Viewing NYC Articles Categorized Under Transportation

[WATCH] New York’s Lost Subway | The Secret Beneath Broadway

2025-11-24T12:00:00-05:00

Before New York built its legendary subway system, an inventor quietly constructed a different kind of underground transit—powered not by electricity, but by air. In 1870, Alfred Ely Beach opened the Beach Pneumatic Transit beneath Broadway, a functioning subway that silently whisked passengers through a sealed tunnel using air pressure. It was revolutionary, popular—and ultimately, shut down.

This episode dives into the forgotten story of America’s earliest subway experiment, built in secret under Manhattan at a time when the city’s streets were choked with chaos. We’ll explore how political corruption, especially from Boss Tweed and Tammany Hall, crushed the project—and how the remains were unearthed decades later during construction of the modern subway system.

Discover the bold innovation that came before its time—and what might still be buried beneath New York’s streets.

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[BOOKS] New York's Original Penn Station: The Rise and Tragic Fall of an American Landmark

2025-11-19T12:00:00-05:00

The original Pennsylvania Station was a historic railroad station, opened in 1910 and demolished a short 54 years later. Its grandeur matched or exceeded that of Grand Central Terminal, and was one of the architectural jewels of the City. A new book from author/historian Paul Kaplan titled "New York's Original Penn Station: The Rise and Tragic Fall of an American Landmark" tells the story:

In early twentieth-century New York, few could have imagined a train terminal as grandiose as Pennsylvania Station. Yet, executives at the Pennsylvania Railroad secretly bought up land in Manhattan's infamous Tenderloin District to build one of the world's most spectacular monuments. Sandhogs would battle the fiercest of nature to build tunnels linking Manhattan to New Jersey and Long Island. For decades, Penn Station was a center of elegance and pride. But the ensuing rise of the airplane and automobile began to diminish train travel. Consequently, in the mid-1960s, the station was tragically destroyed. The loss inspired the birth of preservation laws in the city and the nation that would save other landmarks like Grand Central. Author Paul Kaplan recounts the trials and triumphs of New York's Penn Station.

Pick up your copy of "New York's Original Penn Station: The Rise and Tragic Fall of an American Landmark" for just $15 on Amazon.

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[VIDEO] What's the Longest Trip You Can Make With a MetroCard?

2025-11-11T12:00:00-05:00

This video chronicles an ambitious journey undertaken by the hosts, Miles and Jeremy, to complete the longest possible trip on a single MetroCard. This extensive trip spans from Putnam County to Suffolk County, utilizing various public transport systems that still accept the MetroCard before its eventual phase-out. The entire trip, from their initial departure to reaching Patchogue, took approximately 8 hours and 14 minutes.

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These Vintage Photographs Show Construction on the New York City Subway Circa Early 1900s

2025-08-24T12:00:00-04:00

A collection of early images that show the construction and evolution of the New York City subways from 1900.

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[VIDEO] The Hidden Subway That New York Refuses to Build

2025-08-02T12:00:00-04:00

Gotta hand it to this QueensLink group for plugging away at this day after day. I had a great time researching this and heading down to visit the area, and you never know where this might end up. Also this video isn't sponsored I just like transit lol

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[VIDEO] New York's Lost Link to City Island

2025-07-31T12:00:00-04:00

The history of New York City’s lost City Island monorail is a fascinating chapter in urban planning that illustrates both ambition and failure. In the early 20th century, City Island—located in the Bronx—was a vibrant maritime community with limited transportation connections to the rest of New York. To address this, a bold plan was conceived in the early 1910s to link City Island to the mainland via a monorail. The project, officially called the Pelham Park and City Island Railroad, was envisioned as a cutting-edge transportation solution using elevated rail technology. The system was designed to stretch over the wetlands of Pelham Bay Park, reducing the need for more invasive infrastructure.

Construction began in 1910, and by 1914, a prototype was operational. However, it was short-lived. The monorail faced significant technical issues, including mechanical failures and derailments. Public skepticism and political opposition grew, and with World War I diverting resources and attention, the project was abandoned. City Island residents continued to rely on other modes of transportation, such as streetcars and ferries. Today, the remnants of the monorail are long gone, but its story remains a curious reminder of New York’s ambitious—yet sometimes impractical—transportation experiments.

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[WATCH] James May Races the New York Subway

2025-07-26T12:00:00-04:00

'There's nothing you can't do, now you're in New York' we were told. So we tried. I bet Lucy I could beat her from Battery Park to Central Park - me on a slightly rubbish rental bike, her on the infamous subway. 'These streets will make you feel brand new' we were told. That turned out not to be true. We both suffered...in different ways.

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[WATCH] Why NYC is Building Elevated Trains Again

2025-07-22T12:00:00-04:00

In this video, we will talk about why NYC is building elevated trains, again. Note: The IBX is half el, half open cut. Especially in the northern section, where the IBX would need multiple elevated sections.

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[WATCH] Penn Station New York Breakdown

2025-07-20T12:00:00-04:00

The first time I ever went to Penn station, I couldn’t find it! That’s because as popular as it is, it exists underground and borrows its landmark from Madison Square Garden. Today it has Moynihan Train Hall as its headhouse. But Moynihan still does not cater to all train systems that go through Penn Station. Renovations are happening now to improve the visibility of the original Penn Station, but that is months from now. So in this video, I am breaking down how it’s all laid out so you can better navigate your way through this hidden (yet important) train station.

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[WATCH] Awesome Video Shows the Conductor's Point of View Through the Subway Tunnels

2025-06-11T12:00:00-04:00

Train enthusiast Dj Hammers got a chance to film the entire length of a subway line, as seen by the conductor through the front window of the train. It's a fantastic look at the tunnels, and a side of the subway system that we rarely get to see.

FULL footage from the Driver's perspective of a Nostalgia Trip on the Low-V cars throughout Manhattan and the Bronx. This footage will be used to assist in the creation of content for the train simulator program used at the NY Transit Museum, and as B-Roll footage for future content.

The full video is over 1 hour 15 minutes long, and includes shots of the old City Hall station turnaround, underground tunnels, elevated lines, and tons of stations.

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