The M Train

Took the M train this morning. Conductor waited a few extra seconds for some reasons I made the train.
No delays to Rockefeller Center.
There were seats available but I chose to stand.
One complaint, though, there was an express train at Roosevelt but rather than wait, the express train closed its doors just as the M train doors were opening. I still Don’t get why they do that, it doesn’t’t save time.

Can anyone tell me why Patti Smith called her memoir M Train? I am English and have worked out that it is an underground train route rather like the circle line etc on London’s underground system but cannot quite understand if there is some significance in the title or whether it is perhaps just a random choice. Thanks for your help.

I truly have a love/​hate relationship with the M train. More hate than love. I love that it’s the only train accessible in my neighborhood (Middle Village) but other than that, I try to avoid this train like the plague. Always late, always crowded, lots of homeless people riding it, etc. etc. Unless you’re getting on the train on Metropolitan Avenue in the early morning rush hour, you’re likely to get a filthy car as well. I can remember horrible times waiting in rush hour, or beyond, @ the Broadway/​Lafayette station waiting for the Metro. bound M and literally 15 F trains would pass until an M showed up. I would be standing there talking to myself and cursing, throwing my fists in the air. This train made me lose my mind! I appreciate that sometimes on the weekends it does venture into Manhattan but it doesn’t do that enough. I’ll never understand why they rerouted it as well. I don’t think there’s another train with their first and last stops so close to each other. It’s kind of ridiculous. This train always stinks as well. Ugh!

This review is not a reflection of this particular stop, rather, it is based on my experience with the integrity of the entire M line as a whole. Not only is it extremely unreliable when it IS running properly (constant delays, not being on time etc.), but for the past 2 weeks my fiancée and I have had to either postpone or cancel important appointments because it was not running at all. After waiting almost an hour for the train to come, the maintenance people made an announcement and said the train was not running altogether. Because of a cat. Hundreds of people’s lives delayed. Because of a cat. But hey, at least we got 2 redemption tickets that we ended up not even using because they’re only valid for 48 hours. Today, there are switch problems and heavy traffic which is preventing me from getting to work on time. Tell me again why they raised the fare?

Would be great if it ran more frequent. Do not rely on this train to be timely or to not be stuck in a tunnel due to «train traffic ahead». Every three F trains you’ll be lucky to get one M, even during rush hour. That means about 20 minutes apart. Just doesn’t cut the mustard. Too bad.

The F & R Trains Love Child
Overall: 3.5 Stars
If you are looking for a local train that is rarely crowded, the M train is for you.
It runs with the R train throughout Queens then follows the F train throughout Manhattan until it ends up in Middle Village in Queens.
The train is clean for the most part and the rabble rousers and pan handlers tend to avoid it more often since they are fewer suckers giving them money.
It is an extended version of the old «V» train is anyone reading this review remembers that train.
Many of the riders wish this train would complete a full loop and extend from Middle Village — Metropolitan Avenue to either Union Turnpike, 71^st and Continental, or Roosevelt Avenue. It would make it simpler for many travelers going to southern Queens or multiple areas in Brooklyn, especially since the G train rarely travels past Queens Plaza anymore.
There is nothing terribly bad or good about the train. It runs fine for the most part.

For when it runs in when foul swoop from midtown to Brooklyn — without the indignity of changin at Essex. Oh how I love thee, sometimes. Also: excellent entertainment.

This train comes every 8 – 10 minutes during rush hour and is extremely slow. It does the Brooklyn — Queens crawl. On the weekends, the M only goes to Essex.

Wow! Everyone hates this subway line… EXCEPT EVERY HOLIDAY SEASON! Yes! Every holiday season the MTA brings back their old retro trains from a locked cupboard of awesome calling all New Yorkers aboard this Nostalgia Special [ride] Program. You need to check the MTA website to fine out exactly when, but the trips on these vintage cars will run at intervals along the M line between Lower East Side Manhattan 2^nd Ave and Queens Plaza. Last season, I was able to ride aboard the R1 which began running for the Independent Subway System in 1932. This was the first model to sport four sets of double doors so those with the top hats and large hula-​hoop dresses could get on and off more rapidly. What came to note immediately when viewing this train was the utilitarian aesthetic rivets painted dark green. Keep an eye out for the S Special sign next holiday season and your ride will be like no other!

