![The Rochester subway station at Monroe Avenue (June 1956). The Rochester subway ended passenger service on June 30, 1956. [PHOTO: Rochester Municipal Archives]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-subway-monroe-avenue-station.jpg)
The Rochester Subway stopped passenger service on June 30, 1956. To mark the 60th anniversary of the subway’s closing the New York Museum of Transportation 
will host a two-day weekend event filled with talks, trolley rides, demonstrations of the Subway’s fully restored “Casey Jones” speeder, food, and vendors…
Archive: ‘Transit + Infrastructure’...
Special Weekend Events Mark 60th Anniversary of Rochester Subway Closing
Thursday, June 23rd, 2016Tags: Bill Carpenter, Casey Jones, New York Museum of Transportation (NYMT), NYMT, Regional Transit Service (RTS), Rochester & Genesee Valley Railroad Museum, Rochester NY, Rochester Subway, Rochester subway car 60, vintage bus
Posted in Events, Rochester Destinations, Rochester History, Rochester News, Rochester Subway, Rochester Subway Stories, Train/Railroad Stuff, Transit + Infrastructure | 6 Comments »
Movie Fans, Step Aboard the “Race” Bus
Saturday, May 14th, 2016![This 1948 Greyhound bus from the NY Museum of Transportation recently appeared in the movie 'Race' and is now open to museum visitors. [IMAGE: Provided]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/nymt-greyhound-race-bus-01.jpg)
This fully restored vintage Greyhound bus appeared in the movie Race , the recent film about Jesse Owens’ fight to compete in the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games where he won four gold medals. The bus will be open for visitors and tales from the restoration and filming of the bus will be told next Sunday at The New York Museum of Transportation…
Tags: 1936 Berlin Olympic Games, African-American history, Greyhound, Jesse Owens, Jim Dierks, New York Museum of Transportation (NYMT), NYMT, Race, vintage bus
Posted in Events, Rochester Destinations, Rochester History, Rochester News, Train/Railroad Stuff, Transit + Infrastructure | No Comments »
RocLinks 4/30/16
Saturday, April 30th, 2016![High Speed Rail for Rochester [PHOTO: Laura Wilder]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/topics/wp-content/uploads/DSCF0191.jpg)
From local development to just plain news of the weird, here are your RocLinks for this past week…
Tags: Black Button Distilling, highspeed rail, Matt Denker, Matthew Denker, Ontario Beach Park, Public Market, RocLinks
Posted in Events, Rochester News, Train/Railroad Stuff, Transit + Infrastructure, Urban Development | 12 Comments »
RocLinks 4/16/16
Saturday, April 16th, 2016![Rochester Inner Loop North [PHOTO: Author]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/denker/links/Rochester_Inner_Loop.jpg)
From local development to just plain news of the weird, here are your RocLinks for this past week…
Tags: Bird Watching, Counterfeit Goods, CPB, Downtown Casino, Inner Loop, Matt Denker, Matthew Denker, Mayor Lovely Warren, RocLinks, Times Square Building, University of Rochester
Posted in Architecture, Rochester News, Transit + Infrastructure, Urban Development | 5 Comments »
Old Family Photos
Sunday, April 3rd, 2016![Fast ferry on it's way to Rochester from New York Harbor, 2004. [IMAGE: RochesterSubway.com]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-fast-ferry-in-new-york-harbor-07.jpg)
There’s no real reason for this post. I was going through old family photos this weekend and stumbled upon these ones from a boat tour around Manhattan island my wife and I took in 2004. By complete coincidence we sailed directly in front of the infamous Spirit of Ontario I (a.k.a. Fast Ferry) on her maiden voyage to Rochester…
Tags: architecture, Fast Ferry, Manhattan, New York City, NYC, Rochester, transportation
Posted in Rochester History, Rochester Images, Transit + Infrastructure | 4 Comments »
“Gridlock” Sam Schwartz at The Little Theatre, 2/24
Thursday, February 18th, 2016
When the world’s first elevated highway was completed in 1936 along Manhattan’s west side, the New York Times marveled that “the gleaming new concrete ribbon” would let drivers travel from lower Manhattan “nearly to Poughkeepsie without having to stop for a traffic light or slow up for an intersection.” Legendary city planner and master highway builder, Robert Moses promised the new highway would “eliminate” traffic jams on the city’s west side…
Tags: Ed Koch, event, Gridlock Sam Schwartz, infrastructure, lecture, New York City, NYC, Reconnect Rochester, Robert Moses, Sam Schwartz, Samuel Schwartz, Street Smart: The Rise of Cities and the Fall of Cars, The Little Theatre, traffic, traffic planning, transportation, transportation planning, urban planning, West Side Highway
Posted in Events, Rochester News, Subways Around the Globe, Transit + Infrastructure, Urban Development | 1 Comment »
Save the Letchworth Park Rail Bridge
Tuesday, February 16th, 2016![Portageville rail bridge at Letchworth State Park, NY. [IMAGE: Richard H. Jordan III]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/letchworth-portageville-bridge-07.jpg)
The following is a guest post submitted by Richard H. Jordan III.
