Bedford Avenue opened on June 30, 1924, as part of the initial segment of the underground Canarsie Line that originally stretched from Sixth Avenue station in Manhattan to Montrose Avenue station, built by the Brooklyn–Manhattan Transit Corporation under the Dual Contracts. As part of the wide scope in the rebuilding of the Canarsie Tubes that were damaged during Hurricane Sandy, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority started renovating the station in 2017. At the Bedford Avenue end of the station, two new street-level stairways are being built, platform stair capacity is being increased, the mezzanine is being expanded, turnstiles are being added, and new elevators are being installed; the elevators are expected to open in summer 2020. At the Driggs Avenue end, two new street-level stairways are being added, the mezzanine area is being redesigned with additional turnstiles installed, and a new platform stairway is beng built. Construction on the elevator and new street entrances started in 2017. Substantial completion is projected for November 2020.
Ridership
Bedford Avenue has experienced a surge in ridership along with the recent gentrification of Williamsburg. In the 1970s, the station had a fairly low annual ridership of 1.2 million, amounting to an average of 3,000 entries during weekdays. In 2000, there were 3.783 million boardings recorded at the station, but after the neighborhood was re-zoned in 2005, the MTA noted even higher ridership. By 2007, ridership had increased over 50%, to 5.776 million annual passengers. In 2008, Bedford Avenue was used by more than 6 million people, making it the 53rd most-used subway station in New York City and one of the busiest in Brooklyn. In 2017, approximately 9.6 million riders used this station. Growing passenger numbers along the L, partly influenced by Bedford Avenue station, have made the L train one of the most overcrowded in the system, a fact that has adverse effects on riders. In 2010, Bedford Avenue surpassed seven million entries for the first time in its history, receiving press for its particularly high weekend passenger volume. Crowding has become such an issue that politicians have called upon the MTA to "create a schedule that is more reflective of ridership patterns."
Station layout
At platform level, Bedford Avenue utilizes a simple island platform setup with two tracks. The track normally used by southbound trains to Canarsie is labeled Q1, and the track normally used by northbound trains to Manhattan is labeled Q2. The Q- prefix denotes that the track is on the Canarsie Line, but this is only used by MTA officials and not by the general public. The Bedford Avenue station's walls have a brown-and-green mosaic pattern with geometric shapes and embellished "B" ornamentation.
Exits
There are two sets of entrance and exit points. The western exits are one stair each to the southern and eastern corners of Bedford Avenue and North 7th Street and contain a 24-hour booth. The eastern exits are one stair each to the southern and eastern corners of North 7th Street and Driggs Avenue.
