thomas R. "Tom" Suozzi was the county executive of Nassau County, New York. He was first elected to the post of county executive in 2001, the first Democratic county executive since Eugene Nickerson left office in 1971.In 2006, he ran unsuccessfully against Eliot Spitzer for the Democratic...
announced that Hempstead Transit Center would be renamed in honor of civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks
Rosa Parks
Rosa Louise McCauley Parks was an African-American civil rights activist, whom the U.S. Congress called "the first lady of civil rights", and "the mother of the freedom movement"....
. Suozzi said, "“To honor her memory and that of her important work, today we are renaming this vital transit hub for one of the most important figures in American history.” In addition to the renaming of the terminal, a permanent exhibit of the civil rights movement will be constructed, telling the story of the struggle for equality through the photographs of photojournalists and artists who covered the unrest of that era, including the late Moneta Sleet, Jr.
Moneta Sleet, Jr.
Moneta J. Sleet, Jr. won the 1969 Pulitzer Prize for Feature Photography for his photograph of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s widow, Coretta Scott King, at Dr. King's funeral. Sleet is the first African American man to win the Pulitzer, and the first African American to win award for journalism...
, Jim Peppler (a photographer for Newsday
Newsday
Newsday is a daily American newspaper that primarily serves Nassau and Suffolk counties and the New York City borough of Queens on Long Island, although it is sold throughout the New York metropolitan area...
), and Herbert Randall
Herbert Randall
Herbert Eugene Randall, Jr. is an American photographer who had documented the effects of the African-American Civil Rights Movement. Randall is of Shinnecock, African-American and West Indian ancestry.- Education :...
. So far, a column in the back of the bus terminal has been renovated with black marble, engraved with a large image of Rosa Parks and her story below.
MTA Long Island Bus Connections
At the Hempstead Transit Center, there are 19 routes operating through the terminal. Departure assignments during the day are listed below, during late night hours when the terminal is closed, all buses stop on West Columbia Street at Station Plaza immediately north of the terminal.| Bay | Route | To | Via | Service notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | N31 |
|
Hempstead Avenue (Hempstead-Lynbrook), West Broadway, and Central Avenue |
|
| 2 | N32 | Hempstead Avenue (Hempstead-Lynbrook), Broadway (Lynbrook-Woodmere), and Central Avenue | ||
| 3 | N15 |
Rockville Centre, New York Rockville Centre is a village located in Nassau County, New York, in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the village had a total population of 24,023. The town is made up of middle to upper middle class residents, most of the wealthier residents residing on the north side of town near the... Long Beach, New York Long Beach is a city in Nassau County, New York. Just south of Long Island, it is located on Long Beach Barrier Island, which is the westernmost of the outer barrier islands off Long Island's South Shore. As of the United States 2010 Census, the city population was 33,275... |
Woodfield Road and Long Beach Road | |
| 4 | N6 |
Jamaica, Queens Jamaica is a neighborhood in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York, United States. It was settled under Dutch rule in 1656 in New Netherland as Rustdorp. Under British rule, the Village of Jamaica became the center of the "Town of Jamaica"... |
Hempstead Turnpike New York State Route 24 New York State Route 24 is an east–west state highway on Long Island in New York in the United States. The route is split into two segments, with the longest and westernmost of the two extending from Interstate 295 and NY 25 in the Queens Village section of the New York City... |
|
| 5 | ||||
| 6 | ||||
| 7 | N35 |
Baldwin Harbor, New York Baldwin Harbor is a hamlet in the town of Hempstead, Nassau County, New York, United States. It was created concomitant with the 1990 United States Census from the southernmost portions of the neighboring hamlet of Baldwin... |
Baldwin Road/Grand Avenue | |
| 8 | N16 |
Babylon (village), New York Babylon is a village in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 12,615 at the 2000 census.Its official name is The Incorporated Village of Babylon... |
Franklin Street/Hempstead Avenue and Foxhurst Road |
|
| 9 | Unused | |||
| 10 | N41 |
Freeport, New York Freeport is a village in the town of Hempstead, Nassau County, New York, USA, on the South Shore of Long Island. The population was 42,860 at the 2010 census. A settlement since the 1640s, it was once an oystering community and later a resort popular with the New York City theater community... |
Nassau Road and Babylon Turnpike | |
| 11 | N40 | Nassau Road and North Main Street (Freeport) | ||
| 12 | N41 |
Mineola, New York Mineola is a village in Nassau County, New York, USA. The population was 18,799 at the 2010 census. The name is derived from a Native American word meaning a "pleasant place".... |
Franklin Avenue | |
| 13 | N40 | |||
| 14 | N27 |
