Staten Island Railway
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 Staten Island Railway |
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 An SIR rush hour local train discharges passengers at the Great Kills SIR station, its last stop. |
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| Info | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Rapid transit and freight | ||
| Status | Operational | ||
| Locale | Staten Island, New York | ||
| Termini | Tottenville (south) St. George (north) |
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| Stations | 23 | ||
| Services | 2 | ||
| Operation | |||
| Opened | 1860 | ||
| Owner | Metropolitan Transit Authority | ||
| Operator(s) | Staten Island Rapid Transit Operating Authority | ||
| Rolling stock | 63 R44SI cars | ||
| Technical | |||
| Line length | 14 mi (22 km) | ||
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 81⁄2 in) (standard gauge) | ||
| Electrification | Third rail | ||
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The Staten Island Rapid Transit Operating Authority, trading as MTA Staten Island Railway (or SIR), is the operator of the lone rapid transit line operating in the borough of Staten Island, New York City, USA. It is considered a standard railroad line, but only freight service along the western portion of the North Shore Branch is connected to the national railway system. Along the separate Main Line SIR operates with modified R44 New York City Subway cars[1] but there is no rail link between the Main Line and the subway system proper. Commuters typically use the Staten Island Ferry to reach Manhattan. The current SIR line has been completely grade separated from intersecting roads since 1966. The Staten Island Railway, notably like the Subway system, runs twenty-four hours a day, with service continuing overnight after most day peak traffic has ceased.
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[edit] History
The first line of what is now the Staten Island Railway opened in 1860 to Tottenville, the current southern terminus. If the SIR were considered part of the subway, this would be the oldest continually operated subway system right-of-way in New York City. In common with the BMT lines to Coney Island, the SIR started as a normal passenger and freight railroad line.[2][3] In 1880, the Staten Island Rapid Transit (SIRT) was incorporated and it leased the Staten Island Railway in 1884.[4] Seeking a greater presence in the New York market and improved freight connections for its New York harbor carfloat operations, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad acquired control of the SIRT in November, 1885.[4]
[edit] Electrification
In August 1924, work began on electrification of the Staten Island's three passenger lines. A short 1 mile passenger and freight spur to Mount Loretto was never electrified. The main line between St. George and Tottenville at the extreme southern end of Staten Island was completely electrified by July 1, 1925, along with the St.George-South Beach branch on the Narrows.[5] The line from the St. George ferry terminal to Arlington on Staten Island's north shore was electrified on December 1, 1925. New subway-type equipment manufactured by the Pressed Steel Car Corp. (who also manufactured equipment for the BMT) was placed in service on all passenger trains.
[edit] Freight service
Freight service with steam (later diesel) power continued on all branches. Starting in the 1880s Erastus Wiman rose to the leadership of the company and in a reorganization he renamed the company the Staten Island Rapid Transit Railroad Company in the 1880s.[6] Wiman oversaw the opening of the extension of the Main Line from its original Clifton terminus north to Tompkinsville on July 31, 1884; the opening of the North Shore Branch on February 23, 1886; and the South Beach Branch on March 8, 1886. Wiman soon began negotiations with the leaders of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad for the mutual benefit of the two companies that were then still independent. Being smaller than the Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York Central Railroad, the B&O relished the opportunity to start rail service to the potentially lucrative New York City market via collaboration with the SIRTRR. With capital provided by the B&O the SIRTRR opened its first connection to the mainland rail network on June 13, 1889 over the first bridge over the Arthur Kill waterway.[6] During the 1930s, 40's and 50's primary interstate feight traffic terminated at the car floats in St. George and many railroads, including the Chesapeake and Ohio had interstate trackage rights. Connections were also made to small private railroads such as the one at Pouch Terminal, switched by a Mack Diesel, preserved and now residing at Allaire State Park in New Jersey. During the late 1800s a small 3 foot gauge railroad with a single 0-4-0 ran on Fort Wadsworth and connected with a team track on the South Beach line. The last through passenger service between Staten Island and Washington D.C. ran in 1957 with a special two-section train from Tomkinsville with the British Royal family on board.
