A New York "lowline" park?

[wanswheel]

 

[wanswheel]

Street Railway Journal, April 11, 1908

UNDERGROUND BRIDGE TERMINAL IN NEW YORK FOR BROOKLYN SURFACE AND “L” LINES

The Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company expects some time in May to begin to use, for its surface cars, the new underground terminal at the Delancey Street end the Williamsburg Bridge. The terminal will provide for the accommodation of both the surface and the elevated cars of the company, below the street level, but it will be some time before the elevated lines will use the station, as the efforts of the Bridge Department have been devoted to completing the trolley loops at the earliest possible date in anticipation of the large summer traffic.

The new terminal will be under the approach of bridge, which extends from Clinton Street to the Bowery and is three blocks long and 180 ft wide. Both trolley and elevated station will be at the same level with means of inter-communication, but entirely separate entrances will be provided at the street level. The terminal will do away entirely with the present temporary arrangement of stub tracks for the surface cars now crossing the bridge from Brooklyn, and will provide adequate accommodations for the elevated lines which are not as yet operated over structure. The bridge has been in use by the surface lines operating in Brooklyn since 1903, but the completion of the terminal has been delayed owing to the time required by city authorities to decide between an elevated or subway loop to connect the Brooklyn and the Williamsburg bridges. The first was the original plan, but subsequently an underground connection was decided upon. It will thus be seen that the terminal for the elevated lines as now provided will on the completion of the loop to connect the bridges be converted into a way station. It was with this in mind that the station was laid out as shown in the plan of the terminal.

The surface lines that will use the terminal will be Nostrand Avenue, Marcy Avenue, Tompkins Avenue, Reid Avenue, Ralph Avenue, Broadway, Hamburg Avenue, Wyckoff Avenue, Grand Street and Bushwick Avenue surface lines of the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company and the Franklin Avenue line of the Coney Island & Brooklyn Railroad. Many of these lines enjoy exceedingly heavy traffic, especially those which in summer are operated to Coney Island, among them the Nostrand Avenue, Tompkins Avenue, Reid Avenue and Franklin Avenue lines. Several other lines also reach amusement resorts. The Marcy Avenue line is operated to the race track at Sheepshead Bay, which is opposite Manhattan Beach. The Hamburg Avenue line is operated to Canarsie and the Grand Street line to North Beach, both of which are popular resorts. The elevated lines that will use the terminal are the Broadway and Cypress Hills and the Canarsie lines of the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company. The estimated capacity of the trolley loops is 400 cars an hour and the estimated capacity of the elevated terminal is 30 eight-car trains an hour.

 As far as possible the loops for the different surface lines will be so assigned that the number of passengers using one will not be greatly in excess of another. The same system of numbering will be in vogue as at the Brooklyn Bridge, the first loop on approaching the bridge being numbered one and the others two, three, four, five, six, seven and eight, respectively. As now proposed the Nostrand Avenue and Belt lines will be operated from Loop I, the Broadway and Reid Avenue lines from Loop 2, Hamburg Avenue from Loop 3, Ralph Avenue from Loop 4, Bushwick Avenue from Loop 5, Sumner Avenue and Tompkins Avenue from Loop 6, Bridge Local from Loop 7, Grand Street and Franklin Avenue lines from Loop 8. There will be a common stairway to each of the loops 12 ft. wide, divided by a railing to separate the incoming from the outgoing passengers. Several general directory signs to the different loops and the car lines will be conspicuously displayed, and at the entrance to each of the loops the loop number and the line operated will appear. In addition the loop number and the lines operated will be conspicuously displayed at the head of each pair of stairs inside the building proper, so that there will be no possibility of confusion. Several signs in foreign languages will also be posted for the benefit of those patrons who do not read English.

As in the case of the second lot of four loops installed at the New York end of the Brooklyn Bridge, the cars will stop on the near side of the loops to discharge passengers and then proceed and take on passengers at the far side. A gong at each of the loops under the control of a dispatcher will be rung for starting cars, just as is now done at the Brooklyn Bridge. A very valuable feature of the new arrangement for the surface cars is that a stub has been provided at the end of the loops with a capacity of two cars onto which such cars as become disabled will be run until the necessary repairs can be made. At the Brooklyn Bridge if more than one car becomes disabled one of the active loops has to be temporarily converted into a storage track. Another interesting feature in connection with the track layout is the provision made for quickly throwing the switches of the eight loops so that a car can be run through direct to the storage track just referred to. The grade from the bridge is about 4.6 per cent and a runaway car could thus be passed through the station and brought up against the bumper.

The track for the loops consists of 5-in. x 80-lb. T rail in 30 ft. lengths with a steel guard rail bolted to the running rail through cast-iron separator blocks. The ties are of long leaf yellow pine 6 in. x 8 in. x 7 ft., specially treated. The ballast consists of 2-in to ¾-in. broken trap laid under and to the top of the ties. The split switches are all of the guarded type with a single housing of manganese steel and frog arms 5 ft. long. The joints are bonded with No. 0000 bonds. The radius of each loop is 100 ft.

