NEW YORK DIVISION BULLETIN - MARCH, 2004
The Bulletin
New York Division, Electric Railroaders’ Association Vol. 47, No. 3 The Bulletin Published by the New York Division, Electric Railroaders’ Association, Incorporated, PO Box 3001, New York, New York 10008-3001. For general inquiries, contact us at era@inch.com or by phone at (212) 986-4482 (voice mail available). ERA’s website is www.electricrailroaders. org.
March, 2004
BROOKLYN BRIDGE “L” SERVICE QUIT 60 YEARS AGO On March 5, 1944, BMT elevated trains ceased operating across the Brooklyn Bridge to Park Row. The Sands Street and Adams Street stations were abandoned, and trains were turned at a new terminal, Bridge-Jay Street. A double crossover was installed east of this station, formerly called Bridge Street. The west end of the platform was extended and a new entrance was built at Jay Street and Myrtle Avenue, where passengers could transfer to the trolley cars or the IND subway.
furnished through service to midtown Manhattan. Because riding declined and service was curtailed in the 1920s and 1930s, the elaborate Park Row terminal’s tail switch tracks and exit platforms were no longer needed. Starting November 27, 1935, trains terminated at the easterly platforms and switched back on a new double crossover east of the station. The structure supporting the tail switch tracks and the exit platforms was demolished.
Editorial Staff: Editor-in-Chief: Bernard Linder News Editor: Randy Glucksman Contributing Editor: Jeffrey Erlitz Production Manager: David Ross
©2004 New York Division, Electric R a i l r o ad e r s’ As soci atio n, Incorporated
In This Issue: Increased Subway Service ...Page 2
Park Row looking south, after exit platforms were removed in the mid-1930s. Bernard Linder collection Park Row looking south, before exit platforms were removed. Bernard Linder collection
On September 24, 1883, four months after the bridge opened, cable cars started operating. Because it was the only transit line linking Brooklyn and Manhattan, patronage increased rapidly. Five-car trains, operating on a 55-second headway, were overcrowded in the rush hour. Bridge trains were overcrowded until the BMT and IRT completed their present network of subway lines, which 1
Meanwhile, the city was building the IND subway lines, which would eventually divert more passengers. The Fulton Street IND, which opened on April 9, 1936, adversely affected Fulton Street “L” riding as shown in the table below. The IND ran under the “L” for several miles and offered passengers a fast five-cent one-seat ride to midtown Manhattan. After Unification, riding across the bridge was so light that service between Park Row (Continued on page 5)