Submit your story today.
Letchworth Bridge in southern Letchworth State Park celebrates its 141st birthday this year (built 1875) and will be replaced by a new steel arch bridge about 75 feet to the south. The new bridge will take approximately 3 years to complete. During that time efforts will be made to turn the original bridge into a pedestrian walkway similar to the hugely successful Poughkeepsie NY bridge crossing the Hudson River and gorge—now a New York State Park…
Tags: demolition, Genesee River, Letchworth State Park, National Register of Historic Places, New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT), New York State Historic Preservation Office, Norfolk Southern Railroad, Portageville Rail Bridge, rail, rail bridge, Richard H. Jordan III, Walkway Over the Hudson
Posted in Architecture, Opinion, Rochester Destinations, Rochester History, Rochester Images, Rochester Subway Stories, Train/Railroad Stuff, Transit + Infrastructure | 7 Comments »
Lost Drawings of Rochester Savings Bank; 14-Stories Tall?
Tuesday, November 24th, 2015![Rochester Savings and Loan building. 40 Franklin Street. [IMAGE: The American Architect]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-savings-bank-drawing-01.jpg)
Last week Justin Schmidt sent us this incredible old illustration of Rochester Savings Bank. Justin writes, “I thought you would enjoy this; in my collection of Rochester ephemera, I came across this page in The American Architect (Sept. 20, 1928 issue) that shows the ‘complete’ design for the old Rochester Savings and Loan building. I never knew it was incomplete!”
Uh, neither did we. But it turns out, it’s true…
Tags: architecture, downtown Rochester, Ezra Winter, George Eastman, Harley J. McKee, J. Foster Warner, John B. Pike & Sons, Justin Schmidt, Kato stone, McKim, Mead & White, RIT Center for Urban Entrepreneurship (CUE), Rochester, Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), Rochester NY, Rochester Savings and Loan, Rochester Savings Bank, The American Architect
Posted in Architecture, Reader Submitted Stories, Rochester History, Transit + Infrastructure, Urban Development | 4 Comments »
Bell Tower from Rochester School #7, Rediscovered
Sunday, November 1st, 2015![When Bill Schmidt purchased his home on Lake View Park this summer, he became the lucky owner of the bell tower from School #7 in northwest Rochester. [IMAGE: RochesterSubway.com]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-school-7-bell-tower-02.jpg)
Every so often we’re contacted by a lucky homeowner who discovers a neat little historical treasure hidden away in their basement or roof rafters – usually an old book or a subway token. Then there’s Bill Schmidt. When Bill purchased his home on Lake View Park this summer, he became the lucky owner of an old bell tower from the long-demolished School #7 in northwest Rochester…
Tags: architecture, demolition, Dewey Avenue, Fairview Heights, historic preservation, Lake View Park, Pierpont Street, Rochester, Rochester NY, school bell tower, Virgil I. Grissom School #7
Posted in Architecture, Rochester History, Rochester News, Transit + Infrastructure | 7 Comments »
Rochester Street Films… Coming 11/19
Sunday, October 18th, 2015
I am SUPER excited to be working with the volunteers at Reconnect Rochester to organize Rochester’s first ever Street Films event at The Little Theatre on November 19. If you follow this blog, you clearly have a passion for Rochester and the infrastructure that makes our city run. And I think you’ll enjoy the thought-provoking film clips and live discussion that will take place at this event. Don’t wait to reserve your seat. Here are the details…
Tags: Alex and Ander, Elizabeth Murphy, Erik Frisch, event, fundraiser, Heidi Zimmer-Meyer, Karen Elam, Kerry Ivers, Maxwell Motorbikes, Miguel Velázquez, Reconnect Rochester, Street Films, Streetfilms, Sweet Beez honey bike, The Little Theatre
Posted in Rochester News, Train/Railroad Stuff, Transit + Infrastructure, Urban Development | 1 Comment »
Park(ing) Day 2015
Wednesday, September 16th, 2015![An empty parking lot in downtown Rochester at Franklin & Pleasant Streets. [PHOTO: Young Urban Preservationists]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/parking-day-2015-02.jpg)
The following is a guest post submitted by Sara Jenks, Young Urban Preservationists. Submit your story today.