In connection with the track for both the elevated and the surface it is of interest to note that drains have been provided under the ballast to carry all the water to a sump from which it will be pumped by a 4 ½-hp. centrifugal pump direct connected. An appreciable amount of water always will be carried into the station on rainy days and in addition allowance must be made for the water that ordinarily would trickle down the tracks and stairways.

The loading platform for the elevated trains will be 421 ft. long and 15 ft. wide. Each of the unloading platforms will be 421 ft. long by 12 ft. wide. There will be eleven exits from the two unloading platforms each 5 ft. wide. The entrances to the elevated terminal will be at the extreme east and west ends of the station by stairways 5 ft. and 16 ft. wide, respectively. The extreme width of the elevated portion of the terminal including the unloading platforms is 83 ft.  At the throat of the entrance to the terminal the width is 43 ft. 6 in.

Both elevated and surface lines will be protected by an electro-pneumatic interlocking plant with six levers for operating three single switches and eight signals. The machine will be equipped with the usual track model and with two working semaphores to show the condition of the track for clearing the main line. The tower will be of concrete and will be located at the throat of the station. The power outfit will consist of two motor-driven air compressors. A mechanical counter will also be installed to record the number of trains and cars entering and leaving the station.

The interior finish of the terminal is of glass tile similar to that used in the subway. Incandescent lights will be used throughout, the fixtures being for both single and double lamps. Power will, of course, be taken from the lines of the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company, but a connection with the Edison mains in New York has been provided so that a cut-over can be readily effected.

To facilitate the early opening of the station to the surface cars, the latter will be diverted for a time to the elevated tracks near the New York tower, and then will be switched to their own tracks at the throat of the tunnel. By this means it will be possible to carry on the work of demolishing the present surface car stub terminal. In Brooklyn the elevated structure was extended several hundred feet across to the bridge plaza to connect with the elevated tracks on the bridge proper.

At the street level the entrances and exits to the elevated terminal and surface loops will be protected by stair houses of artistic design finished in terra cotta. In addition there will be an artistic shelter at which the cars of the New York City Railway Company, which are operated to and from Brooklyn on the north side of the bridge, will stop. Many of the passengers on the New York City Railway destined to points in Brooklyn will transfer at the New York approach to the Brooklyn cars and the shelter will afford ample protection. These buildings are all shown in the accompanying illustrations.

The station will be cooled by means of two Sturtevant motor-driven exhaust fans which will be located in special fan houses at the east end of the station. The inlets will be 60 in. square and the outlets 48½ in. square. The capacity of the fans will be 35,000 cu. ft. of free air per minute when running at their normal speed of 200 r.p.m. The fan motors will be shunt wound and will develop 20 horse-power at the speed mentioned.

In connection with the construction of that part of the station to be used by the elevated lines it is interesting to note that all the work is of a semi-permanent character, the platform proper being hollow, so that it can all be readily changed should the building of the loop between the bridges make it advisable to modify the station. In any event, the stairs at the west end of the station will have to be removed when the loop between the bridges is completed. The station will be operated under lease from the city by the companies using it. The cost of the work is estimated at $1,250,000.

The Street Railway Journal is indebted to the Bridge Department of New York for the drawings used in connection with the description and for courtesies extended in connection with the preparation of the article.

[Wizlish]

The “lowline” might raise its case in honor of Seth Low, the former mayor of Brooklyn who, as mayor of New York, presided at the opening of the Williamsburg Bridge 111 years ago, December 19, 1903.

See also the administration building at Columbia University, named for him -- "used to be a library, now it's just low..."

I second the idea of calling it the Low line park.

[aegrotatio]

NYC is littered with abandoned underground trolley stations.

Washington DC is, too.  The one in Dupont Circle has opened as a commercial establishment and failed more than twice already.

The Underground Atlanta is open but has its ups and downs and didn't really recover from the recession and MARTA destroying parts of it.

Cincinnati and Rochester, NY don't acknowledge their existence too much.

 

 

[wanswheel]

The “lowline” might raise its case in honor of Seth Low, the former mayor of Brooklyn who, as mayor of New York, presided at the opening of the Williamsburg Bridge 111 years ago, December 19, 1903.

Electrical Review, November 12, 1904

Trolley cars commenced running over the new Williamsburg Bridge, New York City, on November 4. Cars of seven lines of the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company and of two lines of the Coney Island & Brooklyn Railroad Company cross the bridge, as well as three “bridge locals,” which run only between the plazas at each end of the bridge. The cars run on a headway of about one every minute, and consume seven or eight minutes in crossing the bridge. The bridge locals are run on a headway of about seven minutes, but this service is soon to be increased. Many persons who formerly crossed the Brooklyn Bridge made use of the new service. Each car carried about sixty five passengers during the rush hours.