The Arthur Kill Vertical Lift Bridge replaced the original bridge in 1959 and carried freight until 1991 when traffic had essentially disappeared. From 2004 to 2006 the bridge was refurbished and freight service over the bridge, along the western portions of the North Shore Branch, resumed in 2007.[7]
[edit] Mid 20th century
On May 11 1943, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill used the North Shore Branch en route to a meeting with President Franklin D. Roosevelt in Washington, D.C. after his ship had landed in Tompkinsville. On October 21 1957, a young Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip rode a special B&O train from Washington, D.C. along the North Shore Branch to Stapleton to start their royal visit to New York City.[8]
[edit] MTA
In 1971 the passenger operations of the former Staten Island Rapid Transit Railway Company, which had absorbed lessor Staten Island Railway Company in 1944, were acquired from its parent Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, and the Staten Island Rapid Transit Railway Company was renamed Staten Island Railroad Corporation, which still exists as a subsidiary of the CSX Corporation. The MTA created a subsidiary, the Staten Island Rapid Transit Operating Authority, for the purposes of operation and maintenance. In March, 1973, new R44 cars — the same as the newest cars then in use on the subway lines in the other boroughs — were pressed into service on the Staten Island line, replacing the rolling stock that had been inherited from the B&O days and had been in use since 1925 (the R44 cars are still in service as of 2009).[1][9]
In 1994, as part of a public image campaign of the MTA, the various operating agencies of the MTA were given "popular names" at which time the public face of SIRTOA became MTA Staten Island Railway, which name is used on trains, stations, timetables and other public presentments.[2]
[edit] Current status
Officially the Staten Island Rapid Transit Operating Authority (SIRTOA), and publicly styled MTA Staten Island Railway, the SIR is a subsidiary of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). SIRTOA operates and maintains the rail line on Staten Island pursuant to a lease and operating agreement with the City of New York. The MTA would like to effect a corporate merger of the SIR with the New York City Transit Authority's subway division to form MTA Subways,[10][11] but necessary approval by the New York State Legislature has been stalled since 2003.
Today, only the north-south Main Line is in passenger service. The terminal station at St. George provides a direct connection to the Staten Island Ferry. Schedules are made by NYCT's Operations Planning unit. The last passenger trains on both the North Shore and South Beach Branches ran on March 31, 1953. The right-of-way of the South Beach Branch was eventually de-mapped and the tracks have been removed. The North Shore and Travis Branches saw freight service temporarily suspended beginning in 1991. Freight service along the Travis Branch and the western most portion of the North Shore Branch was restored by 2007. Along the remainder of the North Shore Branch tracks and rail overpasses still exist in some places. In 2001, a small section of the eastern most portion of the North Shore Branch (a few hundred feet) was reopened to provide passenger service to the new Richmond County Bank Ballpark, home of the Staten Island Yankees minor-league baseball team. Plans to reopen the remainder of the North Shore Branch, to both freight and passenger service, are being studied, with one plan calling for the line to resume full operations between St. George and Port Ivory by 2015.[12]
[edit] Restored freight service
The freight line connection from New Jersey to the Staten Island Railway was restored in late 2006, and is operated in part by the Morristown and Erie Railway under contract with the State of New Jersey and other companies.[13] The Arthur Kill Vertical Lift Bridge which transports trains from Staten Island to New Jersey over the Arthur Kill waterway was renovated from 2004 to 2006 and began regular service on April 2, 2007, 16 years after the bridge closed.[14] A portion of the North Shore of the Staten Island Railway was rehabilitated, the Arlington Yard was expanded, and 6,500 feet (2,000 m) of new track was laid along the Travis Branch to Fresh Kills.[15] Soon after service restarted on the line Mayor of New York City Michael Bloomberg officially commemorated the reactivation on April 17, 2007.[16] On behalf of the City of New York, the New York City Economic Development Corporation formed an agreement with CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern Railway, and Conrail to provide service over the reactivated line to haul waste from the Staten Island Transfer Station and ship container freight from the Howland Hook Marine Terminal and other industrial businesses.
[edit] FRA oversight
Unlike the New York City Transit Authority (NYCTA), SIRTOA is subject to rules of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) but operates under a waiver which permits it to exempt itself from certain rules of equipment and operation usually required by the FRA.[2][17] This FRA status complicates any plan for combined freight and passenger operation.
