Columbus Circle is one of Midtown’s several large public spaces with a subway station directly in its name. The 59th St-Columbus Circle station serves five subway routes providing both local and express service on the West Side of Manhattan. Additionally, the station provides direct connections to many areas of the city in the outer boroughs. While Columbus Circle isn’t known for glaring lights or iconic ice skating rinks the way other spots are, Columbus Circle does have several special places to visit.
The NYC Subway is the lifeblood of New York City and one of the primary ways people get around. In 2022, 3.2 million people rode the subway daily in 2022 despite hybrid/remote work being more common. While the subway is often the best way to travel, many New Yorkers hate riding it due to delays, cleanliness and a slew of other issues. On top of that, New Yorkers are considered by some to be among the most stressed out people in America. A study from the research firm William Russell considered the NYC the most stressed city in America for several reasons including its high cost of living. A TimeOut article on the topic even mentioned “perennial subway delays” in a sentence on stressors that are just so common here in our city. You can check out that article here: https://www.timeout.com/newyork/news/nyc-is-officially-the-most-stressed-out-city-in-the-united-states-011222
Given these circumstances, you might think New Yorkers would love a coffee, donut or even bacon egg and cheese sandwich to start their work day. It turns out, Dunkin Donuts has this figured out, with locations adjacent to many subway stations throughout the boroughs. They even have three locations within Penn Station and another one in Fulton Center.
These strategic locations are no accident and Dunkin’s franchise selection strategy along with other aspects of its business allow it to take advantage of locations adjacent to transit. For one, out of the donut chain’s five criteria for selecting locations, four of them are directly connected to the transportation infrastructure around them. These include an available drive thru, one parking space per three seats, an easy entrance and exit and having a highly visible location. As for drive thrus and parking spaces, these are likely not weighed as heavily in New York City due to the high percentage of residents that do not drive. However, subway stations definitely support the latter two, as stations tend to be in walkable locations with high foot traffic.
In addition to location itself, the cost and space required to open a Dunkin Donuts is considerably less compared to other fast food chains. This allows the chains to multiply faster in the areas both Dunkin and franchisees see fit. As for cost, the initial investment for a Dunkin Donuts can be anywhere from $121,400-$1,809,500 according to the company website. This is in comparison with $297K-$2.1M for Pizza Hut, $575,600 to $3,370,100 for Taco Bell and $1,314,500 and $2,313,295 for McDonalds. Lower costs are especially beneficial for Dunkin Donuts franchisees given what may be higher rents near subway stations.
Outside of initial costs, Dunkin locations are generally much more flexible as far as space is concerned than other fast food restaurants. Since many Dunkin customers take coffees and small treats to go, there can be varyings eating levels if there is seating at all. There are even Dunkin Donuts locations that function primarily as kiosks such as the one in Fulton Center. Others are standing room only locations such as the one in Marble Hill, Manhattan, and some offer limited seating such as the one on Eastern Pkwy adjacent to the Franklin Av-Medgar Evers College(2,3,4,5) station in Brooklyn. On the other hand, other chains such as McDonalds and Taco Bell need a certain amount of seating and space to accommodate their respective functions as a lunch/dinner spot. In fact, Taco Bell only recently opened a new restaurant variant known as Taco Bell Cantina that is designed to better spatially accommodate urban areas. Taco Bell Head of Public Relations Matt Prince told CNBC in 2019, “So typically when you think of Taco Bell’s you think of suburban and rural areas with drive thru. These are very different. These are in walkable downtown spaces.“ He also stated, “We want to make sure that they feel like they’re part of the community that they’re in and so people come in and feel like they have a unique experience.” With flexible locations in urban areas, Dunkin Donuts had already achieved for years what Taco Bell set out to achieve in 2019 with its Taco Bell Cantina locations.
Dunkin Donuts in smaller storefront adjacent to the Franklin Av-Medgar Evers College(2,3,4,5) station in Brooklyn.Neighborhod-specific signage at Dunkin Donuts in Marble Hill, Manhattan.
While Dunkin’s business model often brings it near subway stations, what has really driven Dunkin’s subway-side boom is what matters most to businesses. This business driver is indeed the customer! Dunkin Donuts are unique in that its business caters directly to the needs of the commuter. In the morning, a subway rider who just had a long commute might want to grab a cup of coffee or a small breakfast item. At the end of the day, a commuter might be in the mood for a donut or one of the chain’s other dessert offerings. The same cannot be said for Popeyes, Taco Bell or most other fast food chains, that specialize in a smaller range of meal options. The closest chain to Dunkin Donuts as far as product diversity is McDonalds with its all-day breakfast as well as lunch/dinner options. However, besides some breakfast items, most of its products are associated with full meals rather than quick bites that could be had before getting on the train. Additionally, while subway stations can help drive traffic for any fast food establishment, these businesses often need other business drivers such as nearby employment and recreational destinations. On the other hand, Dunkin Donuts can cater to a commuter in any community.
As Dunkin Donuts is really popular amongst New Yorkers, it is interesting to think about what allows a business to perform well in any given market. With Dunkin, it’s impressive how their restaurant concept fits perfectly into the needs of New Yorkers and the challenges of operating a business in the city. Thanks to the chain’s versatility, it has been successful near NYC subway stations and across the United States. As a result, Dunkin Donuts has told Americans since its 2006 rebranding, “America Runs On Dunkin!”
