L Train - Canarsie-Rockaway Pkwy. (Day 4, 6:58 p.m., stop #191)

Out:  This neighborhood is actually not as a rough as I expected.  It’s mostly black, with mom & pop stores.  The street at this time is actually quite busy, with a lot of foot traffic, and most of the stores are still open.  There are some bigger chain stores here, like Payless Shoes and Duane Reade, across the street from the station.  The strip here is very commercial so I can’t really get a feel for what the housing is like.

In:  On the approach, I can see many different tracks for the L trains to lay up in the yards that are adjacent to the station.  The station has just one wide platform and a concave sloped roof on narrow columns that covers the length of the platform.  There are two tracks for trains to finish their run and turn around.  The station has not been renovated recently.  The paint is peeling and there are leaks around.  There are strange extra exits from the station to access the adjacent bus transfer area, which aren’t even turnstile regulated.  The station house is small, but contains a picture of a stylized Indian chief welcoming you to Canarsie.  Also the tracks are directly at street level, so you can walk right off the train, though the small station house or the bus area, and onto the street, which is a bit unusual.