Roosevelt Field Mall Roosevelt Field is an American shopping mall. It is the largest high-end shopping mall in the state of New York and eighth in the country as measured by gross leaseable area at 2,189,941 ft² . The mall is located in East Garden City, New York part of the Town of Hempstead on Long Island... Glen Cove, New York Glen Cove is a city in Nassau County, New York on the North Shore of Long Island. As of the United States 2010 Census, the city population was 26,964.... |
Westbury Boulevard, Roslyn Road, and Glen Cove Avenue | |
| 15 | N35 |
Nassau Community College Nassau Community College is a two-year college. It is located in East Garden City, New York, USA. The school is in Nassau County on Long Island. NCC maintains a nationwide reputation for academic excellence and ease of transferability to four-year institutions.- History :Created as part of the... Westbury, New York Westbury incorporated in 1932 as a village in Nassau County, New York in the United States. The population was 15,146 at the 2010 census.The Village of Westbury is in the Town of North Hempstead.... |
Clinton Street, Nassau CC, Post Avenue |
|
| 16 | N16 |
|
Westbury Boulevard, Charles Lindbergh Boulevard |
|
| 17 | N15 |
|
Washington Avenue |
|
| 18 | N54 |
Westfield Sunrise Westfield Sunrise, formerly known as Sunrise Mall, is a shopping mall located in East Massapequa, New York. The mall originally opened on August 30, 1973 as the first 2-level shopping center on Long Island. It later underwent a major remodel in 1991 and it was acquired by the Westfield Group in... Amityville, New York Amityville is a village in the town of Babylon in Suffolk County, New York, in the United States. The population was 9,441 at the 2000 census.-History:... |
Jerusalem Avenue New York State Route 105 New York State Route 105 is a state highway in New York. It runs from NY 106 in North Bellmore to NY 107 in Massapequa. It runs through North Bellmore, Wantagh, and Seaford in the Town of Hempstead and at its eastern extreme into Massapequa in the Town of Oyster Bay... , Washington Avenue (Seaford), Louden Avenue |
|
| N55 |
|
Jerusalem Avenue, Broadway (Route 107) New York State Route 107 New York State Route 107 is a state highway located entirely within Nassau County, New York, in the United States. It runs from Merrick Road in Massapequa to Mill Street and Brewster Avenue in the city of Glen Cove near City Hall... |
||
| 19 | N71 |
|
Hempstead Turnpike, Carmans Road | |
| 20 | N70 |
East Farmingdale, New York East Farmingdale is a hamlet and a census-designated place in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population of the CDP was 5,400 at the 2000 census... Melville, New York Melville is a hamlet and census-designated place in the town of Huntington in Suffolk County on Long Island, New York, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, 14,533 people resided there.-Location:... |
Hempstead Turnpike, Smith Street |
|
| 21 | N72 |
Babylon, New York Babylon, New York can refer to:* Babylon , New York, in Suffolk County, New York, USA* Babylon , New York, in the town of Babylon... |
Hempstead Turnpike, Route 109 New York State Route 109 New York State Route 109 , also known as the Babylon–Farmingdale Turnpike, is a four-lane state highway on Long Island in New York in the United States. It runs from Farmingdale in the Nassau County town of Oyster Bay to the village of Babylon in Suffolk County... |
New York State Route 110 New York State Route 110 is a major north–south state highway along the western border of Suffolk County, New York. It runs between the Village of Amityville in the Town of Babylon and Halesite in the Town of Huntington... in East Farmingdale. |
| 22 | N48 |
Hicksville, New York Hicksville is a hamlet and census-designated place located within the Town of Oyster Bay in Nassau County, New York, United States. The population of the CDP was 41,547 at the 2010 census... Jericho, New York Jericho is a hamlet in Nassau County, New York on the North Shore of Long Island. As of the United States 2010 Census, the CDP population was 13,567. The area is served by the Jericho Union Free School District, the boundaries of which differ somewhat from those of the hamlet... |
Front Street New York State Route 102 New York State Route 102 is an east–west state highway in Nassau County, New York, United States. It is little more than an alternate route of NY 24 through the town of Hempstead. NY 102 leaves NY 24 in West Hempstead and follows Front Street through the village of Hempstead... , Carman Avenue, North Broadway (Route 106) New York State Route 106 New York State Route 106 is a state highway in New York, running from NY 105 in North Bellmore to Oyster Bay. It runs through the Towns of Hempstead and Oyster Bay, including the hamlets of East Meadow, Levittown, Hicksville, Jericho, and East Norwich and the Villages of Brookville and... |
|
| 23 | N49 |
|
Front Street, Newbridge Road/North Broadway New York State Route 106 New York State Route 106 is a state highway in New York, running from NY 105 in North Bellmore to Oyster Bay. It runs through the Towns of Hempstead and Oyster Bay, including the hamlets of East Meadow, Levittown, Hicksville, Jericho, and East Norwich and the Villages of Brookville and... |
|
| 24 | N46 |
East Meadow, New York East Meadow is a hamlet in Nassau County , New York, United States. East Meadow is an unincorporated area in the Town of Hempstead.... |
Front Street, Merrick Avenue, Prospect Avenue, East Meadow Avenue, Bellmore Road |
|
| N47 |
|
Front Street, Merrick Avenue, Prospect Avenue, East Meadow Avenue |
||