The L Train is one of the busiest and most critical lines in the NYC Subway system. The route connects some of Brooklyn’s rapidly growing neighborhoods such as Williamsburg, Bushwick and East New York to each other and Manhattan. Additionally, key transfer points at Myrtle-Wyckoff Av and Broadway Junction provide riders with a plethora of connections to areas of Brooklyn, Queens and Long Island via other subway routes and the LIRR. In Brooklyn, only 45% of households have a car according to data from the New York City Department of City Planning. Hence, many people rely on the L Train and mass transit as a whole as their primary mode of transportation.
Rosebank is a residential community on the East Shore of Staten Island. The neighborhood is directly adjacent to major thoroughfares such as Hylan Blvd and Bay St that connect residents to communities around Staten Island and even the region Additionally, Rosebank is just a 10 minute drive from the Staten Island Ferry and even closer to other busier neighborhoods such as Stapleton and Tompkinsville. The community is also adjacent to the Verrazano Bridge, providing seamless vehicular and transit connections to Brooklyn.
In New York City, much of the population relies on mass transit run by the MTA(Metropolitan Transportation Authority)to get around. According to data from the NYC Department of City Planning, only 46% of city households own a car. Even vehicle owners often use mass transit to get to Manhattan due to traffic congestion and high parking costs. Additionally, hundreds of thousands of riders from outside of the city ride the Metro-North and LIRR commuter rails to get around the suburbs as well as into the city daily. Given how many people it moves, the MTA also plays a major part in New York’s economy. An NYU study from October 2020 found that a 40% reduction in bus/subway service and a 50% reduction in commuter rail service would cost riders more than $1.7 billion in lost time each year. This is only reflective of the impact of transit service reduction and does not reflect the impact of if mass transit were to not exist at all.
The Borough of Manhattan is by far the most transit-dependent place in the United States. Given its status as the cultural and commercial hub of New York City, mass transit is essential to ensuring that people in Manhattan can get around quickly and reliably. As subways are faster than buses, most New Yorkers ride the subway when traveling in Manhattan. According to data from the NYC Department of City Planning, only 23% of Manhattan households have access to a car. Hence, public transportation is essential to the mobility of most Manhattanites. Even those that do own a car often do not drive within the borough due to Manhattan’s sheer congestion coupled with lack of street parking. Outside of residents, many from around the NY Metropolitan area enter Manhattan for work, recreation and other purposes on any given day. With how many people enter Manhattan coupled with its notorious gridlock, mass transit is truly essential to alleviating congestion.
The 9 Train is a defunct New York City Subway line that used to be a skip-stop version of the 1 line that made select stops north of 137th St-City College, while the 1 train made other stops. Particularly busy stations such as 181st Street, were all-stop stations where both the 1 and 9 train stopped to provide adequately frequent service to a large number of riders. This is different than traditional express service, where only one or more train routes skips stops on a line while another route or routes makes all stops on a line(Ex: 4,5,6 Lexington Avenue Line, B,D,F, M Sixth Avenue Line). The purpose of this route configuration was to provide subway riders in the Northwest Bronx and Upper Manhattan with faster trips, as no matter what train they rode, it would not make all stops. In addition, the MTA wanted to decrease wait times at particularly busy stations that would be become all-stop stations. The service ran from 1989 to 2005 until it was ultimately discontinued due to less riders benefiting from the service as a result of the longer wait times it caused at many stations.
Washington Heights near 181st St is arguably one of the busiest and most vibrant areas of Upper Manhattan. The area is home to variety of chain retailers, small businesses and restaurants along with a high residential density. The area also has ample access to mass transit, with 181st St having stations for both the 1 and A trains. Several Bronx bus routes also serve 181st St and provide access to destinations throughout The Bronx. As a result, many Bronxites from areas with little access to subway service use these buses to get to stations on 181st St. All forms of public transit on 181st St are also important to Washington Heights residents, as only 24% of households in the community district in which Washington Heights is located in own a car.
The NYC Subway is by far the busiest subway system in the United States. Despite ridership still being below pre-pandemic levels, 3.2 million people rode the rails in the city in 2022. That is about 500,000 more people than there are residents in the City of Chicago.
The NYC Subway has so many riders in large part because of how transit-dependent the city is. According to data from the NYC Department of City Planning, only 46% of households in the city have cars. Even for households that do have cars, most people still rely on the system to get into Manhattan due to the time and money associated with congestion and parking in the core of the city. The number of subway riders going into Manhattan will likely only rise even more once congestion pricing is implemented, where motorists are expected to be tolled $15 to drive in Manhattan below 60th Street.
The Flushing Main-St(7) subway station is the busiest subway station in Queens and is one of the busiest stations in the entire city, with ridership ranking 11th out of all 472 subway stations in 2022. It is likely also the busiest station in the subway system that is served by a just a single line. This makes sense as the station is located directly in the heart of Downtown Flushing, one of Queens’ most vibrant residential and commercial destinations attracting visitors from across the city. In addition, given the lack of subway coverage in Northern and Eastern Queens, many Queens residents take the bus to the Flushing-Main St(7) in order to take the train to Western Queens and Manhattan. Inversely, many from Western Queens ride the subway here to transfer to buses that traverse Queens and/or enter Nassau County.
Transit Central 