Anonymous - The New York Subway
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Anonymous >> The New York Subway
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Provided capitalists could be found to undertake such an extensive
work under the exacting provisions, the scheme was an admirable one
from the taxpayers' point of view. The road would cost the city
practically nothing and the obligation of the contractor to equip and
operate being combined with the agreement to construct furnished a
safeguard against waste of the public funds and insured the prompt
completion of the road. The interest of the contractor in the
successful operation, after construction, furnished a strong incentive
to see that as the construction progressed the details were consistent
with successful operation and to suggest and consent to such
modifications of the contract plans as might appear necessary from an
operating point of view, from time to time. The rental being based
upon the cost encouraged low bids, and the lien of the city upon the
equipment secured the city against all risk, once the road was in
operation.
Immediately after the vote of the electors upon the question of
municipal ownership, the Rapid Transit Commissioners adopted routes
and plans which they had been studying and perfecting since the
failure to find bidders for the franchise under the original Act of
1891. The local authorities approved them, and again the property
owners refused their consent, making an application to the Supreme
Court necessary. The Court refused its approval upon the ground that
the city, owing to a provision of the constitution of the State
limiting the city's power to incur debt, would be unable to raise the
necessary money. This decision appeared to nullify all the efforts of
the public spirited citizens composing the Board of Rapid Transit
Commissioners and to practically prohibit further attempts on their
part. They persevered, however, and in January, 1897, adopted new
general routes and plans. The consolidation of a large territory into
the Greater New York, and increased land values, warranted the hope
that the city's debt limit would no longer be an objection, especially
as the new route changed the line so as to reduce the estimated cost.
The demands for rapid transit had become more and more imperative as
the years went by, and it was fair to assume that neither the courts
nor the municipal authorities would be overzealous to find a narrow
construction of the laws. Incidentally, the constitutionality of the
rapid transit legislation, in its fundamental features, had been
upheld in the Supreme Court in a decision which was affirmed by the
highest court of the State a few weeks after the Board had adopted its
new plans. The local authorities gave their consent to the new route;
the property owners, as on the two previous occasions, refused their
consent; the Supreme Court gave its approval in lieu thereof; and the
Board was prepared to undertake the preliminaries for letting a
contract. These successive steps and the preparation of the terms of
the contract all took time; but, finally, on November 15, 1899, a form
of contract was adopted and an invitation issued by the Board to
contractors to bid for the construction and operation of the railroad.
There were two bidders, one of whom was John B. McDonald, whose terms
submitted under the invitation were accepted on January 15, 1900; and,
for the first time, it seemed as if a beginning might be made in the
actual construction of the rapid transit road. The letter of
invitation to contractors required that every proposal should be
accompanied by a certified check upon a National or State Bank,
payable to the order of the Comptroller, for $150,000, and that within
ten days after acceptance, or within such further period as might be
prescribed by the Board, the contract should be duly executed and
delivered. The amount to be paid by the city for the construction was
$35,000,000 and an additional sum not to exceed $2,750,000 for
terminals, station sites, and other purposes. The construction was to
be completed in four years and a half, and the term of the lease from
the city to the contractor was fixed at fifty years, with a renewal,
at the option of the contractor, for twenty-five years at a rental to
be agreed upon by the city, not less than the average rental for the
then preceding ten years. The rental for the fifty-year term was fixed
at an amount equal to the annual interest upon the bonds issued by the
city for construction and 1 per cent. additional, such 1 per cent.
during the first ten years to be contingent in part upon the earnings
of the road. To secure the performance of the contract by Mr. McDonald
the city required him to deposit $1,000,000 in cash as security for
construction, to furnish a bond with surety for $5,000,000 as security
for construction and equipment, and to furnish another bond of
$1,000,000 as continuing security for the performance of the contract.
The city in addition to this security had, under the provisions of the
Rapid Transit Act, a first lien on the equipment, and it should be
mentioned that at the expiration of the lease and renewals (if any)
the equipment is to be turned over to the city, pending an agreement
or arbitration upon the question of the price to be paid for it by the
city. The contract (which covered about 200 printed pages) was minute
in detail as to the work to be done, and sweeping powers of
supervision were given the city through the Chief Engineer of the
Board, who by the contract was made arbiter of all questions that
might arise as to the interpretation of the plans and specifications.
The city had been fortunate in securing for the preparation of plans
the services of Mr. William Barclay Parsons, one of the foremost
engineers of the country. For years as Chief Engineer of the Board he
had studied and developed the various plans and it was he who was to
superintend on behalf of the city the completion of the work.
