It was the best of times. It was the worst of times. As for transit, I wouldn’t mind reliving those years. Some people on this BB complain about non-air conditioned subway cars. Except for some experimental equipment in the sixties, the first air conditioned cars were the Slant R-40’s. Lets recount a time when most rolling stock had wicker seats, exposed fans, exposed incandescent lightbulbs, spur-cut bull and pinion gears that made a grinding sound; a time when there were 3 clearly-defined divisions known as BMT, IRT and IND; a time when the “new” arch-roof R-Type cars were replacing the Hi and Lo-V’s, when the A/B’s and D-Types ruled the BMT and the R-1/9’s ruled the IND, a time when the wooden Q-Types ran on the Myrtle Ave. El and the Steinways and 1938 WF cars ran on the 3rd Ave. El, a time when the fare was 15¢, a time when the brand new olive drab R-27’s first appeared on the BMT Southern Division. The year was 1960. It was the year that I turned 6, JFK was elected to the White House and the cold war was in full swing. In a couple of years, the Ponitails would come out with a song “Born Too Late”. We all somehow feel that we were born too late. Today’s 20 year old feels he was born too late; having missed the Myrtle and 3rd Ave. Els, the R-1/9’s, the Triplexes and Standards, etc., etc., etc.! When I was 20, I felt that I was born too late, having missed the Manhattan els, the Fulton St. El, the gate cars, the MUDC’s, the C-Types, etc., etc., etc.! Time is all relative. Those who were born in 1920, who got the chance to ride all that I was born too late for, probably felt that they were born too late – too late for steam on the els, too late for horse cars, too late for thru service on Fulton-Brighton, too late for back alley rides on BU’s on grade-level Southern Division lines going between Park Row and Coney Island. I am thankful for my cherished memories during the sixties and seventies. But, here’s my message to those in their teens and twenties:
Your children, if they become railfans will say that they were born too late – too late to ride a Slant R-40, too late for railfan windows, too late for the Redbirds. All you young railfans out there, just enjoy railfanning in your time period and don’t fret over what you missed. Everyone “missed” something. You young railfans may get to see something that us middle-aged people in our forties may not live to see – a 2nd Ave. Subway.
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