Over the past year I’ve been itching to move downtown (“Oh, you live really downtown” is the common response upon mentioning my address). This past spring I finally ripped the bandaid and moved out of my mom’s house. In the month between choosing where to live and moving in, I scoped out my new neighborhood nearly every day. It was always obvious that surface parking lots dominated the usable land in the St. Joseph’s Park neighborhood, or as I like to call it, St. Joseph’s Parking Lot. What shocked me was one particular lot that never saw a car. Morning, noon, and night I drove by the lot on the Northwest corner of the intersection at Franklin & Pleasant Streets . Every time there sat only a rusty chain and two cones across the entrance…
Tags: Eat Me Ice Cream, Franklin Street, Inner Loop Country Club, Neighborworks Rochester, North Winton Village, Park(ing) Day, parking, parking lots, parking madness, Pleasant Street, Reconnect Rochester, Rochester, Rochester NY, Ugly Duck Coffee, Young Urban Preservationists (YUP)
Posted in Events, Reader Submitted Stories, Rochester News, Transit + Infrastructure, Urban Development, Urban Exploration | No Comments »
The Legendary White Deer of Seneca Army Depot
Sunday, September 13th, 2015![White deer at Seneca Army Depot. Romulus, NY. [PHOTO: Matthew Ehlers]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/seneca-army-depot-00.jpg)
The following is a guest post submitted by Matthew Ehlers.
Submit your story today.
For years I’ve wanted to camp overnight near the Seneca Army Depot and see if I could get some photos of the famed Seneca White Deer. Finally, I decided it was worth getting up before sunrise and just driving out there . The morning had perfect conditions. Hazy clouds extended the sunrise until at least 7:30 AM. Prime time activity for the deer population…
Tags: Army Corpse of Engineers, Cayuga Lake, Genesee-Finger Lakes Region, Matthew Ehlers, movie, nature, Odocoileus virginianus, Romulus NY, Seneca Army Depot, Seneca County, Seneca Lake, video, white deer, wildlife
Posted in Reader Submitted Stories, Rochester Destinations, Rochester Images, Transit + Infrastructure, Urban Exploration, Video | 2 Comments »
Bus Graveyard
Tuesday, September 8th, 2015![RTS bus graveyard. [PHOTO: RochesterSubway.com]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-rts-transit-bus-graveyard-00.jpg)
The following is a guest post submitted anonymously with additional photos by Mike Governale
I was near the airport when Vice President Biden’s plane came in a few weeks ago. Held up by a road block, I happened to find myself near a junk yard full of old RTS buses. I knew traffic wouldn’t be moving for a while so I pulled over and got out to take a closer look. It was little bus graveyard…
Tags: abandoned places, airport, bus, bus graveyard, Greater Rochester International Airport, GRI Airport, mass transit, mass transportation, public transit, public transportation, Regional Transit Service (RTS), Rochester Genesee Regional Transportation Authority (RGRTA), transit, urban exploration
Posted in Rochester Images, Transit + Infrastructure, Urban Exploration | 10 Comments »
Rochester’s Changing Landscape
Tuesday, August 25th, 2015![Satellite before & after image of Rochester. [IMAGE: Google Earth via Nick Russo]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-satellite-before-and-after-midtown-plaza.gif)
The following is a guest post submitted by Nick Russo.