During the thirty-two years of rapid transit discussion between 1868,
when the New York City Central Underground Company was incorporated,
up to 1900, when the invitations for bids were issued by the city,
every scheme for rapid transit had failed because responsible
capitalists could not be found willing to undertake the task of
building a road. Each year had increased the difficulties attending
such an enterprise and the scheme finally evolved had put all of the
risk upon the capitalists who might attempt to finance the work, and
left none upon the city. Without detracting from the credit due the
public-spirited citizens who had evolved the plan of municipal
ownership, it may be safely asserted that the success of the
undertaking depended almost entirely upon the financial backing of the
contractor. When the bid was accepted by the city no arrangements had
been made for the capital necessary to carry out the contract. After
its acceptance, Mr. McDonald not only found little encouragement in
his efforts to secure the capital, but discovered that the surety
companies were unwilling to furnish the security required of him,
except on terms impossible for him to fulfill.
The crucial point in the whole problem of rapid transit with which the
citizens of New York had struggled for so many years had been reached,
and failure seemed inevitable. The requirements of the Rapid Transit
Act were rigid and forbade any solution of the problem which committed
the city to share in the risks of the undertaking. Engineers might
make routes and plans, lawyers might draw legislative acts, the city
might prepare contracts, the question was and always had been, Can
anybody build the road who will agree to do it and hold the city safe
from loss?
It was obvious when the surety companies declined the issue that the
whole rapid transit problem was thrown open, or rather that it always
had been open. The final analysis had not been made. After all, the
attitude of the surety companies was only a reflection of the general
feeling of practical business and railroad men towards the whole
venture. To the companies the proposition had come as a concrete
business proffer and they had rejected it.
At this critical point, Mr. McDonald sought the assistance of Mr.
August Belmont. It was left to Mr. Belmont to make the final analysis,
and avert the failure which impended. There was no time for indecision
or delay. Whatever was to be done must be done immediately. The
necessary capital must be procured, the required security must be
given, and an organization for building and operating the road must be
anticipated. Mr. Belmont looking through and beyond the intricacies of
the Rapid Transit Act, and the complications of the contract, saw that
he who undertook to surmount the difficulties presented by the
attitude of the surety companies must solve the whole problem. It was
not the ordinary question of financing a railroad contract. He saw
that the responsibility for the entire rapid transit undertaking must
be centered, and that a compact and effective organization must be
planned which could deal with every phase of the situation.
Mr. Belmont without delay took the matter up directly with the Board
of Rapid Transit Railroad Commissioners, and presented a plan for the
incorporation of a company to procure the security required for the
performance of the contract, to furnish the capital necessary to carry
on the work, and to assume supervision over the whole undertaking.
Application was to be made to the Supreme Court to modify the
requirements with respect to the sureties by striking out a provision
requiring the justification of the sureties in double the amount of
liabilities assumed by each and reducing the minimum amount permitted
to be taken by each surety from $500,000 to $250,000. The new
corporation was to execute as surety a bond for $4,000,000, the
additional amount of $1,000,000 to be furnished by other sureties. A
beneficial interest in the bonds required from the sub-contractors was
to be assigned to the city and, finally, the additional amount of
$1,000,000, in cash or securities, was to be deposited with the city
as further security for the performance of the contract. The plan was
approved by the Board of Rapid Transit Railroad Commissioners, and
pursuant to the plan, the Rapid Transit Subway Construction Company
was organized. The Supreme Court granted the application to modify the
requirements as to the justification of sureties and the contract was
executed February 21, 1900.
As president and active executive head of the Rapid Transit Subway
Construction Company, Mr. Belmont perfected its organization,
collected the staff of engineers under whose direction the work of
building the road was to be done, supervised the letting of
sub-contracts, and completed the financial arrangements for carrying
on the work.
The equipment of the road included, under the terms of the contract,
the rolling stock, all machinery and mechanisms for generating
electricity for motive power, lighting, and signaling, and also the
power house, sub-stations, and the real estate upon which they were to
be erected. The magnitude of the task of providing the equipment was
not generally appreciated until Mr. Belmont took the rapid transit
problem in hand. He foresaw from the beginning the importance of that
branch of the work, and early in 1900, immediately after the signing
of the contract, turned his attention to selecting the best engineers
and operating experts, and planned the organization of an operating
company. As early as May, 1900, he secured the services of Mr. E. P.
