Subway
The Howard Beach AirTrain Station is located over the western end of the airports large long-term parking lot, which are located along the edge (and divided from the Howard Beach community) by the New York City Subway Line running at grade on the former Long Island Rail Road line to the Rockaways. The station has a single island platform above the main long-term parking lot that ends at Bumper blocks just before the mezzanine of the Howard Beach A train station that was completely rebuilt (and made wheelchair accessible) in the same aesthetic as the AirTrain.
The station serves double-duty, with the exit at the western end of the platform to Parking P3 being completely free – since you are using the AirTrain for travel on airport property, while entering the New York City Subway station requires paying the AirTrain leaving the airport access fee of $8.50 (as of March 2024).
To reach the subway passengers go through a short corridor (that meanders a little bit beyond the AirTrain platform to the main triple-sided fare control area on the mezzanine of the subway station. There are two possible banks of faregates, one deducts $10.90 from a MetroCard or contactless payment card with the exiting of AirTrain and entry into the New York City subway deducted in one fell swoop (passengers can enter AirTrain at these faregates but only pay the regular AirTrain fee). A second bank of faregates only deducts the $8.50 AirTrain fee allowing access to an exit to Coleman Square via stairs and elevators and the Howard Beach Community without paying the subway fare. These are also the only faregates where paying with an AirTrain 10 Ride or Unlimited Ride MetroCard is valid to leave the AirTrain system. Regular New York City subway turnstiles are just around the corner with a multi-sided token booth in the middle.
At the opposite, eastern end of the platform are two sets of escalators and a bank of two elevators providing access down to the long term Parking Lot (section P3). Taking the AirTrain to Howard Beach to access the parking lot is free and doesn’t require the payment of the AirTrain access fee. Fare beating by simply going around to reach the subway is impossible with no sidewalk access to leave this parking lot except along Lefferts Blvd at the next AirTrain Station (where passengers can connect to New York City buses by paying the subway fare and the not the AirTrain fee).
When the MTA has to provide free shuttle buses from this station (generally to the Rockaways) due to track work not paying the Airtrain fee is incredibly easy. The shuttle buses stop directly in the long-term parking lot with the gate normally used as an emergency exit gate only (it hasn’t received panic bars like most emergency exits) on the Manhattan-bound platform opened with Bus Style fareboxes uses (or a small bank of temporary turnstiles built during the seven month closure after SuperStorm Sandy). In those cases it was extremely easy to get on AirTrain from these shuttle buses without paying the AirTrain fee by just walking up to the escalators or elevators directly up to the AirTrain platform. During the post-Rockaways long-term busing a sign was added that said “Subway and AirTrain customers enter through gate.”
Historically, the station has been providing a connection point between the Airport and the New York City subway since the premium JFK Express started operating on September 23, 1978. This was a special subway train (that was the only user of the express tracks along Fulton Street except during rush hours) running from this station to 57 Street/6 Avenue making limited stops (next stop Jay Street-Borough Hall) with passengers paying a premium fare $3.50 (rising to $6.75 by the end of the service, discounted ticket books avalible for airport and airline employees) for the service at a ticket counter at the Howard Beach Station. From here passengers boarded shuttle buses to the Airport Terminals. The JFK Express stopped operating on April 15, 1990. For the next 14 years free shuttle buses (from 1978 through 1990 passengers could pay a quite reduced shuttle bus only fee to get between Howards Beach and the airport) connected the A Train with the Airport. These shuttle buses where shared with passengers going to the long term parking lot (operating directly through it) and made lots of stops starting with P in the Airport Parking lot (I remember the announcements for all the parking lots on the taking bus system). Two different shuttle bus routes operated for faster service to the Central Terminal Area (both stopped at the then outside Central Terminal Area Tower Air Terminal) with one route to terminals 1 through 4, and the other to terminals 5 through 8.
Photos 1 & 2: May 14, 2005; 3: July 24, 2013; 4: February 19, 2016
