In 1837, as rail travel was beginning to take root and re-define the American landscape, The New York and Harlem Railroad (NY&HRR) built the first rail structure on the Grand Central site, a car maintenance barn. New York Transit Museum Postcard Collection R.R Station and Library Hall, Mattituck, L.I., c. The terminal itself is only one aspect of potentially the largest transit improvement project ever in the northeastern United States, East Side Access, which encompasses building miles of new track, reconfiguring and updating rail yards in New York City and Long Island, modernizing infrastructure such as bridges and tunnels, and the hiring of thousands of new employees. The opening of Grand Central Madison is one of the most seismic shifts in New York transportation history, allowing LIRR trains to provide service directly to Manhattan’s east side. Today, the four counties on Long Island are home to 7.88 million people – one-third of the entire population of New York State – and the LIRR is a vital link in the regional transportation network. Direct service from Long Island to Manhattan’s west side began with the opening of Pennsylvania Station in 1910. The LIRR became inextricably linked to the development of Long Island and the surrounding metropolitan area. In the 1830s, Long Island’s 70,000 residents were mostly concentrated in Brooklyn and Queens, the island’s western end. Today, America’s oldest railroad still operating under its original name is also the busiest commuter railroad in North America. When the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) was chartered on April 24, 1834, railroads had been in existence for only nine years and Long Island was sparsely populated. “Even while Walt Whitman was romanticizing the Brooklyn Ferry, daring minds were planning permanent linkages between thriving Manhattan and the growing communities of Long Island.” – Threshold to the Seventies, 1972 Introduction “The crucial factor for transportation in this region is the interdependence of city and suburb – interdependence today, the even greater interdependence tomorrow.” – Metropolitan Transportation – A Program for Action, 1968 A Grand New Connection: LIRR to Grand Central Madison
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |