Market Street Subway

Not to be confused with the Market Street Subway in Philadelphia, which carries the SEPTA Market-Frankford Line and SEPTA Subway-Surface Trolley Lines.

Market Street Subway
250px Duboce Portal at Duboce Avenue and Church Street
Overview
Type	Rapid transit and Light rail/Streetcar
System	BART Muni Metro  J Church  K Ingleside  L Taraval  M Ocean View  N Judah  T Third Street  S Castro Shuttle
Locale	San Francisco, California
Termini	Embarcadero Station Castro Station
Stations	7
Operation
Opened	BART: November 5, 1973 Muni Metro: February 18, 1980
Owner	San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency
Operator(s)	San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District San Francisco Municipal Railway
Character	Underground subway tunnel
Technical
Track gauge	BART: 5 ft 6 in (1,676 mm) (Indian gauge) Muni Metro: 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) (standard gauge)
Electrification	BART: Third rail, 1000 V DC Muni Metro: Overhead lines, 600 V DC
Highest elevation	underground
Route diagram to Transbay Tube San Francisco Ferry Building x20px File:BSicon uvWSLqe.svg  E   F  Embarcadero Portal Embarcadero Montgomery St. Central Subway 2019 Powell St. Civic Center/UN Plaza to 16th St. Mission station Van Ness x20px Duboce Portal x20px Church St. Castro St. to Twin Peaks Tunnel

The Market Street Subway is a double-decker subway tunnel that carries Muni Metro and BART train traffic in San Francisco, California. It runs under the length of Market Street between Embarcadero Station and Castro Street Station. The upper level is used by Muni Metro lines and the lower level is used by BART lines. BART does not run through the whole subway; it turns south and runs under Mission Street southwest of Civic Center Station. The northeastern end of the BART level is connected to the Transbay Tube. On the Muni Metro level, the southwestern end of the Market Street Subway connects to the much-older Twin Peaks Tunnel, and the northeastern end connects to surface tracks along the Embarcadero. The Embarcadero portal, which opened in 1998, is not an original part of the Market Street Subway – it is currently used by just the N Judah and the T Third Street lines.

Since the Muni Metro platforms at Montgomery Street, Powell Street, and Civic Center are long enough to hold two 75-foot (23 m) two-car trains simultaneously, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency began double-berthing in April 2015. Under this process, two trains are in the station at once: the rear train discharges passengers while the front train boards passengers. The new practice was aimed at reducing passenger frustration, though it would not reduce travel times.

The K Ingleside, L Taraval, M Ocean View, and T Third Street Muni Metro lines run through the entire length of the subway to its direct connection with the Twin Peaks Tunnel. The J Church and N Judah lines leave the subway via the Duboce portal at Church and Duboce streets.

Stations on the Market Street Subway

There are a total of seven stations in the tunnel. Four are used by BART, five by all Muni Metro lines, and two by four of the Metro lines:

• Embarcadero Station: Muni Metro (J, K, L, M, N, and T lines), BART
• Montgomery Street Station: Muni Metro (J, K, L, M, N, and T lines), BART
• Powell Street Station: Muni Metro (J, K, L, M, N, and T lines), BART
• Civic Center / UN Plaza Station: Muni Metro (J, K, L, M, N, and T lines), BART
• Van Ness Station: Muni Metro (J, K, L, M, N, and T lines)
• Church Street Station: Muni Metro (K, L, M, and T lines)
• Castro Street Station: Muni Metro (K, L, M, and T lines)