Undergoing renovations at press time, this underground museum is scheduled to reopen in 2003. It's housed in a real (decommissioned) subway station, and is a wonderful place to spend an hour or so. The museum is small but very well done, with good multimedia exhibits exploring the history of the subway from the first shovel full of dirt scooped up at groundbreaking (Mar 24, 1900) to the present. Kids and parents alike will enjoy the interactive elements and the vintage subway cars, old wooden turnstiles, and beautiful station mosaics of yesteryear. New at reopening will be "On the Streets: New York's Trolleys and Buses." All in all, a minor but remarkable tribute to an important development in the city's history.
Remaining open throughout renovation and beyond is the Gallery Annex & Store at Grand Central Station, which houses rotating exhibitions and a terrific transit-themed gift shop. A second museum store, along with a travel information kiosk, is at the Times Square Visitors Center;.
Open: Mon-Fri 10am-4pm; Sat-Sun noon-5pm.Admission $3 adults, $1.50 seniors and children 3-17 (free for seniors Tues noon-4pm).Subway: A, C, F to Jay St.; N, R to Court St.; 2, 3, 4, 5 to Borough Hall.Gallery Annex: In Grand Central Terminal (on the main level, in the shuttle passage next to the Station Masters' office), 42nd Street and Lexington Ave. (tel. 212/878-0106; subway: 4, 5, 6, 7, S to 42nd St./Grand Central).
