Construction started on the first IRT line in 1900. The part of the line from City Hall to just south of 42nd Street was part of the original IRT line, opened on October 27, 1904 including a local station at 28th Street. On August 6, 1927, bombs exploded at the 28th Street station and at the 28th Street station on the Broadway Line. The perpetrator of the bombings is unknown; they were initially blamed on Galleanists, though police later believed they were unrelated. On April 13, 1948, the platform extensions to accommodate ten-car trains at this station along with those at 23rd Street, and 33rd Street were opened for use. Under the 2015–2019 MTA Capital Plan, the station underwent a complete overhaul as part of the Enhanced Station Initiative and was entirely closed for several months. Updates included cellular service, Wi-Fi, USB charging stations, interactive service advisories and maps. In January 2018, the NYCT and Bus Committee recommended that Judlau Contracting receive the $125 million contract for the renovations of 57th and 23rd Streets on the IND Sixth Avenue Line; 28th Street on the IRT Lexington Avenue Line, and 34th Street–Penn Station on the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line and IND Eighth Avenue Line. However, the MTA Board temporarily deferred the vote for these packages after city representatives refused to vote to award the contracts. The contract was put back for a vote in February, where it was ultimately approved. The station was closed for renovations on July 16, 2018, and reopened to the public January 14, 2019, delayed from December 2018.
Station layout
This station contains four tracks and two side platforms. The two middle express tracks run at a lower level than the two outer local ones. The fare control is at platform level and there are no open crossunders or crossovers. However, there is a closed crossunder with railings and a blacked out sign indicating its location. The token booth is unusual in that it is built into the tile wall instead of a standalone structure like most other stations. Two works of art were installed in this station. The first was a glass block wall artwork at the main fare control entitled Seven Ways 4 Twenty-Eighth. It was installed during station renovations in 1996. The second was Roaming Underfoot, a glass mosaic mural on the platform walls by Nancy Blum. It showcases flora in the Madison Square Park Conservancy's Perennial Collection, and was installed during station renovations in 2018. The 28th Street station has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 2005.
Exits
The entrance inside 50 East 28th Street replaced two small staircases that also led to the southwestern corner of 28th Street and Park Avenue South.