The SIR shares a similar status with the Port Authority Trans-Hudson (PATH) system, which is also an FRA railroad running on a somewhat different waiver.[18]
[edit] Nature of the line
In general appearance, the current operating line of SIR looks somewhat like an outdoor line of the New York City Subway. Since the 1960s it has been grade separated from all roads, but it runs more or less at street level for a brief stretch north of Clifton, between the Grasmere and Old Town stations west of the Academy of St. Dorothy, a Roman Catholic elementary school, and from south of the Pleasant Plains station to Tottenville, the end of the line. It uses NYC Transit-standard 660 V DC third rail power. Its equipment is specially modified subway vehicles, purchased at the same time as nearly-identical cars for NYCT. Heavy maintenance of the equipment is performed at the NYCT's Clifton Shops. Any work that can't be done at Clifton requires the cars be trucked over the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge to the Coney Island Complex shops of the subway.[19]
The right-of-way also includes elevated, embankment and open-cut portions, and a tunnel near St. George.
Over the years there have been several proposals for connecting the SIR with the subway system (including tunnels and a possible line along the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge), but various economic, political, and engineering difficulties have prevented this from happening.[20]
[edit] Fares
The cash fare is US$2.25. Fares are paid on entry and exit only at St. George, Tompkinsville, and Ballpark (and in the case of the Ballpark, only on trains to Tottenville, not St. George). Rides not originating or terminating at St George, Tompkinsville, or Ballpark are free. Prior to the 1997 introduction of "1 fare zones" that came along with free transfers from the SIR to the subway system and MTA buses by using the MetroCard, fares were collected by the conductors on the trains for passengers boarding at stops other than St. George.[2]
In the past, passengers often avoided paying the fare by exiting at Tompkinsville, and taking a short walk to the St. George ferry terminal. Because of this, the MTA installed turnstiles (HEETs) at Tompkinsville, along with a new stationhouse. Some rush hour local trains skip Tompkinsville.
Fare is payable by MetroCard. Since this card enables free transfers for a continuing ride on the subway and bus systems, for many more riders there is effectively no fare at all for riding SIR. Riders are also allowed to transfer between a Staten Island bus, SIR, and a Manhattan bus or subway near South Ferry. Because of this, the SIR's farebox recovery ratio in 2001 was 0.16—that is, for every dollar of expense, 16 cents was recovered in fares, the lowest ratio of MTA agencies (part of the reason the MTA wishes to merge the SIR with the subway proper is to simplify the accounting and subsidization of what is essentially a single line).[21]
[edit] Incidents
A train derailed in Tottenville on December 26 2008 at 6:27A.M. The train was pulling into the station to accept passengers for a rush hour run to St. George when it ran into the "bumper block" and subsequently derailed. No passengers were on the train at the time of the incident. The Staten Island Advance reported that the incident is under investigation.[22]
On Friday February 27, 2009 at 6:44A.M. a man was struck and killed at the Pleasant Plains station by an out of service Tottenville bound train.[23][24] Police initially ruled it a suicide, but that has been refuted by family members.[23]
[edit] Stations
| Station service legend | |
|---|---|
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Stops all times |
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service on game days only |
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planned |
 |
flag stop |
| Time period details | |
| Stations |  |
Connections | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Staten Island | |||
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St. George | |
Staten Island Ferry |
| Service to/from St. George or Tottenville enter/leave here | |||
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RCB Ballpark | |
Richmond County Bank Ballpark |
| Service to/from St. George skip RCB Ballpark | |||
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Tompkinsville | ||
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Stapleton | ||
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Clifton | ||
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Grasmere | ||
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Old Town | ||
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Dongan Hills | |
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Jefferson Avenue | ||
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Grant City | ||
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New Dorp | ||
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Oakwood Heights | ||
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Bay Terrace | ||
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Great Kills | |
Historic Richmond Town |
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Eltingville | Staten Island Mall | |
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Annadale | Blue Heron Park | |
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Huguenot | ||
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Prince's Bay | ||
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Pleasant Plains | ||
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Richmond Valley | ||
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Nassau | ||
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Arthur Kill Road | |
Under construction |
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Atlantic | ||
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Tottenville | |
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Notes:
- The last car at Clifton (to St. George) does not make the platform except for late nights when trains are only 2 cars long.
- The last car at Richmond Valley does not make the platform in either direction except for late nights when trains are only 2 cars long.
