42nd Street–Bryant Park/Fifth Avenue station

On either end of the mezzanine is a fare control area. The full-time side is at the north end. This is where the passageway to the IRT Flushing Line is located. Two staircases from each platform go up to a turnstile bank, where outside there is a token booth, one staircase going up to the southwest corner of 42nd Street and Sixth Avenue, and a passageway through some abandoned ticket counters under 1095 Avenue of the Americas that lead to a staircase that goes up to the building's pedestrian plaza.[15]

On the south end of the mezzanine, two staircases from each platform go up to an unstaffed bank of regular and HEET turnstiles. Outside fare control, there are three staircases going up to the northwestern, northeastern, and southeastern corners of 40th Street and Sixth Avenue with the northwestern one being built inside a building. There is another exit at the northwest corner of Sixth Avenue and 39th Street.[15]

This station has another fare control area at its extreme north end. A staircase from each platform goes up to a mezzanine, where a bank of regular and HEET turnstiles provide access to/from the station. Outside fare control, there is a Customer Assistance Booth and a staircase built inside 1100 Avenue of the Americas (HBO headquarters) that goes up to the northeast corner of 42nd Street and Sixth Avenue.

Two modern, glass-enclosed staircases, and one elevator go up to the northwest corner of this intersection outside of the Bank of America Tower. Another elevator, located within a building, leads from the mezzanine to the southwest corner of the intersection via a staircase and wheelchair ramp. One more elevator, at the northwest corner of Sixth Avenue and 39th Street entrance, was created for the 40th Street mezzanine. The station has a total of 3 elevator entrances. However, because there are no elevators from the mezzanine to the platforms, the platforms themselves are not ADA-accessible.[15]

The Fifth Avenue station opened on March 22, 1926, extending the IRT Flushing Line one stop to the west from the line's previous terminus at Grand Central.[16] This station served as the western terminus of the line until the Times Square station on the line opened on March 14, 1927.[17]

The platforms at Fifth Avenue and all other stations on the Flushing Line with the exception of Queensboro Plaza were extended in 1955–1956 to accommodate 11-car trains.[18]

This station has two tracks and one island platform. The platform walls have a mosaic golden trimline with "5" tablets at regular intervals along it.

The 2002 artwork here is called Under Bryant Park by Samm Kunce. It is located in the transfer passageway and consists of glass mosaic and etched granite depicting roots of trees with various literary quotes.

The Fifth Avenue station is the first within the subway system to receive a vending machine that dispenses make up and other retail products. It is part of a pilot program to increase retail activity within the MTA system, and it capitalizes on a new trend in vending machine development.[19]

Entrance to the IRT section of the complex

The station has a full length mezzanine directly above the platform and tracks. The full-time fare control is at the east end. A single stair on the southwest corner of 5th Avenue and 42nd Street in front of the New York Public Library Main Building goes down to an area that has a full-time token booth and turnstile bank that leads to several staircases down to the platform.[15]

Towards the west end, the mezzanine splits in 2 with 1 portion becoming a down hill ramp where there is another staircases up from the platform before leading to the passageway to the IND Sixth Avenue Line. The portion of the mezzanine that curves up leads to some HEET turnstiles and a small fare control area. The two adjacent street stairs here have elaborate ironwork and go up to the south side of 42nd Street between 5th and 6th Avenues on the northern edge of Bryant Park.[15]