Delancey Street, looking west at excavation for trolley station, July 30, 1906

Delancey Street, looking west at excavation for trolley station, August 30, 1906

Delancey Street, looking east at excavation and Williamsburg Bridge, August 30, 1906

[wanswheel]

http://nycma.lunaimaging.com/luna/servlet/s/1rfsi9  Loop tracks looking east

http://nycma.lunaimaging.com/luna/servlet/s/43h0rx Loop tracks looking west

http://nycma.lunaimaging.com/luna/servlet/s/j2znq9  Track repair looking east

http://nycma.lunaimaging.com/luna/servlet/s/wdxm7f  Track repair looking west

http://nycma.lunaimaging.com/luna/servlet/s/8b7yys  Track repair looking north

http://nycma.lunaimaging.com/luna/servlet/s/96bnbj  Trolley car

[samfp1943]

daveklepper

The station can be seen by riding the J or Z trains, on the left coming into Manhattan off the Williamsburg Bridge, or, better, on the right when leaving the Essex Street subway station toward the bridge.  This is also the station where one can free-transfer to the F.

I used the trolley station the last evenng it was open.  Streetcars for several points in Brooklyn used several loop tracks.  At one time there was a dispute between the BMT management and the city, and the city ran its own Bridge shuttle cars with the BMT (B&QT) cars excluded.  There once were conduit cars that used the bridge as well.

The trolley terminal and the subway station were both opened in 1903.  The subway station was also a termnal at first, for elevated gate-car trains coming off the bridge from the Broadway-Brooklyn elevated line, from Canarsie and Jamaica.

 

Thanks, Dave!  

So what is your considered opinion on the Lowline Park and its potentials?

I am totally unfamiliar with the area, so any informed insights would be helpful. 

   When I was OTR and delivering arond the City, the Public Transpotatin was of course visible, but a mystery.   I did deliver to the LIRR yard at Richmond Hill on a number of occasions. The Diner out in the yard was a really good place to grab a meal!  There was an' EL' through that area that made life miserable til I figured  out how to avoid it.  Getting into the Yard was an exercise in frustration, particularly with a 53' box, past the Fire Station, and all those parked cars.

I am guessing This 'Lowline Park' is going to be mostly underground? 

[daveklepper]

The station can be seen by riding the J or Z trains, on the left coming into Manhattan off the Williamsburg Bridge, or, better, on the right when leaving the Essex Street subway station toward the bridge.  This is also the station where one can free-transfer to the F.

I used the trolley station the last evenng it was open.  Streetcars for several points in Brooklyn used several loop tracks.  At one time there was a dispute between the BMT management and the city, and the city ran its own Bridge shuttle cars with the BMT (B&QT) cars excluded.  There once were conduit cars that used the bridge as well.

The trolley terminal and the subway station were both opened in 1903.  The subway station was also a termnal at first, for elevated gate-car trains coming off the bridge from the Broadway-Brooklyn elevated line, from Canarsie and Jamaica.

[narig01]

By Wizlish on Sunday, December 07, 2014

54light15 Does anyone have any further info?

In case anyone is interested about the park itself, they might start here.

Lowline Park

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lowline_(park)

Rgds IGN

[narig01]

PS Here is the Wikipedia entry

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delancey_Street_-_Essex_Street_(New_York_City_Subway)#BMT_Nassau_Street_Line_platforms

Rgds IGN

[narig01]

IIRC this is the trolley terminal at the Manhattan end of the Williamsburg Bridge. There have been any number of proposals made recently.

samfp1943 you might also want to ask Dave Klepper to this.

Thx IGN

[Wizlish]

54light15

Does anyone have any further info?

In case anyone is interested about the park itself, they might start here.

 

[samfp1943]

NorthWest

http://www.columbia.edu/~brennan/abandoned/willb.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delancey_Street_%E2%80%93_Essex_Street_(New_York_City_Subway)#BMT_Nassau_Street_Line_platforms

http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-17914500

http://www.nycsubway.org/wiki/Station:_Essex_Street_(Nassau_Street-Jamaica_Line)

  

 

I'd enjoy the comments of henry6 and the Broadway Lion on this.  They seem to be the most familiar around here with NYC and its subways.

Hopefully, they'll respond.

[NorthWest]

http://www.columbia.edu/~brennan/abandoned/willb.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delancey_Street_%E2%80%93_Essex_Street_(New_York_City_Subway)#BMT_Nassau_Street_Line_platforms

http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-17914500

http://www.nycsubway.org/wiki/Station:_Essex_Street_(Nassau_Street-Jamaica_Line)

  

[54light15]

In the Toronto Star yesterday was an article about a proposed underground park using an "abandoned trolly terminal below the Lower East Side that's been used for storage since 1948" "the site was once the turnaround for the line that ran across the Wiliamsburg bridge to Brooklyn."

Does anyone have any further info?