Staten Island Railway
The Staten Iceland Railway ( SIR, originally SIRT ) is a standard gauge and electrified railway line on Staten Iceland, one to New York City belonging island. It was opened in 1860 and is traveled by trains which are composed of modified subway cars of New York City Subway.
Officially known as Staten Iceland Rapid Transit Operating Authority ( SIRTOA ) and are under the marketing name MTA Staten Iceland Railway occurring, the SIR is a subsidiary of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA ). The SIRTOA operates and maintains the track on Staten Iceland as part of a lease and operating agreement with the city of New York.
Route
The 22.5 km long, throughout double -developed range of Staten Iceland Railway is standard gauge ( 1435 mm) and with busbars electrified (660 V DC ). It begins in St. George Station on the northeast tip of the island and runs parallel to the east coast for Tottenville station in the Southwest. When zwölfgleisigen railhead St. George is a direct connection to Staten Iceland Ferry, which runs to Battery Park at the southern tip of Manhattan.
The 9.8 km long Streckenast of St. George along the north coast towards New Jersey is traveled only by freight trains of the Morristown and Erie Railway, the passenger has been set. An exception is the short section to the stop ball park, only crossed on match days in the neighboring Baseball Stadium Richmond County Bank Ballpark special trains. Another 7.1 km long Streckenast between Clifton and Wentworth Avenue is completely degraded; all the bridges were removed and on the former track of houses have been built.
History
Initial plans for the construction of a railway line along the east coast there were in 1836. Staten Iceland Railroad Incorporation received a concession, but could not raise enough funds so that the concession lapsed. On April 23, 1863, the first 12 km long section between the ferry dock was opened in Clifton and Eltingville. Later than 16 May perverted the trains to Annadale, from June 2 to Tottenville.
In 1883 the Staten Iceland Railway, which had previously been owned by Cornelius Vanderbilt, adopted by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. This opened on 31 July 1884, the extension to the new ferry pier St. George. On February 23, 1886 was the opening of the North Shore Line, first to Elm Park, two weeks later, the South Beach Line to Wentworth Avenue. A new bridge over the Arthur Kill allowed from June 13, 1889 the operation of freight trains to Cranford (New Jersey), where connection was to the rest of the North American rail network; New Year's Day 1890 wrong the first time passenger trains on this section.
From August 1924 to June 1925, all three branches of the distance Staten Iceland Railway were electrified. They chose the same power system as in the New York City Subway, as a tunnel to Brooklyn was planned and the island railway should be integrated into the metro network. The electrical operation began on July 1, 1925, but stopped after a few meters of the tunnel and was never resumed.
From the late 1940s, passenger numbers of Staten Iceland Railway decreased significantly due to growing competition of urban bus routes. On March 31, 1953, the passenger traffic on the North Shore Line were set and the South Beach Line closed down altogether. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority took over on 1 July 1971 the operation of passenger trains on the remaining line between St. George and Tottenville. From 1973, converted wrong subway cars of the series R44 on the track and replace the entire existing rolling stock.
CSX Transportation, the successor company of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, led the freight on the North Shore Line on, but created this in 1991. Since 2001, operating on the short section to Ballpark special passenger trains. After the construction of a new lift bridge over the Arthur Kill freight traffic on the North Shore Line was resumed on April 2, 2007, the official re-opening took place on 17 April by Mayor Michael Bloomberg.