Okay I need to know if anyone else was on the Q this morning around 8:15. I got on at Beverley Road heading toward Manhattan, and the train just FLEW through Parkside Avenue! No announcement until we were already in the tunnel, and even then it was the garbled “stand clear of the closing doors please” not “this is a skip.” The platform at Parkside was packed—like 30 people just standing there watching us sail by. This is a LOCAL Q stop! I have been riding this line for years and I swear the Q only skips Parkside when they do that weird “some local trains stop at …” thing on the website, but there was NOTHING on the app this morning. The next train was 11 minutes away, so all those people were just stuck. Is there a secret skip schedule? Have you tried checking the “Planned Work” page before you leave? Because I did and it said normal service!

Wait, I’m new to the Q line. I got on at Newkirk Plaza this morning and was confused why everyone on the platform didn’t get on my train. I thought maybe I was on an express? But we definitely stopped at Church and Beverley? I don’t understand the difference between a local train and a “some local trains stop at” one. Is this common on that stretch? Also, what app do you use? I still use Google Maps and it didn’t say anything either.

No secret schedule. What you saw is a real-time service adjustment, and it happens more often than people realize on the Brighton Line.

The Q normally runs local south of Prospect Park, with Parkside, Beverley, Cortelyou, Newkirk, Avenue H, and Avenue J all served. But the line has four tracks from roughly Prospect Park down through much of Brooklyn, so a dispatcher can put a Q onto the express tracks to close a gap or get around a delay. When that happens, the train cannot stop at Parkside because Parkside only has platforms on the local tracks. Same for several other local stops.

The key clue on the platform is the next-stop text on the countdown clock. If you are standing at Parkside and the next Q says “Church Av” instead of “Parkside Av,” that train is not going to stop for you. If you are already on the train, the automated announcement may say “next stop Church Av” even though the front sign still says Q. But if the switch happens at the last minute, the system doesn’t always update fast enough, which is probably what you experienced.

I have also learned to watch the signal lights on the local track. If the local signal stays red but you see a train coming on the middle express track, that’s your skip. The MTA app often will not show this because the change is made by the dispatcher, not entered into the planned service database. It’s frustrating, but it’s not a hidden schedule.

Yeah that’s the Q doing its little skip dance. Happens when there’s a delay at Prospect Park or a bunch of trains bunched. They just punch one through express to keep the rest from piling up. Not on the app because it’s decided on the fly.

You can sometimes hear them announce at Church if you’re on the train: “This is a Brighton Beach-bound Q running express from Church to Prospect Park.” But if you’re on the platform at Parkside you’re just screwed. I’ve learned to check the ceiling monitors at Beverley; if the next Q says “Church Ave” instead of “Parkside” it’s skipping. Recommend the Transit app for live train positions, not just the schedule.

I’m so glad you posted this! I just moved to Flatbush and I stand at Parkside every morning. Twice last week I saw a train come on the middle track and everyone groaned. I was too embarrassed to ask why. So this is a real thing?

How do you avoid getting stuck? If I can’t tell until it’s too late, do I just walk to Church Ave or Prospect Park? Also, is this why the Q is sometimes empty at 8 a.m.? I thought I was imagining it.

big_city_beth YES it’s real! I have a whole system now. If I see the countdown clock at Parkside jump from “3 min” to “Dly” and then “Church Av” appears, I don’t wait. I walk up to the north exit and head toward Church Ave if I think I can make it before the train passes. oldyork_otis is exactly right about the middle track. I once stood at Beverley and saw a Q on the express track and the operator literally pointed at us and shrugged. It’s not personal but it feels personal.

Have you tried checking the next–train text on the platform signs instead of the MTA app? The signs sometimes update faster with the skip. Also, if you’re on the train before Parkside, sometimes the conductor says “next stop Church Av” and that’s your clue to bail at Church and wait if you actually needed Parkside.

Question from someone who doesn’t take the Q often: if the Q skips Parkside on the express track, does that mean the B is running? I thought the B only runs weekdays peak, but I saw a train on the middle track at 9 p.m. once. Is that a B or a Q? Also, can you tell from the front sign? Do they even change it? Thanks.

I got caught by this tonight! I was waiting at Parkside for a northbound Q around 7:15 and the display said “next train to 96 St 4 min” but then a Q came through on the express track and the display immediately changed to 12 min. The conductor made no announcement at all. Is that even allowed? I thought they had to announce before skipping a station?

I filed a complaint on the MTA feedback form but haven’t heard back. I don’t care about discipline, I just want to know if I should wait at Church instead. Also the Citi Bike idea from earlier—are there usually bikes at Parkside at 8 a.m.?

DykerNewbie: yes, you can see a Q on the express track at 9 p.m. The B does not usually run that late; it’s a Q that has been sent express. The front sign still says Q, but the next station announcement inside the train may say “Next stop Church Av.” On the platform, you cannot rely on the front sign alone.

fresh_off_metro: technically, operators are supposed to announce station skips when practical, but if the re-route happens at the last minute, the automated system may not update and the conductor may not have time to make a clear announcement. A missed announcement during an unplanned service intervention is not usually the kind of thing that results in discipline. The bigger issue is that the countdown clock gives you false confidence right up until the train passes.

My advice: if you use Parkside daily, learn to read the signal lights on the local track and watch the clock’s next-stop text. If the next arrival says “Church Av,” it will not stop for you. If you can, walk one stop to Church or Prospect Park because those are the stations the express Q will still serve. But know that the gap it creates is sometimes filled by the following local—unless that one also gets skipped, which happens less often but does happen.