From a Nickel to a Token : The Journey from Board of Transportation to MTA

A fascinating micro-history of NYC’s subway system from LaGuardia’s public works achievements in 1940 to the creation of the MTA in 1968. In 1940, New York Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia realized an ambitious plan to modernize the city’s public transit. He eliminated streetcars, demolished old elevated lines, and unified the subway systems. From then on, the IRT, BMT, and IND became one system under public control. And by 1968, that system had transformed again, into the Metropolitan Transit Authority. From LaGuardia to Lindsay, mayors were desperate to appease voters, elected officials, transit management, and labor leaders. Meanwhile, the tumult of a changing America manifested in labor disputes, economic pressures, and civil rights protests. Though great efforts were made to keep prices down, the sacred nickel fare barrier was eventually broken. By 1968, a ride cost twenty cents. Featuring many photos never before published, From a Nickel to a Token deftly captures four decades and five boroughs of grit, chaos, egos, and emotions in the unending saga of New York’s subway system. Streetcars “are as dead as sailing ships,” said Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia in a radio speech, two days before Madison Avenue’s streetcars yielded to buses. LaGuardia was determined to eliminate streetcars, demolish pre-1900 elevated lines, and unify the subway system, a goal that became reality in 1940 when the separate IRT, BMT, and IND became one giant system under full public control. In this fascinating micro-history of New York’s transit system, Andrew Sparberg examines twenty specific events between 1940 and 1968, book ended by subway unification and the MTA’s creation. From a Nickel to a Token depicts a potpourri of well-remembered, partially forgotten, and totally obscure happenings drawn from the historical tapestry of New York mass transit. Sparberg deftly captures five boroughs of grit, chaos, and emotion grappling with a massive and unwieldy transit system. During these decades, the system morphed into today’s familiar network. The public sector absorbed most private surface lines operating within the five boroughs, and buses completely replaced streetcars. Elevated lines were demolished, replaced by subways or, along Manhattan’s Third Avenue, not at all. Beyond the unification of the IND, IRT, and BMT, strategic track connections were built between lines to allow a more flexible and unified operation. The oldest subway routes received much needed rehabilitation. Thousands of new subway cars and buses were purchased. The sacred nickel fare barrier was broken, and by 1968 a ride cost twenty cents. From LaGuardia to Lindsay, mayors devoted much energy to solving transit problems, keeping fares low, and appeasing voters, fellow elected officials, transit management, and labor leaders. Simultaneously, American society was experiencing tumultuous times, manifested by labor disputes, economic pressures, and civil rights protests. Featuring many photos never before published, From a Nickel to a Token is a historical trip back in time to a multitude of important events. 1940: unification: IRT and BMT join the IND, creating one subway system 1941: a strike and a pioneering labor agreement 1941: Dyre Avenue subway extension opens 1941-1948: Third Avenue transit: rails to rubber 1944 and 1950: goodbye to Brooklyn Bridge rails 1947-1948: private to public bus operations 1948: goodbye to the nickel 1947-1956: final decade for Brooklyn trolleys 1950: farewell, Lexington Avenue 1953-1968: The TA, tokens, and TWU triumphant 1953: last double-deck buses operate on Fifth Avenue 1954-1956: The BMT and IND begin a courtship 1955: sunshine returns to Third Avenue 1956: Fifth Avenue coach becomes number one 1957-1959: IRT West Side improvement 1962: Fifth Avenue coach suddenly disappears 1964: World's Fair, Blue Subways, stainless steel subways 1966: Mike Quill's last hurrah 1967: The BMT and IND marry forever 1968: The MTA is created and express buses appear. "Chronicle of twenty specific events in the history of New York's mass transit systems between 1940 and 1968, including large numbers of rare photos. 1940 to 1968 was chosen because those years bracket two sea change events - the June 1940 subway unification, and the March 1968 inception of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA)"-- Provided by publisher. "Chronicle of twenty specific events in the history of New York's mass transit systems between 1940 and 1968, including large numbers of rare photos. 1940 to 1968 was chosen because those years bracket two sea change events - the June 1940 subway unification, and the March 1968 inception of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA)"-- Résumé de l'éditeur