The F and Queens Boulevard Express/Sixth Avenue Local[3] are two rapid transit services in the B Division of the New York City Subway.

Their route bullets are colored orange, since they use and are part of the IND Sixth Avenue Line in Manhattan.

[4] The F operates 24 hours a day between 179th Street in Jamaica, Queens and Stillwell Avenue in Coney Island, Brooklyn.

Limited rush hour service operates along the full route and makes express stops between Jay Street and Church Avenue in the peak direction only, making one intermediate stop at Seventh Avenue; this express service was introduced in September 2019.

Since the 1990s, there have been calls to restore partial express service in Brooklyn from Jay Street–MetroTech to Church Avenue, although this has been controversial.

The limited express service between Jay Street and Church Avenue started on September 16, 2019, with two trains in the peak direction during rush hours.

[7][11] Temporarily in 1948, as shown in a map from that year, the D and F service switched, with the F terminating at Second Avenue, but this was subsequently rescinded.

[12] On December 11, 1950, trains were extended to the newly opened Jamaica–179th Street on evenings, nights, and Sunday mornings.

[11] On January 2, 1973, Kings Highway F trains began running express once again between Church Avenue and Jay Street in both directions.

[11] In addition, F trains began running express between 179th Street and Continental Avenue weekdays between 7:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. toward Queens, and between 6:00 a.m. and 6:15 p.m. toward Manhattan.

[27] On January 18, 1976, F express service between Jay Street and Church Avenue was discontinued during rush hours in the peak direction, and only Coney Island trains in the reverse-peak direction ran express between Jay Street and Church Avenue.

[11][28] On August 30, 1976, express service between Bergen Street and Church Avenue was completely discontinued, with all trains making all stops.

Rush direction alternate-train express service between Ditmas Avenue and Kings Highway was retained.

[30] This change was also made due to continuing complaints about reduced Manhattan service by riders at local stations.

[25]: 18 [26]: 5 On January 24, 1977, as part of a series of NYCTA service cuts to save $13 million, many subway lines began running shorter trains during middays.

[32] This change was made as part of the last round of cuts in subway service announced in January 1977 to reduce annual operating costs by $30 million.

[34]: 51 On May 24, 1987, N and R services swapped terminals in Queens to provide R trains direct access to the Jamaica Yard.

A public hearing was held in December 1986, and it was determined that having the E and R run during late nights provided the best service.

[59] In the 2010s, the MTA implemented communications-based train control (CBTC) on the portion of the IND Queens Boulevard Line west of Kew Gardens–Union Turnpike.

[62][60] CBTC on the Queens Boulevard Line west of Union Turnpike was fully operational by February 2022.

[63]: 15  The 2015–2019 Capital Program was revised in April 2018 to fund to the design for the expedited installation of CBTC on the Queens Boulevard Line east of Kew Gardens–Union Turnpike.

[66] During much of 2020 and 2021, there was no weekend F service south of Church Avenue to accommodate installation of CBTC on the IND Culver Line.

[67][68][69] In December 2022, the MTA announced that it would award a contract for the installation of CBTC on the Culver Line between Bergen Street and Church Avenue, which carries the F and G routes.

[70] On March 17, 2023, New York City Transit made adjustments to evening and late night E, F and R service to accommodate long-term CBTC installation on the Queens Boulevard Line between Union Turnpike and 179th Street.

An F shuttle train (operated by East New York Yard) ran between Lexington Avenue-63rd Street and 21st Street-Queensbridge, stopping at Roosevelt Island, at all times except late nights.

[77] In the 2000s, there was community support for resuming express service on the Culver Line between Jay Street–MetroTech and Church Avenue in Brooklyn, including from Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Senator Daniel Squadron.

[78][79][80] The MTA announced that after the elevated Culver Viaduct underwent extensive renovations from 2009 to 2012, "There will be no impediment to implementing the F express.