Submit your story today.
I’ve always been a fan of Rochester Subway content which looks at our city from a different angle. I thought I might contribute something in turn, that looks at our city from an aerial angle.
I noticed this week that Google Earth had updated its imagery to include snapshots from as early as a month ago. It is now possible to follow a lot of tangible changes that have been going on in the city for a while. I put together a handful of before-and-afters that I thought were interesting (to me anyway). Take a look at the album and see if you can spot the differences…
Tags: Carnegie building, Charlotte, CityGate, Collegetown, dredging, Eastman Business Park, Golisano Children's Hospital, Google Earth, Google Street View, I-390, Inner Loop, Interstate 390, Kodak building 53, Kodak implosion, Kodak Park, Midtown Plaza, Nicholas Russo, Nick Russo, Port of Rochester, RIT Gene Polisseni Center, Rochester, Rochester before and after photos, Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), Rochester NY, satellite image
Posted in Reader Submitted Stories, Rochester Images, Transit + Infrastructure, Urban Development | 4 Comments »
Remembering the Old Rochester Monroe County Airport and Murals
Sunday, August 23rd, 2015![Do you remember the mural at the old Rochester Monroe County Airport? A reader asked if we could share photos of it. [IMAGE: Rochester Public Library Local History Division]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-monroe-county-airport-00.jpg)
I received an email last week from George Conboy, Chairman of Brighton Securities. He asks, “Have you seen anywhere a photo of the transportation mural that was behind the long ticket counter at the old airport? I remember it as a vaguely Art Deco theme of general transportation with an emphasis, of course, on air transport.”
Mr. Conboy explained that he used to fly a lot during the “glory days” of air travel back in the 1960s when he was a kid. “I just liked that old mural. I used to see it all the time and it has always been in my mind.”
This is a great question. I had been told of this mural before but have never seen it myself. Photos of it online are practically non-existent, so this one will require some digging…
Tags: airport, art, Art Deco, Brighton Securities, George Conboy, Greater Rochester International Airport, history of Rochester, infrastructure, Monroe County Airport, mural, old photos of Rochester NY, Rochester, Rochester history, Rochester NY, rochester photos, transportation
Posted in Architecture, Art + Culture, Rochester History, Rochester Images, Transit + Infrastructure | 18 Comments »
Aerial Drone Footage of Rochester Subway and Carnegie Building
Friday, July 3rd, 2015![Aerial drone footage of Rochester; the subway and Carnegie Place after fire. [IMAGE: Ander Kazmerski]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-carnegie-building-drone-video-01.jpg)
A good friend of mine, Ander Kazmerski , just posted some sweet drone footage of Rochester. The video focuses on two sites – the Rochester subway and the Carnegie building on Goodman Street just after its devastating fire. I don’t think I need to say much about it. These images speak for themselves. You’ll definitely want to go full-screen with this one…
Tags: abandoned places, abandoned subway, abandoned subway tunnel, aerial photography, Ander Kazmerski, Carnegie building, Carnegie Place, drone, drone video, Rochester, Rochester NY, rochester photos, Rochester Subway, Rochester Subway photos, urban decay, urban exploration, urban ruins
Posted in Art + Culture, Rochester History, Rochester Subway, Train/Railroad Stuff, Transit + Infrastructure, Urban Exploration | No Comments »
Inner Loop Redevelopment Recommendations
Wednesday, July 1st, 2015![A recent report from Stantec outlines recommendations and suggestions for the redevelopment of Union Street after the Inner Loop is filled. [IMAGE: Philip Michael Brown Studio / City of Rochester]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-inner-loop-development-00.jpg)
Yesterday we took a bike ride down inside the Inner Loop with Matthew Ehlers to see how Rochester’s “big fill” was progressing. Quite nicely I’d say. But once filled, the next question becomes, what will fill the void.