Bryan, who came to New York from St. Louis, resigning as
vice-president and general manager of the Terminal Railroad
Association, and began a study of the construction work and plans for
equipment, to the end that the problems of operation might be
anticipated as the building and equipment of the road progressed. Upon
the incorporation of the operating company, Mr. Bryan became
vice-president.
In the spring of 1902, the Interborough Rapid Transit Company, the
operating railroad corporation was formed by the interests represented
by Mr. Belmont, he becoming president and active executive head of
this company also, and soon thereafter Mr. McDonald assigned to it the
lease or operating part of his contract with the city, that company
thereby becoming directly responsible to the city for the equipment
and operation of the road, Mr. McDonald remaining as contractor for
its construction. In the summer of the same year, the Board of Rapid
Transit Railroad Commissioners having adopted a route and plans for an
extension of the subway under the East River to the Borough of
Brooklyn, the Rapid Transit Subway Construction Company entered into a
contract with the city, similar in form to Mr. McDonald's contract, to
build, equip, and operate the extension. Mr. McDonald, as contractor
of the Rapid Transit Subway Construction Company, assumed the general
supervision of the work of constructing the Brooklyn extension; and
the construction work of both the original subway and the extension
has been carried on under his direction. The work of construction has
been greatly facilitated by the broad minded and liberal policy of the
Rapid Transit Board and its Chief Engineer and Counsel, and by the
cooeperation of all the other departments of the City Government, and
also by the generous attitude of the Metropolitan Street Railway
Company and its lessee, the New York City Railroad Company, in
extending privileges which have been of great assistance in the
prosecution of the work. In January, 1903, the Interborough Rapid
Transit Company acquired the elevated railway system by lease for 999
years from the Manhattan Railway Company, thus assuring harmonious
operation of the elevated roads and the subway system, including the
Brooklyn extension.
The incorporators of the Interborough Rapid Transit Company were
William H. Baldwin, Jr., Charles T. Barney, August Belmont, E. P.
Bryan, Andrew Freedman, James Jourdan, Gardiner M. Lane, John B.
McDonald, DeLancey Nicoll, Walter G. Oakman, John Peirce, Wm. A. Read,
Cornelius Vanderbilt, George W. Wickersham, and George W. Young.
The incorporators of the Rapid Transit Subway Construction Company
were Charles T. Barney, August Belmont, John B. McDonald, Walter G.
Oakman, and William A. Read.
[Illustration: (wings)]
[Illustration: EXTERIOR VIEW OF POWER HOUSE]
CHAPTER I
THE ROUTE OF THE ROAD--PASSENGER STATIONS AND TRACKS
The selection of route for the Subway was governed largely by the
amount which the city was authorized by the Rapid Transit Act to
spend. The main object of the road was to carry to and from their
homes in the upper portions of Manhattan Island the great army of
workers who spend the business day in the offices, shops, and
warehouses of the lower portions, and it was therefore obvious that
the general direction of the routes must be north and south, and that
the line must extend as nearly as possible from one end of the island
to the other.
The routes proposed by the Rapid Transit Board in 1895, after
municipal ownership had been approved by the voters at the fall
election of 1894, contemplated the occupation of Broadway below 34th
Street to the Battery, and extended only to 185th Street on the west
side and 146th Street on the east side of the city. As has been told
in the introductory chapter, this plan was rejected by the Supreme
Court because of the probable cost of going under Broadway. It was
also intimated by the Court, in rejecting the routes, that the road
should extend further north.
It had been clear from the beginning that no routes could be laid out
to which abutting property owners would consent, and that the consent
of the Court as an alternative would be necessary to any routes
chosen. To conform as nearly as possible to the views of the Court,
the Commission proposed, in 1897, the so called "Elm Street route,"
the plan finally adopted, which reached from the territory near the
General Post-office, the City Hall, and Brooklyn Bridge Terminal to
Kingsbridge and the station of the New York & Putnam Railroad on the
upper west side, and to Bronx Park on the upper east side of the city,
touching the Grand Central Depot at 42d Street.
Subsequently, by the adoption of the Brooklyn Extension, the line was
extended down Broadway to the southern extremity of Manhattan Island,
thence under the East River to Brooklyn.
