BULLETIN - OCTOBER, 2013 Bulletin Electric Railroaders’ Association, Incorporated Vol
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The ERA BULLETIN - OCTOBER, 2013 Bulletin Electric Railroaders’ Association, Incorporated Vol. 56, No. 10 October, 2013 The Bulletin IND EXTENDED TO CHURCH AVENUE 80 YEARS AGO Published by the Electric In 1933, IND expanded into Queens and We do not have weekday October, 1933 Railroaders’ Association, Brooklyn, reaching Roosevelt Avenue (E) schedules, but we have the following week- Incorporated, PO Box 3323, New York, New and Nassau Avenue (GG) on August 19, fol- end schedules: York 10163-3323. lowed by Church Avenue (A) on October 7. The new route was constructed under hilly HEADWAYS CARS terrain, probably deposited near Prospect For general inquiries, Saturday Sunday Saturday Sunday contact us at bulletin@ Park by a prehistoric glacier. Effective effective erausa.org or by phone To avoid digging a deep tunnel under the 10/7/33 10/8/33 at (212) 986-4482 (voice steep hill east of the Gowanus Canal, the Mid- 12 12 3 3 mail available). ERA’s Smith Street-Prospect Park Line crosses the night website is canal on a high elevated structure. The align- www.erausa.org. ment includes the highest station on the AM 4 — 6, 8 — th Rush Editorial Staff: transit system, Smith-9 Street — 87.5 feet Editor-in-Chief: from the street to the base of rail — and a Morning 5 6, 5 6 4 Bernard Linder tunnel that follows the contour of the street News Editor: above. After- 5 5 6 5 Randy Glucksman noon Contributing Editor: The following grades are encountered by a Jeffrey Erlitz southbound train: Evening 6 5, 6, 8 6, 4 5 Production Manager: FROM TO PERCENT UNUSED EXPRESS TRACKS David Ross GRADE Although the express tracks were in place th Carroll Smith-9 +3.15 when the line opened in 1933, regular ex- Street Street press service did not begin until August 19, Smith-9th 4th Avenue -2.85 Portal is at 1968. The express track alignment is unusu- Street south (east) al. Two tracks follow a direct route in a sepa- ©2013 Electric end of 4th Railroaders’ Avenue rate tunnel from south (east) of Seventh Ave- Association, station nue to north of Church Avenue. This 8,130- foot tunnel descends southbound on a 3.0 4th Avenue 7th Avenue -3.1 (A); +3.1 percent grade. In This Issue: Rush hour express service began on Au- th th The Long Island 7 Avenue 15 Street- Almost level gust 19, 1968. Coney Island trains, whose Prospect Rail Road Eyes Park running time was six minutes faster than lo- cals, made express stops north of Kings Manhattan th 15 Street- Fort Hamil- -2.56; -3.0 Highway in the direction of heavy traffic (Continued) Prospect ton Parkway Park (northbound AM rush, southbound PM rush). ...Page 2 Kings Highway trains, whose running time Fort Hamil- Church Almost level was three minutes faster than locals, made ton Parkway Avenue express stops north of Church Avenue in the (A) The Fourth Avenue station, which is on a low struc- direction of heavy traffic. All F trains made ture, is approximately 31 feet lower than Seventh (Continued on page 6) Avenue, which is in the subway REMINDER: JAPAN1 TRIP—MAY, 2014 NEW YORKERA DIVISION BULLETIN BULLETIN - OCTOBER, OCTOBER, 2013 2000 THE GENESIS OF “DASHING DAN” Part Two—The Long Island Rail Road Eyes Manhattan by George Chiasson (Continued from September, 2013 issue) THE SAGA OF MILE-A-MINUTE MURPHY pearance of a fairly smooth riding surface. The test was One tale worthy of mention as we depart the Central conducted in the late afternoon of June 21, 1899 before Railroad of Long Island for the moment involves the a body of media aboard the parlor car and in the pres- folly of “Mile-a-Minute Murphy.” Charles Murphy was a ence of various officials who would be able to formally bicyclist of national renown in the 1890s, a Brooklyn record the outcome for posterity. The aim was for the native who had worked in a bicycle shop and made an LIRR locomotive to get up a full “head of steam” to avocation of studying ways to get the most out of the about 60 mph as it traversed the straight, level track designs which paraded through his establishment, or and that Murphy would be able to ride within the improve upon them with innovations of his own. By shroud, be shielded from the natural drag this speeding 1895 he had seven world cycling championships to his train would otherwise create, and of his own volition be credit, had won 17 North American titles, and owned 29 able to match its speed for one mile and within one mi- New York State records in the sport, all before gaining nute. As things turned out the train required more than employment with the New York City Police