BusTalk

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

(SEE PREVIOUS POSTS/LINKS)

Recall, now, that the swashbucklin' INDiana Jones has always had a powerful aversion to snakes (as does your humble correspondent)

"I HATE SNAKES!!"

Well, if INDy was today on another mission, this time exploring the dark and dank tunnels of the "Noo Yawk" subway system, I am certain that he would NOT be looking forward to an encounter with a new and fearsome species of serpent, one that has infested the city unchecked......the dreaded "Cyclopius Electricus".....(!)

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?93711

(courtesy: nycsubway.org)

["I HATE SNAKES!"] (and subway trains that masquerade as them!)

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

Indeed, the sinister, slithering "Cyclopius Electricus" seems an alien, hostile invader, wriggling its serpentine way within the hallowed walls of a classic "Eye-En-Dee" station........

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?112395

(courtesy: nycsubway.org)

["F"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

Now, in sharp contrast, here we have a specimen of the dreaded "Cyclopius Electricus" here in surroundings* more associated with a new breed of "urban serpent".......

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?138892

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?141853

(courtesy: nycsubway.org)

"NYO"

*I should also note that the stark, cold, "Star Wars-esque" design of the newest stations gives Your's Truly the same sense of uneasiness and dread as do the vast IND mezzanines devoid of wall ads............

["F"] ["Q"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

Now........on the other hand.......had the Second Avenue Subway been opened as originally planned in the immediate postwar years, sleek, silvery trains if BUDD-built R-11s would have been moving the masses along "Eye-En-Dee" rails......a far cry from today's sinister, slithering "Cyclopius Electricus"...................

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?2607

(courtesy: nycsubway.org)

["E 8th AVE"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

IMHO, I feel that, of all the subway systems in the city, the "Eye-En-Dee" had the greatest chance of becoming a "super subway", especially had the "Second System" ever had become a reality.

Indeed, right from the start, the IND, with its spacious stations, massive mezzanines, and modern rolling stock indeed foretold of modern subway system that had a tremendous potential for expansion.

To this day, there are still that wonder how far out the IND would have reached in Queens, had not the "World's Fair Railroad" been ripped out after the 1939/1940 World's Fair ended, and tghe IND further extended past its WF terminal.

Or, think of the IND's 8th Avenue/Concourse line being extended up to the Westchester border (recall, there had been talk of extending the SAS along the Dyre Avenue line, to the city line)

Think, too, of what the face of rapid transit might have been like in the Brooklyn and Queens of 2024, had all of the proposed extensions of the IND been built.

I have even heard of long-ago talk of Queens trains going beyond the present terminal at 179th Street, possibly riding along LIRR rails.

Alas, what might have been.............

"NYO"

["INDEPENDENT SUBWAY SYSTEM"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

Here's a few rare glimpses of R-44s running on LIRR rails.......

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?24690

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?7650

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?7649

["SPECIAL"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

In this 1972 view, we see a test train of R-44s on LIRR rails at Willets Point (back in the "blue stripe" era, it was quite easy to see the "family resemblence" between the R-44's and the LIRR's M-1s.................

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?5701

(courtesy: nyvsubway.org)

["ST. LOUIS"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

Not much surprise that the earliest Hi-V "GIBBS" cars for the INTERBOROUGH were virtual clones of the LIRR's original MUs, the MP-41s.

The 41s, being suburban commuter cars, were equipped with pilots, vestibule traps, steps, and headlights, fixtures which were, of course, not needed on subway equipment.

The interiors of the 41s, also, very much mimicked the early "INTERBOROUGH" cars, and even were equipped with leather straps for standees...........

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?138710

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?67835

(courtesy: nycsubway.org)

["ACF"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

Frightening as this to admit, but Stockholm's Metro puts "Noo Yawk's" subways to shame, when it comes to unworldly, netherworld stations that indeed evoke the "Temples of Doom" (not to mention the ante-room to Hades)

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?123264

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?123266

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?113822

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?138710

)courtesy: nycsubway.org)

["HADES EXPRESS"-NON STOP"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

Earlier, I'd mentioned the IND line to the 1939 World's Fair, and, what might have transpired had the City not only retained this short line, but also, extended it further into Queens, creating a new IND route.

The IND's World's Fair Station easily could have been transformed into a "regular" subway station, serving thousands of straphangers daily, spurring further real estate growth.

We know that the former ROW later became part of the Van Wyck Expressway.

Note the train (first photo) is signed "S"; I have also seen photos of Fair-bound "Arnines" signed for the "E"................

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?75917

See also:

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?114195

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?2355

(courtesy: nycsubway.org)

["S WORLD'S FAIR"

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

Interesting also to note, that neither the "Bee-Em-Tee" or the "Eye-En-Dee" purchased new rolling stock for the 1939 World's Fair.

The BMT contented itself with rebuilding old wooden elevated gate cars into more modern units, now classified "Q"-types.

The IRT purchased their last Lo-V's, which, despite being equipped with illuminated end signs (and dispensing with the IRT's time-honored vestibules and "railroad" roofs) these cars were indeed far from truly "modern".

Unlike the IRT and the IND, the BMT did not offer through "subway" service to the Fair; however, they did equip some "Standards" (aka "Brooklyn Battleships") with illuminated metal end signs reading:

["WORLD'S FAIR TRAIN CONNECTION"]

See:

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?132267

(courtesy: nycsubway.org)

["B.M.T. LINES"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

The iconic R-33/R-36 "Bluebirds" (always great favorites if mine) were the last cars purchased new for a New York World's Fair; unlike their "mainline" brothers, these stylish cars sported a flashy blue paint scheme, and large, distinctive, European-style picture windows.

Indeed, they'll never be forgotten, by any of us.........

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?39025

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?4403

(courtesy: nycsubway.org)

["7 WORLD'S FAIR"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

A long and colorful era indeed ended back in 2003 when the last of the classic WF "Bluebirds" (now "Redbirds") were replaced on the Flushing line, replaced by the "62s".

Enthusiasts knew that the end was indeed nearing, as more and more trains of "62s) began filling up Corona Yard, and fewer and fewer WF cars were to be seen.

The 62s enjoyed only a fairly brief "stint" on the #7, as they were replaced by new "NTT" rolling stock, and the line was re-signalled for CBTC.

The hard-working "62s" also had the distinction of being the last non-"NTT" trains to run on the Flushing line.

And, so, yet another era drew to a close..............

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?4106

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?64951

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?69730

(courtesy: nycsubway.org)

["7 TIMES SQUARE"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

Interestingly, like the veteran IND "Arnines" (retired 1977), the once-flashy R-11/34s (originally destined for the new SAS) ended their days on "Bee-Em-Tee" rails; ironically, over the years, a number of "oddball" units were relegated to "Frankie" service, back in the day...........

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?2625

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?49050

(courtesy: nycsubway.org)

["SS SHUTTLE"]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

In speaking of the "Frankie", this little line has indeed seen quite a variety of rolling stock burnish its rails for decades, running the gamut from experimental articulateds and flanged-equipped "Lo-V's" and the R-68 "Hippos".

Alas, the days of variety on the "Frankie" have disappeared........

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?113309

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?112946

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?97841

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?3037

https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?140458

(courtesy: nycsubway.org)

See also:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_Avenue_Shuttle

Many things made this oft-forgotten line interesting; the line faced potential abandonment in the early 1980s, many service pattern changes throughout the decades, as well as "through routing" beyond the current shuttle "limits" (and, of course, the infamous Malbone Street disaster of 1918)

Yes, without a doubt, an interesting history.........

["7 PROSPECT PARK"]