- Only the last car makes the platform at Atlantic.
- The Nassau and Atlantic stations will close when Arthur Kill Road station is complete.
[edit] Former stations on closed lines
[edit] North Shore Branch
The North Shore Branch closed to passenger service at midnight on Tuesday March 31, 1953. Although it is now mostly abandoned (except for freight service in the west and passenger service in the east), future restoration is being planned along this five to six mile (8 to 10 km) line.[12]
- St. George (0.0)
- RCB Ballpark (Station, which serves Richmond County Bank Ballpark and utilizes a short portion of the abandoned north shore ROW. It was opened in 2001 and currently in service during playing season.) (0.1)
- New Brighton- Located at the northerly end of Jersey St. (0.7)
- Sailors' Snug Harbor- Located at Clinton Avenue and Richmond Terrace (1.2)
- Livingston - Located at Bard Avenue and Richmond Terrace (1.8)
- West Brighton - Located at Richmond Terrace between North Burgher Avenue and Broadway; now situated on private property - a fact that has proven problematical in efforts to restore service on the line (2.4)
- Port Richmond- Located at Park Avenue and Church Street (3.0)
- Tower Hill- Located between Treadwell and Sharpe Avenues (3.4)
- Elm Park - Located at Morningstar Road and Innis Street (3.9)
- Lake Avenue - Located at Lake Avenue (4.3)
- Mariners Harbor - Located at Van Pelt Avenue (4.6)
- Harbor Road - Located at Harbor Road (4.9)
- Arlington - Located at South Avenue between Arlington Place and Brabant Street (5.2)
- Port Ivory (formerly Milliken -- named for the Port Ivory manufacturing plant of Procter & Gamble, where Ivory Soap was once made) (6.1)
[edit] South Beach Branch
The South Beach Branch closed at midnight Tuesday March 31, 1953. It was abandoned and demolished except for remaining stanchions on St. John's Avenue and Robin Road.[25][26] This 4.1 miles (6.6 km) line left the Main Line south of the Clifton station and lay to the east of the Main Line.
- Bachmann (Eliminated in 1937) - Located between Lynhurst and Chestnut Avenues Overpasses (2.0)
- Rosebank - Original wooden platform station located at Virginia Avenue. Upgraded station located at Tilson Pl. and Kaltemeier Lane (2.1)
- Belair Road- Located near Belair Rd and Seth Loop. (2.5)
- Fort Wadsworth - Located at Fingerboard Rd. (2.7)
- Arrochar - Located at Major Ave. (3.2)
- Cedar Avenue - Located at Cedar Ave. between Conger St. and Railroad Ave. (3.5)
- South Beach - Located at Sand Lane. (3.9)
- Wentworth Avenue - Located in weeded area at the now abandoned section of Wentworth Avenue (4.1)
[edit] Industries serviced
- North Shore Branch: Procter & Gamble, United States Gypsum, Staten Island Ship Building, Car Float
- Travis Branch: Gulf Oil Port, Con Edison coal plant
- Tottenville Line: Nassau Smelting, Staten Island Advance, Pouch Terminal
- South Beach Branch: Bachmann's Brewery
[edit] Future service
The Staten Island Advance reported in May 2006 that Staten Island business and political leaders are looking to restore service on the North Shore Branch. They are seeking approval of $4 million in federal funding for a detailed feasibility study, to revive the North Shore line as a commuter line ending at the St. George Ferry Terminal. Alternatively, there has been talk of adding light rail service to Staten Island.
Completion of the study is necessary to qualify the project for the estimated $360 million it requires to develop the 5.1-mile line. A preliminary study found that ridership could hit 15,000 daily. [12]
There is a new station that will be named Arthur Kill Road to be built near the southern terminus of the line. It will essentially replace both the Atlantic and Nassau stations, which are in the poorest condition of all the stations on the line. There is also discussion of rebuilding a Rosebank station, which will bridge the longest gap between two stations (Grasmere and Clifton). A Rosebank station once existed on the now-defunct South Beach Branch of the railway.[27]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b nycsubway.org - R44 car information
- ^ a b c d David Paul Gerber. "Staten Island Railway". http://stationreporter.net/sir.htm. Retrieved on 2009-02-24.