Department one start to attain the desired 60 mph speed within the following the municipal consolidation of 1898. In early planked-over testing zone, and then when it finally did June of 1899, so Murphy claimed, he was party to a the engine’s force was such that it made the planking serious discussion as to who was the world’s fastest undulate excessively, with cinders being shaken out at cyclist, and in a pang of defiance claimed rather loosely all angles the whole while and ejected into both the that he could match any locomotive in the world…at shroud and Murphy’s face. As he successfully reached speed! To his credit Mr. Murphy did have some built-in the finish line by the Maywood (freight) station at the authority on the issue of self-generated velocity, as he end of the test (at an average speed officially measured already had set a record of “rolling” one mile in 37 sec- at a hair above 60 mph), the steam was shut off and onds on a stationary device similar to a grocery convey- Murphy’s bicycle crashed into the rear of the coach, or. though the cyclist himself was fished away from disas- In any case, upon “happening to meet” a Special ter by the hands of the media and sporting enthusiasts Agent of the Long Island Rail Road soon after, he bro- who had been rallying him along from the platform. Mur- kered a deal with the line to test out his theory, which, phy was briefly incapacitated from the stresses of his for lack of a better term, could be described as the prin- adventure, but recovered sufficiently to receive his due ciple of streamlined motion. The proposal was that he commendation for the everlasting spectacle he pro- could attain a faster speed riding his bike in the hypo- duced. So was born the legend of “Mile-a-Minute Mur- thetical air “vacuum” that he presumed was naturally phy,” who for years thereafter claimed to have the created behind a speeding train than would otherwise world’s greatest understanding of the phenomenon of be subject to the limitations of the bicycle itself. To test streamlining, much as it was later applied to railroads, the dynamics of his supposition, Murphy had the rail- automobiles, and even aircraft (and was actually con- road construct a protruding, boxy shroud off the end of sulted on the subject in various professional capacities), one of its parlor coaches, which had an open vestibule all thanks to the complicity of the Long Island Rail on the rear, and two miles of the gauge on the Road. (otherwise largely idle) Central main line from Babylon (Continued on page 3) to Farmingdale were planked over to provide the ap- IND Extended to Church Avenue 80 Years Ago June 16, 1969, Kings Highway trains made local stops north of Kings Highway. Several years later, August 30, (Continued from page 1) 1976, express service was discontinued north of Church express stops north of Church Avenue in the direction of Avenue and all GG locals were turned at Smith-9th light traffic. Rush hour GG service was extended to Street. Rush hour Coney Island trains, whose running Church Avenue. time was three minutes faster than locals, made ex- Because the heaviest riding is north of Church Ave- press stops between Kings Highway and Ditmas Ave- nue, there were many complaints from passengers who nue in the direction of heavy traffic until service was no longer had a one-seat ride to Manhattan. To please finally discontinued on May 26, 1987. these passengers, schedules were revised. Effective (Continued on page 3) 2 ERA BULLETIN - OCTOBER, 2013 The Genesis of “Dashing Dan” (Continued from page 2) (Continued on page 6) IND Extended to Church Avenue 80 Years Ago WEEKDAYS SATURDAY SUNDAY EFFECTIVE EFFECTIVE EFFECTIVE (Continued from page 2) SEPTEMBER 7, SEPTEMBER 9, SEPTEMBER 10, 1933 1933 1933 Recently, trains have been rerouted to the express tracks due to the rehabilitation of the Smith-9th Street station and the elevated structure in the vicinity. Midnight 12 Midnight 12 12 ANOTHER ANNIVERSARY Rush Hour 4 AM Rush 4 — On August 19, 1933, E trains started operating be- tween Roosevelt Avenue and Chambers Street, making Midday 5 Morning 5 8, 6 local stops. Three-car trains were scheduled for rush hours and two-car trains were operated at other times. Evening 6, 8 Afternoon 5 5 GG trains provided shuttle service between Queens Plaza and Nassau Avenue. E headways were as fol- Evening 6, 8 6, 8 lows: 3 NEW YORKERA DIVISION BULLETIN BULLETIN - OCTOBER, OCTOBER, 2013 2000 SCENES ON THE CULVER LINE 13th Avenue, looking north, October 28, 1959. Fort Hamilton Parkway, looking east, with ex-SIRT cars. Bernard Linder photograph Bernard Linder collection Ditmas Avenue, looking north, October 14, 1968.