Before the completion of the main head house in 2010, the station could be entered through stairways along the sidewalks of Broadway, to the extreme north end of the side platforms, then to the island platforms via an underpass. Engineers were unable to build a mezzanine level similar to other express stations for a few reasons. First of all, directly to the north of the station is an interlocking, and trains heading to the two branches are at the greatest gradients trains can operate on. Lowering the station to provide ample space for a mezzanine would have led to gradients that would have hindered efficient train operation. In addition, it was determined to be too costly to lower a large -wide trunk sewer in 96th Street, which was at the bottom of a drainage valley, enough to provide room for a mezzanine. The sewer was lowered , when an additional of lowering would be needed to fit a mezzanine.