- ^ An early railroad to Coney Island was the Coney Island and Brooklyn Railroad. Note the reference to "Brooklyn News". New York Times. June 23, 1862. http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FA0F17FC345B1B7493C1AB178DD85F468684F9. Retrieved on 2009-02-24.
- ^ a b Harwood, Jr., Herbert H.. Royal Blue Line. Sykesville, Md.: Greenberg. p. 37. ISBN 0-89778-155-4.
- ^ Harwood, p. 133.
- ^ a b Irvin Leigh and Paul Matus (December 23, 2001). "SIRT The Essential History". 6. http://www.thethirdrail.net/0201/sirt6.html. Retrieved on 2009-02-26.
- ^ "Arthur Kill Railroad Lift Bridge". http://www.nycroads.com/crossings/arthur-kill/. Retrieved on 2009-02-24.
- ^ "Railroad News Photos". Trains magazine vol. 18 (no. 4): 8. February 1958.
- ^ Peggy Darlington. "North Shore Line". http://stationreporter.net/nshore.htm. Retrieved on 2009-02-24.
- ^ MTA Capital Construction
- ^ "MTA NYC Transit - Staten Island Railway". http://www.mta.info/nyct/sir/sirinfo.htm. Retrieved on 2009-03-03.
- ^ a b c Maura Yates and Phil Helsel (July 12, 2008). "Reality check for Staten Island's rail plans". http://www.silive.com/transportation/index.ssf/2008/07/reality_check_for_staten_islan.html. Retrieved on 2009-02-24.
- ^ "New Jersey short line to operate county-owned lines". July 8, 2002. http://www.progressiverailroading.com/news/article.asp?id=5254. Retrieved on 2009-03-07.
- ^ "New York City welcomes back Staten Island Railroad". April 19, 2007. http://www.progressiverailroading.com/freightnews/article.asp?id=8761. Retrieved on 2009-03-07.
- ^ "NYCEDC – About Us – Our Projects – Completed Projects – Staten Island Railroad Reactivation". http://www.nycedc.com/Web/AboutUs/OurProjects/CompletedProjects/StatenIslandRailroadReactivation.htm. Retrieved on 2009-03-07.
- ^ nyc.gov - Mayor's Press Release
- ^ "SIRT: Staten Island Rapid Transit". http://nycsubway.org/lines/sirt.html. Retrieved on 2009-02-25.
- ^ "Federal Railroad Administration: Passenger Rail; Chapter 1". http://www.fra.dot.gov/us/content/886. Retrieved on 2009-03-03.
- ^ "Coney Island Complex". http://nycsubway.org/cars/yards_coney.html. Retrieved on 2009-02-24.
- ^ http://www.panix.com/~danielc/nyc/sibktunl.htm
- ^ "MTA to merge agencies into five companies". October 11, 2002. http://www.progressiverailroading.com/news/article.asp?id=10332. Retrieved on 2009-03-07.
- ^ "Staten Island Railway train derails in Tottenville". http://www.silive.com/news/index.ssf/2008/12/staten_island_railway_train_re.html. Retrieved on 2009-02-24.
- ^ a b "Man killed at Staten Island train station 'just walked out'". http://www.silive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/02/man_killed_at_staten_island_tr.html#more. Retrieved on 2009-03-03.
- ^ "Staten Island train kills man at Pleasant Plains station!". http://www.justicenewsflash.com/2009/02/28/staten-island-train-kills-man-pleasant-plains-station_20090228842.html. Retrieved on 2009-03-02.
- ^ "Gary Owen’s S.I.R.T. South Beach Line Page". http://www.gretschviking.net/GOSIRTPage1.htm. Retrieved on 2009-03-07.
- ^ "Gary Owen’s S.I.R.T. South Beach Line Page". 2. http://www.gretschviking.net/GOSIRTPagePartTwo.htm. Retrieved on 2009-03-07.
- ^ Platt, Tevah. "A rail station for Rosebank?". Staten Island Advance. http://www.silive.com/eastshore/index.ssf/2008/05/a_rail_station_for_rosebank.html.
[edit] External links
- Staten Island Railway
- History of SIRT
- nycsubway.org - SIRT: Staten Island Rapid Transit
- TrainsAreFun.com - Staten Island Rapid Transit
- Gary Owen's SIRT South Beach Line Tribute Page
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