World · North America · 19 hrs ago
New York subway memorabilia sale draws about 4,000 shoppers
New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority held its annual sale of old subway items in south Brooklyn.
Shoppers searched for signs, orange plastic seats and retired MetroCards to keep as memorabilia or display at home.
The authority has long resold signs to collectors, and it opened the sales to the public about five years ago.
Around 4,000 people attend the two-day event each year.
Prices can be high: medium-sized signs cost about US$500, while subway seats sell for around US$900.
The sale offers people a way to own a piece of the city’s transit history, but the authority does not disclose how much money it raises.
The sources do not say when the next sale will take place.
About 4,000 people attend New York’s annual subway memorabilia sale each year.
The two-day open-air sale in south Brooklyn offers discarded signs, seats and other transit items.
Shoppers can spend up to 45 minutes searching, and prices range from a few dollars to more than US$1,000.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority opened the sale to the public after an idea for a garage sale emerged five years ago.
- Who
- About 4,000 shoppers, including New York residents and collectors.
- What
- They browsed and bought discarded subway signs, seats and other memorabilia.
- When
- The annual sale takes place over two days; the article was published on October 11, 2026.
- Where
- South Brooklyn, New York.
- Why
- The MTA holds the sale to let the public buy transit items; shoppers said they wanted memorabilia or decor.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
But that’s what makes it interesting. And this piece of metal is dirty. It smells like a subway station, but there’s something about it that makes it real New York, one of a kind in the world.
Five years ago, an idea was born to hold a garage sale of sorts, and to let people come in and purchase these items.
We called it a grab-and-go then, and it ended up being significantly more popular than we ever thought it would be.
I’d like a piece of New York to represent my living space, like as a representation of me.
The MTA programme began with an idea to hold a garage sale and let people buy transit items.
The sale began offering plastic subway seats, which became its most popular items.
Shoppers attended the annual two-day sale in south Brooklyn.
- Annual attendance
- Around 4,000 people
- Sale duration
- Two days
- Search time limit
- 45 minutes per person
- Medium-sized sign price
- Around US$500
- Large sign price
- More than US$1,000
- Plastic seat price
- Around US$900 each
Sources
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