This is purely based on my experiences commuting from Forest Hills to Manhattan:
The M train is really the train that most people in Forest Hills overlook on their commutes into the city, cause it pretty much runs parallel to the E until it gets into Manhattan, then runs parallel to the F for a long way through Manhattan, and the E/​F are usually faster if your main prerogative is just getting into the city. There have been times when the M train has come to my rescue though, mainly when the E goes out of service or has significant delays. During rush hour, I sometimes opt for the M too, especially when trying to get out of the city. The E gets ridiculously crowded (The human to air ratio is comparable to that of the 6 train during rush hour, which is nightmare-​ish to say the least). During these times, taking a slightly longer trip via the M is much much preferable to a long, painful journey crushed between obese, smelly, ill, and/​or perverted strangers. Every now and then, you’ll even get a bum or a stroller full of crying, puking, tantrum-​throwing babies/​kids.
All in all, the M is a decent line (or as decent as the mta can get). I do prefer it to the R since it doesn’t get as crowded during rush hour from Manhattan to Queens, since all the Astorians crowd onto the R. The M line also has newer trains while the R is almost always filled with old 1990s trains (or whenever those decrepit things were built).

From Queens to BK to Manhattan to Queens again! Lots of stops but I think it’s a good thing! One train bringing you to the best parts of NYC! I live in Ridgewood so for myself I get to ride above ground for most of my 20 minute trip into the city. That’s a plus! I don’t have to deal with the tunnel rats or the boring underground commute! My only negative AND it’s a big one is the interrupted evening and weekend commute! What the hell!?! I don’t wanna take the L or J train then transfer to the M or take a shuttle bus when I’m nice and hammered on a great night out!

When it used to go to Bensonhurst in Brooklyn, I loved this train. Now, it’s pretty crowded when you’re going to Middle Village in Queens. Due to the many hipsters or wannabes…

You just can’t beat the review from Garrett P. So now I’m completely jealous that he got to witness that crackhead freaking out.
Anyway, I digress… and folks, here is the sad truth about the M train.
Ever since they changed their route… it SUCKS.
While I appreciate the scenic route… sometimes…there are place we all need to be. So yeah, sometimes that scenic route just won’t do. Mornings are terrible, but it could be worse. It could be way over packed like the L or the 7. Then again, the L and the 7 still run faster than the M. Pick your battles.
The biggest pain is during evening rush times. For every three F trains, you might get lucky if you catch one M train. That’s right. The ratio is seriously off. Oh, and occasionally, an M train will break down — in the middle of rush hour. Mornings or evenings. Time has no boundaries.
If that’s not enough to irate you, then there’s the weekend and/​or evening shuttle. Blow me.
No wonder someone once took a dookie on the M train platform. The Fresh Pond stop. Human sized. The M train was probably so slow, that person couldn’t hold it in.

Does this train even exist?
IT NEVER COMES!!!

One of the worst train lines right up there with the J train. This train is never on time always crowded and doesn’t run all the way into the city on the weekends which is a major inconvenience so I have to use the L train on the weekends. In the morning rush hour this train is a joke I catch it sometimes on Metropolitan Ave and I see these car cleaners cleaning the trains only mopping one half the car and maybe sweeping garbage it’s ridiculous all of this when you’re trying to get to work on time.
MTA should consider the people who live near this train and bring back the full service on the weekends.

Oh M train what a love hate relationship I have with you. I love I get on at the last stop and can sit my ass down right away because i am lazy. I love that you are never crowded. I love you don’t require me to take a bus like going to friggin Queens Blvd (I HATE YOU Q38). I hate you when every other god damn weekend you aren’t running and I have to take the shuttle bus. I hate when you make me wait a long time for you. I hate when you slowly ramble along. I hate when I wait for you at myrtle and wyckoff ave. and feel the platform sway beneath me (i then worry it is so old and decrepit it will collapse and i will hurdle to my death on the street below. But you get the job done so whatever. And it is a little scenic (from metro to essex anyway).
everyone knows the brown m train was way better.

Add two more stops north and this trains would join and make a complete circle.
Wouldn’t that be crazy?
The sleeping folks would never leave, and just sleep on it all day.
Like most NYC trains, I have a love/​hate relationship with the M train and the many service disruptions and inconsistent hours and services. However, it is the only train that will take you to Middle Village. It is also a great secondary option route for those going to Bushwick or Ridgewood. Sometimes, I used to take the M train home just for that «above ground» experience. And avoiding the rich kids on the L train. Since being below ground for a few hours a day makes me feel kind of gross.
Would MTA be so kind as to run this line into Maspeth or maybe get to that barren wasteland of Queens where no trains run?

Ugh.

M is for MERCURIAL!
Where this M train spews north or south on Metropolitan Avenue of Middle Village, Queens into Manhattan there is a volatile change of schedules and consistency with time. The M train bears no shortage of volatility for being on time, minimal delays and consistency for a sustainable schedule to transport Strap Hangers to one’s destination. Raging mercurial!

I’m convinced that if I give this train anything less than a 4-​star review, it will hold it against me for the rest of the time I live along the JZM.
That being said, I’m so glad this train is orange now! It goes through the more important-​to-​me parts of Manhattan now! Except for on the weekends and late night, which are really the times I don’t want to transfer but alas… you can’t always get everything you want.