It’s been decades since the MTA introduced the spiffy white-on-black subway station signs on platforms that clearly spell out the name of each station.
But they didn’t get rid of all the scruffy signage from decades past. Some 1970s-era examples can be found in some of the grungier corners of subterranean New York City.
Exhibit A: these long-neglected old-school signs at the Chambers Street 1, 2, and 3 train station.
I guess someone made a half-hearted attempt to cover up the old “Chmb’rs” sign, then gave up after coating half of it in the blue paint used for the rest of the wall.
At Astor Place, it looks like someone souvenir-hunting tore off the newer Astor Place or Cooper Union signs, revealing this unglamorous one-word sign below.
Tags: 1970s subway signs, Astor Place Subway, Chambers Street subway, New York City Subway, old subway signs, subway platforms NYC, Vintage subway signs
Ephemeral New York 
February 23, 2015 at 9:57 am |
I like the old signs better. They would look fine if cleaned up, and it is easier to read black-on-white than white-on-black, especially from a distance.
–Jim
February 25, 2015 at 6:34 am |
I like it too, it’s shabby chic underground. But not tourist-friendly.
August 29, 2015 at 7:42 pm |
The left side of the Chmb’rs sign has been uncovered. The entire sign can now be seen.