The routes in detail are as follows:
[Sidenote:
_Manhattan-Bronx
Route_]
Beginning near the intersection of Broadway and Park Row, one of the
routes of the railroad extends under Park Row, Center Street, New Elm
Street, Elm Street, Lafayette Place, Fourth Avenue (beginning at Astor
Place), Park Avenue, 42d Street, and Broadway to 125th Street, where
it passes over Broadway by viaduct to 133d Street, thence under
Broadway again to and under Eleventh Avenue to Fort George, where it
comes to the surface again at Dyckman Street and continues by viaduct
over Naegle Avenue, Amsterdam Avenue, and Broadway to Bailey Avenue,
at the Kingsbridge station of the New York & Putnam Railroad, crossing
the Harlem Ship Canal on a double-deck drawbridge. The length of this
route is 13.50 miles, of which about 2 miles are on viaduct.
Another route begins at Broadway near 103d Street and extends under
104th Street and the upper part of Central Park to and under Lenox
Avenue to 142d Street, thence curving to the east to and under the
Harlem River at about 145th Street, thence from the river to and
under East 149th Street to a point near Third Avenue, thence by
viaduct beginning at Brook Avenue over Westchester Avenue, the
Southern Boulevard and the Boston Road to Bronx Park. The length of
this route is about 6.97 miles, of which about 3 miles are on viaduct.
[Illustration: MAP SHOWING THE LINES OF THE INTERBOROUGH RAPID TRANSIT
CO. 1904]
At the City Hall there is a loop under the Park. From 142d Street
there is a spur north under Lenox Avenue to 148th Street. There is a
spur at Westchester and Third Avenues connecting by viaduct the
Manhattan Elevated Railway Division of Interborough Rapid Transit
Company with the viaduct of the subway at or near St. Ann's Avenue.
[Sidenote: _Brooklyn Route_]
The route of the Brooklyn Extension connects near Broadway and Park
Row with the Manhattan Bronx Route and extends under Broadway, Bowling
Green, State Street, Battery Park, Whitehall Street, and South Street
to and under the East River to Brooklyn at the foot of Joralemon
Street, thence under Joralemon Street, Fulton Street, and Flatbush
Avenue to Atlantic Avenue, connecting with the Brooklyn tunnel of the
Long Island Railroad at that point. There is a loop under Battery Park
beginning at Bridge Street. The length of this route is about 3 miles.
The routes in Manhattan and The Bronx may therefore be said to roughly
resemble the letter Y with the base at the southern extremity of
Manhattan Island, the fork at 103d Street and Broadway, the terminus
of the westerly or Fort George branch of the fork just beyond Spuyten
Duyvil Creek, the terminus of the easterly or Bronx Park branch at
Bronx Park.
[Sidenote: _Location
of Stations_]
The stations beginning at the base of the Y and following the route up
to the fork are located at the following points:
South Ferry, Bowling Green and Battery Place, Rector Street and
Broadway, Fulton Street and Broadway, City Hall, Manhattan; Brooklyn
Bridge Entrance, Manhattan; Worth and Elm Streets, Canal and Elm
Streets, Spring and Elm Streets, Bleecker and Elm Streets, Astor Place
and Fourth Avenue, 14th Street and Fourth Avenue, 18th Street and
Fourth Avenue, 23d Street and Fourth Avenue, 28th Street and Fourth
Avenue, 33d Street and Fourth Avenue, 42d Street and Madison Avenue
(Grand Central Station), 42d Street and Broadway, 50th Street and
Broadway, 60th Street and Broadway (Columbus Circle), 66th Street and
Broadway, 72d Street and Broadway, 79th Street and Broadway, 86th
Street and Broadway, 91st Street and Broadway, 96th Street and
Broadway.
[Illustration: 34TH STREET AND PARK AVENUE, LOOKING SOUTH]
The stations of the Fort George or westerly branch are located at the
following points:
One Hundred and Third Street and Broadway, 110th Street and Broadway
(Cathedral Parkway), 116th Street and Broadway (Columbia University),
Manhattan Street (near 128th Street) and Broadway, 137th Street and
Broadway, 145th Street and Broadway, 157th Street and Broadway, the
intersection of 168th Street, St. Nicholas Avenue and Broadway, 181st
Street and Eleventh Avenue, Dyckman Street and Naegle Avenue (beyond
Fort George), 207th Street and Amsterdam Avenue, 215th Street and
Amsterdam Avenue, Muscoota Street and Broadway, Bailey Avenue, at
Kingsbridge near the New York & Putnam Railroad station.
