QUOTE: Caveat: These ramblings are not necessarily in order of events, but rather a free-flow of my thoughts and notes at the time of preparation. Therefore, it will not be uncommon for the reader to experience a back and forth reference to time and places as I proceed through this effort. The Staten Island Rapid Transit (S.I.R.T.) – Part One: At the beginning of the 20th Century, all the Boroughs of New York City had elevated and subway service with the exception of the Borough of Richmond (Staten Island). Over 100 years back, the Staten Island Rapid Transit operated a surface rail system with small steam engines and passenger cars taking people from one end of the island to the other (about 15 miles from St. George to Tottenville, the southernmost point in New York State). There were also branches emanating from St. George along the northern shore of the island and a parallel line to a popular summer spot, South Beach. The S.I.R.T. joined in partnership with the B&O, the nation’s oldest railroad, which also provided a valuable freight link across the island to New Jersey. With the introduction of trolleys to the island in 1895, the S.I.R.T. suffered a loss in ridership, throwing it into bankruptcy. When purchased by the B&O, ferry service to Manhattan was also included. A legacy somewhat lost in the history of the rather famous “Staten Island Ferry.” There were several well laid plans to link the island with the Borough of Brooklyn by tunnel. In 1925, the idea was to bring the BRT subway to Staten Island by way of a tunnel under The Narrows. Politics got in the way, funding arguments ensued, and the idea eventually faded into the file cabinet drawers of history. Time and smart management practices, along with a population “spurt” helped the S.I.R.T. through some rough years and it remained a viable mass transit like long after trolleys disappeared from the streets of Staten Island. However, a fine bus system, replaced the trolleys and eventually helped lead to the demise of two of the three branches. Today, the link between St. George and Tottenville still exists. The ending of passenger service on two of the three branches was primarily due to the actions of the New York City Board of Transportation. This body controlled all of the transit in the City with the exception of the S.I.R.T. and a few other surface lines. With the introduction of 12-cent fares, generous transfers and combination travel between bus and subway, the S.I.R.T. simply couldn’t compete. In 1953, the north shore and South Beach lines were discontinued.
QUOTE: M.T.A. Lyrics From The Kingston Trio at Large Date: 07/01/1959 Jacqueline Steiner/Bess Hawes Spoken: These are the times that try men's souls. In the course of our nation's history, the people of Boston have rallied bravely whenever the rights of men have been threatened. Today, a new crisis has arisen. The Metropolitan Transit Authority, better known as the M.T.A., is attempting to levy a burdensome tax on the population in the form of a subway fare increase. Citizens, hear me out! This could happen to you! (Eight bar guitar, banjo introduction) Well, let me tell you of the story of a man named Charley on a tragic and fateful day. He put ten cents in his pocket, kissed his wife and family, went to ride on the M.T.A. Chorus: Well, did he ever return? No, he never returned and his fate is still unknown. (What a pity! Poor ole Charlie. Shame and scandal. He may ride forever. Just like Paul Revere.) He may ride forever 'neath the streets of Boston. He's the man who never returned. Charlie handed in his dime at the Kendall Square Station and he changed for Jamaica Plain. When he got there the conductor told him, "One more nickel." Charlie couldn't get off of that train. (Chorus) Now, all night long Charlie rides through the station, crying, "What will become of me?!! How can I afford to see my sister in Chelsea or my cousin in Roxbury?" (Chorus) Charlie's wife goes down to the Sculley Square Station every day at quarter past two, And through the open window she hands Charlie a sandwich as the train comes rumblin' through. (Chorus) Now, you citizens of Boston, don't you think it's a scandal how the people have to pay and pay? Fight the fare increase! Vote for George O'Brien! Get poor Charlie off the M. T. A. (Chorus) He's the man who never returned. He's the man who never returned. Ain't you Charlie?
