THE END OF THE LINE - ROCHESTER’S SUBWAY
…SHOOTING “THE PHANTOM RUN”
I thought some folks here might appreciate a look at our phantom run of Rochester’s Subway.
The challenge: to recreate a trip through Rochester, New York’s Broad Street tunnel.
The execution required the use of a Steadicam, several high powered flashlights, and multiple takes. The resulting piece replicates the perspective of a motorman driving through the entire mile and a half of the abandoned tunnel. Dreamlike and unreal, only the missing tracks remind you that it is somehow impossible.
That was eerie. Both of my parents rode the subway going to school in downtown (Dad '40-43),or to a connection with a bus to Kodak Park (Mom '45-47). I just missed a chance to ride it, but there was a problem since I was five when it was closed down and my folks thought the subway was too run down for them to trust. Oh, well…More recently I got down there after an R&S* switch job with a G&W MP15DC, and it was dark and cold down there! *=Rochester & Southern
(The last thing Cincinnati got from Rochester was the NBA Royals…now Sacramento Kings…this would be a better deal and Rochester’s railroad actually ran.)
…Erie stuff…It looks to me like the rails are still in place at least as far as when you come to the point of an opening {daylight}, and then switch over to the center of the tunnel…The “tunnel” appears to have been constructed by carving a “ditch” down in the street and then covering it with beams to support the reconstructed street above it…Wonder how those tires got down there…
Funny you should say that! The End of the Line DVD is now for sale for $29.95. The documentary covers the history of the subway’s construction, operation, and abandonment.
Currently there are plans to fill in the tunnel with dirt, so watching the video may soon be the only way to experience the subway the way it is now.
Later on the tracks disappear. There’s also a section that was paved & enclosed for use by Gannett Newspapers.
The tunnel was dug in the former bed of the Erie Canal. It wasn’t quite deep enough, so they dug down and then built the street above it.
The DVD covers this, and we have a stills section that includes many photos of the construction.
We walked it with a steadicam and then sped up the footage in After Effects.
We considered using an ATV at one point. The plan would involve one driver, plus the cameraman on the back, pointed backwards. He’d use a steadicam to take out some of the bounce. Then we’d shoot the whole thing backwards and reverse the footage.
Ultimately, our first method worked okay, and a four wheeler wasn’t necessary.