The stations on the Bronx Park or easterly branch are located at the
following points:
One Hundred and Tenth Street and Lenox Avenue, 116th Street and Lenox
Avenue, 125th Street and Lenox Avenue, 135th Street and Lenox Avenue,
145th Street and Lenox Avenue (spur), Mott Avenue and 149th Street,
the intersection of 149th Street, Melrose and Third Avenues, Jackson
and Westchester Avenues, Prospect and Westchester Avenues, Westchester
Avenue near Southern Boulevard (Fox Street), Freeman Street and the
Southern Boulevard, intersection of 174th Street, Southern Boulevard
and Boston Road, 177th Street and Boston Road (near Bronx Park).
[Illustration: PROFILE OF RAPID TRANSIT RAILROAD MANHATTAN AND
BRONX LINES.]
The stations in the Borough of Brooklyn on the Brooklyn Extension are
located as follows:
Joralemon Street near Court (Brooklyn Borough Hall), intersection of
Fulton, Bridge, and Hoyt Streets; Flatbush Avenue near Nevins Street,
Atlantic Avenue and Flatbush Avenue (Brooklyn terminal of the Long
Island Railroad).
From the Borough Hall, Manhattan, to the 96th Street station, the line
is four-track. On the Fort George branch (including 103d Street
station) there are three tracks to 145th Street and then two tracks to
Dyckman Street, then three tracks again to the terminus at Bailey
Avenue. On the Bronx Park branch there are two tracks to Brook Avenue
and from that point to Bronx Park there are three tracks. On the Lenox
Avenue spur to 148th Street there are two tracks, on the City Hall
loop one track, on the Battery Park loop two tracks. The Brooklyn
Extension is a two-track line.
There is a storage yard under Broadway between 137th Street and 145th
Street on the Fort George branch, another on the surface at the end of
the Lenox Avenue spur, Lenox Avenue and 148th Street, and a third on
an elevated structure at the Boston Road and 178th Street. There is a
repair shop and inspection shed on the surface adjoining the Lenox
Avenue spur at the Harlem River and 148-150th Streets, and an
inspection shed at the storage yard at Boston Road and 178th Street.
[Sidenote: _Length of
Line._]
The total length of the line from the City Hall to the Kingsbridge
terminal is 13.50 miles, with 47.11 miles of single track and sidings.
The eastern or Bronx Park branch is 6.97 miles long, with 17.50 miles
of single track.
[Illustration: PROFILE OF BROOKLYN EXTENSION.]
[Sidenote: _Grades and
Curves._]
The total length of the Brooklyn Extension is 3.1 miles, with about 8
miles of single track.
The grades and curvature along the main line may be summarized as
follows:
The total curvature is equal in length to 23 per cent. of the straight
line, and the least radius of curvature is 147 feet. The greatest
grade is 3 per cent., and occurs on either side of the tunnel under
the Harlem River. At each station there is a down grade of 2.1 per
cent., to assist in the acceleration of the cars when they start. In
order to make time on roads running trains at frequent intervals, it
is necessary to bring the trains to their full speed very soon after
starting. The electrical equipment of the Rapid Transit Railroad will
enable this to be done in a better manner than is possible with steam
locomotives, while these short acceleration grades at each station, on
both up and down tracks, will be of material assistance in making the
starts smooth.
Photograph on page 26 shows an interesting feature at a local
station, where, in order to obtain the quick acceleration in grade for
local trains, and at the same time maintain a level grade for the
express service, the tracks are constructed at a different level. This
occurs at many local stations.
On the Brooklyn Extension the maximum grade is 3.1 per cent.
descending from the ends to the center of the East River tunnel. The
minimum radius of curve is 1,200 feet.
[Illustration: STANDARD STEEL CONSTRUCTION IN TUNNEL--THIRD RAIL
PROTECTION NOT SHOWN]
[Illustration: PLAN OF BROOKLYN BRIDGE STATION AND CITY HALL LOOP]
[Sidenote: _Track_]
The track is of the usual standard construction with broken stone
ballast, timber cross ties, and 100-pound rails of the American
Society of Civil Engineers' section. The cross ties are selected hard
pine. All ties are fitted with tie plates. All curves are supplied
with steel inside guard rails. The frogs and switches are of the best
design and quality to be had, and a special design has been used on
all curves. At the Battery loop, at Westchester Avenue, at 96th
Street, and at City Hall loop, where it has been necessary for the
regular passenger tracks to cross, grade crossings have been avoided;
one track or set of tracks passing under the other at the intersecting
points. (See plan on this page.)
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