207 St./Inwood A Train Station

From End To End
Everyday riding the A train
31 miles of track
From Ozone Park, Queens to Inwood, Manhattan
Encountering all walks of life
First one up at sunrise
Last one in the house at dusk
Off peak hours in the morning
Rush hour service in the evening
Pushing to get in and out like squeezing an adult elephant into a sedan car
«It’s showtime!» so I attain another seat to evade
Panhandlers scuffling passengers for money
Babies and children wailing boisterously loud without end
Gargantuan backpacks and duffle bags occupying unnecessary standing space
The unemployed, Yuppies and teens bouncing their heads to music blaring deafening loud
Religious garb froth the mouth emitting into the void
The strong stench of burgers and French Fries fills the air and the floor for pollution
The lack thereof courtesy and communication skills without the standard «excuse me» creates a malice world
From End To End
My long haul 2 hour train ride
Passing through Queens, Brooklyn and Manhattan
I make my connection with the 1 Train
No rain, nor snow, nor sleet, nor heat or humidity I trek my way to work
Life is about the journey
My final destination: The Bronx!
Northern Manhattan’s Washington Heights at 207^th Street/​Inwood, here lies, the A train begins its 31 mile trek through Brooklyn to either Lefferts Boulevard or Far Rockaway in Queens. This station is mostly clean. Here lies distinctive artwork specifically unique for this station since it marks the beginning/​end of the A train line «At the Start… At Long Last» 1999 by Sheila Levrant de Bretteville, silk screened silver tiles and mirror mosaic text. There are also single tile installation inscribed with quotes from both historical figures and ordinary people about travels to Washington Heights and Inwood, Manhattan. The interior of elevator shaft at the ²⁴⁄₇ token booth clerk contains silhouettes of people. Cool artwork uniquely for this location.
One island platform with two trains sitting against opposite walls waiting for the bell to signal their scheduled departure time while hanging above an old fashioned lighted sign «next train track 1» or «next train track 2.» Since this station is where A train terminate there is no need to speculate «when will the next train arrive?» or «how much time to wait for the next train?» At end of the platform operates a ²⁴⁄₇ @ 365 human token booth clerk. This station is easily connectable to buses: Bx7, Bx9, Bx12 to further strap hangers destination into the Bronx or M100 bus.

This is where they are supposed to clean up the cabins, doesn’t always happen. The A line needs help and this is where it starts. I’ve seen on 2 occasions where the train goes away for storage or repairs with vagrants inside, they do nothing to wake up passengers who can sleep in the trains or are too drunk to know. I’m giving it 2 stars cause there is always a train waiting.

Other than getting flooded during Sandy this station is a rock … well under a rock or cut into a rock or something like that I guess.
The end of the A-​train, on the northern end, and the stop you want to get off at if you want to be in the heart of Inwood (Upstate Manhattan).
Typically there is already a train waiting for you in the station so that you can just get on, find one of the many available empty seats and just wait for the «ding ding» that lets you know that the doors will be closing and you’ll shortly be on your way.
Two separate exit areas, though only one with an actual booth and MTA employee, you can take the southern exit to get to 207^th Street and Broadway or the northern one to get to the intersection of Broadway, Isham Street and West 211^th Street.
Connect with the Bx7, Bx9, Bx12 or M100 bus or just walk home, or to some other destination, from this station.
Oohh … and this is where your A-​trains get cleaned, at least the insides.

Take the «A» train! Ride to the end of the line, get away from the tourists, go explore Isham Park and meet some real NY’ers.
This is where they pick up the trash from the cars and mop ‘em down. So your ride back into the tourist infested part of the city will be clean and comfortable. Another plus is you’re guaranteed a seat.

It is the last stop on the A train. Station is pretty clean. It has a newsstand on the mezzanine level. The car cleaners do a good job of cleaning the A upon arrival.