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NYC subway celebrates 111 years
Look guys, Congress did something useful!!
What did congress do to start the subways in New York City? As I recall in 1900 the New York City subways were strictly funded within the city. It was only later that federal assistance was needed as the system grew.
The municipal bond was invented for the building of the IRT subway. Congress had nothing to do with it in the late 1890s when the bonds were floated.
The bonds were financed when August Belmont, et al, came together to build the IRT. It was a private enterprise until 1940, when it and the BMT, successor to the Brooklyn Rapid Transit, were taken over by the City of New York. The NYC Transit Authority was established in 1953 to operate all the surface and rapid transit in the city. The Independent(IND) subway was built by the city, with the 8th Av line opening on Sep 10 1932, and the Queens line opening to 169th St in 1933. The IND would also incorporate some BMT lines later on, such as the Culver Line on Mc Donald Av in 1954, when it became part of the F line to Coney Island, and the Liberty Av line, which had been part of the BMT Fulton St elevated, as an extension of the IND line to Euclid Av. There was no federal money involved in the original construction. It would not come until the 1960’s, when UMTA grants were used for upgrades and some new construction.
My state shows as Arkansas, but I grew up in Queens.