QUOTE: Here's a Post from "my" past with another thread that may be of interest here. Definitely a tale of Classic Trains! [tup] I don't know why, but as of late, I've been thinking about an RDC (Rail Diesel Car) trip I took with my wife and a couple of friends back in 1999. We were visiting Vancouver, BC and on what was supposed to be an "off day" - (they do what they want, we do what we want), I looked into booking a trip aboard BC Rail's "Cariboo Prospector" (that IS the way they spelled it) from North Vancouver to Lillooet, BC. The round trip was to take the entire next day with a 7 AM departure and return at 9 PM. When the other couple found out what I had in mind, they too wanted to come along. So, I booked the four tickets and off we went. The consist awaiting us that chilly March morning was four RDC's - from my pictures, it appears that we had two RDC3's and two RDC1's. The livery was the blue/white striped with blue red heralds. For those who may not know, an RDC3 was designed as a combined passenger, baggage-express, and mail car. Over the years, BC Rail (formerly Pacific Great Eastern Railway) had these cars "rehabed" to provide a food preparation area in the baggage area. The coach portions were outfitted to include swing down tray tables (similar but larger that what the airlines use) along with much more comfortable seating than I recall when commuting aboard the Boston & Maine's RDC's back in the 1960's. The RDC1 was initially designed to seat 89 passengers. BC Rail's version appeared to be about the same, but with the upgraded seating. Our seats were in the RDC3 for both legs of the journey. That morning was a gloomy, low overhanging cloudy start to the day. As we wound our way out of North Vancouver and followed the route to Squamish, I was a bit saddened that my wife would not get the beautiful view of the inlets off of Howe Sound. Really a picturesque place to see ...... From the train at Squamish we could see the industry of the area along with a couple of steam loco's (and I'm sure many of you will provide commentary on those!!). As I recall, only a relative handful boarded and off we continued to Whistler, gaining elevation as we got into the mountains. What scenery! This was becoming a great day - as the sky cleared up almost as soon as we got into higher elevations. Waterfalls, gorges, cascading mountains - all of it at about 8 mph - as the engineer slowed the train to permit picture taking. Really something to see and keep etched in the memory banks (and of course, photo albums!). We had about a 10 minute stop at Whistler - so I got off the train with my friend's wife (who was in dire need of a cigarette) whereas I wanted to snap some photo's of the RDC's (what else!). Surprise, surprise! There was about 4 feet of snow awaiting us - of course the platform was cleared - but the snow was all around us. Absolutely wonderful to see and experience - and the temperatures were more than tolerable. I wanted to stick around a bit, but the RDC's sounded the horn and we climbed back on board. Now, I could go on and on and on about everything we saw along the way to Lillooet, but let me just say that the descriptions would somehow all sound alike - breathtaking, beautiful, stunning, great, fantastic, etc. ...... About 45 minutes south of Lillooet, we passed by two large glacial lakes - Anderson and Seton lakes. With sheer cliffs dropping nearly straight down to the water, we all marveled at just how those mountain goats managed to get where they were (much less back to where they came from)!! Unbelievable. Each lake has a story connected with it - perhaps for another session (unless someone wants to "jump" in to expound on them a bit ......[:)]) Lillooet sits in a valley and the town is within reasonable walking distance from the train station, which by the way is a great place to see. We had about 2 hours before the return trip, so we headed into town to see the sites. We learned that Lillooet's history really goes back to the "gold rush" days when this was the staging area for the hordes of people heading north to stake their claims. We also met some very friendly and forthcoming folks who were more than willing to answer the questions so many had. My wife and I decided to hike up one of the hills - all developed - just to get some photo's looking down on the town. Glad we did, for those pictures really are now keepsakes. One of the people we met came out of her house and asked if we had "see the bear?" Hmmmmmm - apparently there had been a bear meandering around, but had not been seen for about an hour or so. That was comforting[:0] The return trip was also something to remember, but alas, much of it was in dusk then darkness. The meal served on board and at our seats was fantastic. We had a choice of entrees and the food was plentiful, hot, and tasty. Forgot to say the same about our breakfast ....... Well, BC Rail no longer runs those RDC's or anything else. The trains all the way to Prince George (Lillooet is about half way) no longer run. Sad times for many along the route. I know, from friends we have in BC, that it was a heated debate right up until CN took over ...... The RDC's? Well, they've been "dispersed," another way of saying "sold" and from the best of what I've been able to ascertain - have all seen much better times. A couple have been relegated to tourism trains in the U.S., others as spare parts, and one or two either have or are supposed to wind up in a RR museum. There had been a rumor that VIA Rail wanted to purchase them, for the "Malahat," but apparently that fell through - budgets being what they always are - "insufficient"![:(] So, that's it! Another chapter in riding Canadian Passenger Railroads comes to a close. But - wait, not so fast. My model railroad - Can-Am layout - has a mountain line. It is a point-to-point run, with LifeLike Proto 1000's RDC's in the BC Rail livery, making the run whenever I want them to! Even have mini-versions of Anderson and Seton Lakes! Check 'em out on my photo site - http://www.railimages.com/gallery/thomasweber
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