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| Re: What is this supposed to be? (1388522) | |||
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Re: What is this supposed to be? |
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Posted by JOE @ NYCMTS - NYCTMG on Sat Mar 12 07:04:16 2016, in response to Re: What is this supposed to be?, posted by tunnelrat on Fri Mar 11 11:43:22 2016. Hello again Steve (T-RAT)(PS: And LOSE the ALL CAPS LETTERS and make spaces between sentence endings - its hard for old eyes to read, heh !) Per your Questions (and I cleaned it up a bit) --as quoted: ====================================================================== HI JOE, LONG TIME SINCE WE TALKED. GREAT SHOTS OF THINGS I'VE NEVER SEEN. A FEW QUESTION IF YOU PLEASE. WHO BUILT THE TRACK CONNECTION BETWEEN THE T.A. TRACKAGE & THE NHRR ? AND WHEN WAS THE 3RD RAIL INSTALLED UP TO, BUT NOT INTO THE NHRR ? SURE AM GLAD YOU TOOK PHOTOS OF THE CONNECTING SWITCH INTO NHRR ROW. I'M ASSUMING THE BALLAST CARS WERE WERE DRILLED BY T.A.DIESELS IN THE RIGHT HAND PHOTOS. ANY SHOTS OF THE CONN.BEING BUILT? ====================================================================== OK -- when I was there in early 1957 to take photos of the last wooden MUDC cars and many Hi-V Steel subway cars being scrapped at the old Startlight Amusement Park grounds -- and again in 1960 for more IRT Hi-V subway scrapping -- the THIRD RAIL extended south to below E.177th Street (Coliseum Bus Garage area) along only both LOCAL TRACKS (outer tracks) of the Viaduct. These 3rd rails were uncovered IRT EL STYLE (without the classic IRT EL Lines wooden safety backboard) and positioned Third Rails -- which could be used by EL Car Work motors and Subway Car Work Motors. These same 3rd rails on those 2 tracks were used between 1941 and 1953 to store shuttle train 2 and 4 car consists of IRT EL Cars on the Viaduct-Trestle for use in NB rush hours - and I have photos of them stored on the trestle between E.177th St and E.180th St. On one track, the former NYW&B N/B express track, -- (which heading north was re-aligned over east to continue on as part of the existing N/B Local track) -- the 3rd rail extended south from the E.180th St (NYW&B) Station to just about 2 car lengths just below the south wall of round roof Coliseum Bus Garage Building (seen in my attached photo) which was once of the Starlight Park buildings. Past that point south about 4 car lengths to that famed Signal Gantry Bridge near the embankment bottom, and further south to the NHRR junction switch, there was NO THIRD RAIL on that track to where it switched to the NHRR Mainline SB Local track. THAT sole track was the car NHRR-IRT interchange delivery track. The 3rd Rail on the former NYW&B S/B local (west) track, the track that trains bound for scrapping at Starlight Park grounds were taken southward upon, usually motor cars being run upon under their OWN POWER to their demise, only extended south from 180th Street, to just next to the east wall of the round roof Coliseum Building. Generally a railroad tie was placed across the track rails there as a temporary "movable bumper" to insure any scrap bound cars were held there from any unintended rolling downgrade !! The outer (west) RUNNING rail of that former NYW&B S/B Local (west) track (the same track the El cars are seen on in my photo)- just a few car lengths NORTH of that now still remaining Signal Gantry bridge, was REMOVED, thus causing any cars "let loose" to be rolled down to that point, to "derail", as was intended, and tilt, veer off to the right (west) and tumble, roll over down the short slope of the embankment -- to the flat ground below. It worked every time, whereupon they were dragged into paralleled rows to be burned and cut up for scrap. A, heh, CHEAP way to deliver cars to their scrap death. See my photo below  Once all the remaining 3rd AVE EL cars (by 1957) and all Hi-V cars, and a number of surplus replaced Low-V subway cars, were scrapped by 1960-62, scrapping ended there at that time, (at the Starlight Grounds) and that third rail on both tracks was cut back. The S/B former local track lost its 3rd rail southward from its portion below the crossover just below 180th Street on the steel viaduct. The former N/B local track 3rd rail was also cut back just a short bit from where it ended at the south in 1955, and thus was ended just below the E.177th street crossing, approx. next to the Coliseum Bus Garage building's east wall. See my Feb 1964 photo taken at that point, below; The Coliseum building is out of view at left a bit south below the E.177th Street underpass thru-deck girders.  As far as when the single track connection and switch to the NHRR S/B Local Mainline track was made, it was installed some time in very early 1955, BY THE N.H.RR crews, and they connected about 6 car lengths of NEW straight connecting track north from that NEW switch, to the existing (cut-off stub ended at that time) intact and still sturdy former (at that specific location) N/B Local track of the ex-NYW&B, which ended cut off alongside the NHRR S/B Main track. Remember, those 2 mainline local tracks became a 4 track NYW&B mainline near the E.174th Street roadway bridge. See my photo view north where that 2 to 4 track interlocking once existed:  The NHRR continued the new straight track to line up and continue straight to the former N/B express track. See my photo below looking south showing the former NYW&B 4 to 2 track interlocking long abandoned switch track ties;  The NYCTA also then did re-alignment changes to that N/B express track further north up the embankment, next to the Coliseum building, to veer right and continue north as, on to, the N/B local track.... as seen in my further above photo of MUDC EL cars on the "Scrap Track" . I have a photo taken in late summer 1954, looking north around approx. E.172nd Street, along the west edge of the NHRR mainline four tracks, on the trackless gravel of the former once 2-track NYW&B in the lower foreground, showing the 2 cut-off stub ended NYW&B local tracks. I have created new NYW&B-IRT Connections FLICKR Albums covering the Harlem river Terminal up to E. 180th Street. The First Album is complete - Harlem River to the NYW&B-NHRR Hell Gate line connection The Second Album is 1/2 finished -- ending at the Westchester Ave Station of the NYW&B-NHRR. I have plenty of photos in my collection showing the E.172nd Street Junction as new in 1913 and thru the various periods after end of (Dec 1937) NYW&B RR service -- photos taken in 1946, 1952, 1954. And the junction-track connections were gone in those periods. I will have plenty of interesting and historic photos to install, and of course, again will be those of the 1964 WF cars, and the R-17 cars in 1956....and all the scrapping done in that Starlight Park area 1950's- thru 1960's. And include photo of the scrapping between 2003 and 2005 of the 4-track steel viaduct and embankment, and present appearances. A Third Photo Album will cover the line from Morris Park Station Station up to Dyre Ave. and including Kingsbridge Road Station just across the City line in Mt. Vernon, in again, both NYW&B and IRT eras. Lastly, yes, in the last years of the trestle, and hopper car interchanges, and work train storage on the trestle, TA diesels occasionally did the motive work. I can't remember WHEN the switch and single track connection at E.172nd Street (to then AMTRAK) was removed --- I did find out but must try to find the info. I think it may have been in the early 1980's. ANYONE HERE KNOW ? regards - Joe F |
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