RocSubway reader Ben Voellinger pointed us to a recent document posted to the City’s website that outlines recommendations for future development(s) along the new Union Street. Thanks Ben! Let’s take a look…
Tags: Charlotte Street, City of Rochester, East Ave, Great Wolf Lodge, infill development, Inner Loop, Inner Loop East Reconstruction Project, Manhattan Square Park, Martin Luther King Jr. Park, parking, parking garage, parking lots, Philip Michael Brown Studio, Pitkin Street, Rochester, Rochester NY, Rotterdam, Stantec, Strong National Museum of Play, Union Street, urban development
Posted in Architecture, Rochester Destinations, Rochester News, Transit + Infrastructure, Urban Development | 33 Comments »
Nature abhors a vacuum – as illustrated by the Inner Loop
Tuesday, June 30th, 2015![I noticed grass growing on the piles of dirt in the Inner Loop construction project today. It’s as if nature can’t wait for the filling in of the Inner Loop to complete before reclaiming the land. [PHOTO: Matthew Ehlers]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-innerloop-fill-grass.jpg)
The following is a guest post submitted by Matthew Ehlers.
Submit your story today.
I noticed grass growing on the piles of dirt in the Inner Loop construction project today. It’s as if nature can’t wait for the filling in of the Inner Loop to complete before reclaiming the land…
Tags: automobile, biking, infrastructure, Inner Loop, Inner Loop fill webcam, Mark Twain, Matthew Ehlers, Rochester, Rochester NY, transportation, urban development, urban highway, video
Posted in Opinion, Reader Submitted Stories, Rochester Images, Transit + Infrastructure, Urban Development, Urban Exploration | 4 Comments »
Infiltration: a Dance Exploration of the Rochester Subway
Sunday, June 28th, 2015![Scene from 'Infiltration'. An interpretive dance film shot in the abandoned Rochester subway tunnel. [IMAGE: Breakbone DanceCo.]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-subway-dance-video-01.jpg)
Here’s an interesting video we stumbled upon while diddling around on YouTube this weekend. This 7 and a half minute long interpretive dance exploration of the Rochester subway tunnel will totally blow your mind. Grab some popcorn and roll film…
Tags: abandoned places, abandoned subway, abandoned subway tunnel, Atalee Judy, BONEdanse Productions, Breakbone Dance Co., Carl Wiedemann, dance, dance video, interpretive dance, Rochester, Rochester NY, Rochester Subway, Rochester Subway tunnel, urban exploration, video
Posted in Art + Culture, Transit + Infrastructure, Urban Exploration | 2 Comments »
$500 ROC Transit Day Treasure Hunt
Thursday, June 11th, 2015![ROC Transit Day Treasure Hunt [PHOTO: John Derycke, Derycke Motorsports Photography]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/roc-transit-day-treasure-hunt-2014-01.jpg)
Last year, as part of ROC Transit Day , we planned a city-wide treasure hunt where teams followed a series of clues (for over 19 miles) to be the first to find a $500 cash prize at the end. The only catch: No motor vehicles. All teams were required to use public transit, walk, or bike. (it’s in the rules!)
This year (Thursday, June 18) we’re doing it again. It’s completely free to enter, but you must pre-register here before June 17. Right now we only have 6 teams signed up, so your odds would be pretty good; as long as you have a good working knowledge of Rochester.
Still not sure if you’ve got the right stuff? Take a look at the clues from LAST year and see how well you’d fare…
Tags: event, mass transit, mass transportation, public transit, public transportation, Reconnect Rochester, ROC Transit Day, Rochester, Rochester NY, scavenger hunt, treasure hunt
Posted in Events, Rochester News, Transit + Infrastructure, Urban Exploration | 1 Comment »
![\"RochesterSubway.com\"](\"https://rochestersubway.com/images/pixel_white.gif\"){kind=tracking}
