Gene Sansone

The Age of Trolleys

Trolleys were the bridging technology between the horse-drawn streetcar and the motor bus. The former operated into the 1890s in abundance, with one straggler lasting as long as 1917. The latter became a major part of the public transportation system through the 1930s and 1940s.

The Interborough Rapid Transit System

The times surrounding the beginning of the 20th century were both turbulent and exploding with technological development. In 1892, Grover Cleveland was elected to the first and only nonconsecutive 2nd term as president; in 1902, William McKinley became the third president to be assassinated, making Theodore Roosevelt the youngest president to serve in the country’s history. In February 1898, the USS Maine was blown up in Havana harbor, precipitating the Spanish-American War.

The Independent Subway

The third and last major stage of NYC Rapid Transit System was the Independent Subway, which opened in stages between 1933 and 1940. It completed the transition from private to public operation, as it was both built and operated by the city.

To “El” and Back: The Era of the Elevated Railroad

The story of New York’s elevated rail rapid transit system is a critical juncture in the history of the city. Surrounded by water on a long, narrow island, the city needed to expand, and it needed a transportation system to enable it to do so. The elevated railway would provide the only answer for the thirty-four year period between 1870 and 1904, when the first subway was opened. The story of the “Els” is one of great innovation and invention, dedicated (even if often misguided) engineers and scientists, and both political and financial intrigue involving some of the most well-known names in the city’s history. Always controversial, the elevated railroads paved the way for New York to rapidly expand, particularly to the north, while creating significant environmental problems virtually from their very beginnings.

Introduction to the NYC Transit System

The sheer size of New York City’s massive public transportation system is staggering. The system includes the NYC subways (including elevated and surface lines), the Staten Island Rapid Transit, and a huge bus system.

The Dual Contracts and Expansion of the Subways

The need for additional subways to service New York City was evident within weeks of the opening of the IRT in 1904. The path to the next phase of rapid transit expansion was long delayed by the opposition of August Belmont and the IRT, and by shifting political and financial conditions. Ultimately, the great expansion known as the “Dual Contracts” was adopted and implemented, while at the same time breaking the IRT’s monopoly over the system.

When the Rubber Hits the Road

The motor bus is the historic successor to all previous forms of surface public transportation systems. It proceeds from the horse-drawn omnibus and horsestreetcar technologies, and trolleys.

Prelude to Disaster: The NYCTA between 1953-1970

The creation of the New York City Transit Authority was intended to provide a layer of insulation between the politics and politicians of the city, and allow for more rational management of the transit system. The NYCTA has had mixed success on both counts. Mayors have continued to have major involvement in transit matters, particularly related to contract issues, although some mayors have been more involved than others. What creation of a public agency did not do, however, was insulate the transit system from the general economic travails of the city.

Things Have to Get Worse before They Get Better: NYC Transit – 1970 to the Present

The 1970s were the transit system’s worst years. The impacts of underfunding and deferred maintenance made for a difficult time, as the city dealt with its own financial disasters. Yet, the system survived the many crises encountered, and began to improve over the last decade of the 20th century.

The Staten Island Rapid Transit

Staten Island is unique among the five boroughs of New York City. It is more isolated than the other five boroughs, and until the opening of the Verrazano Bridge on November 21, 1964, it was only directly connected to Manhattan and the rest of New York City by ferry services.