Closing Bell: We Miss the Myrtle and Lexington Els
Over the weekend, Forgotten New York took a loving look at the elevated trains that used to crisscross Brooklyn; most ran through the middle of the giant, train-starved expanse that is Bed Stuy. Above, a 1920s map shows all the elevated lines in red. Now, except for the elevated J, M, and Z lines on…
Over the weekend, Forgotten New York took a loving look at the elevated trains that used to crisscross Brooklyn; most ran through the middle of the giant, train-starved expanse that is Bed Stuy. Above, a 1920s map shows all the elevated lines in red. Now, except for the elevated J, M, and Z lines on Broadway, they are all gone, replaced by the G, the bus, or a long trek to the many subway lines that run along the outskirts of the neighborhood. The Lexington Avenue line arrived in 1885 and was torn down in 1950. Back in the day, the Myrtle elevated train (now the M) ran all the way from Ridgewood, Queens, to downtown. How sweet that would be.
Lexington Avenue Line, Brooklyn [FNY]
Image via Forgotten New York
there is only one example of an el that improves an area, that’s the high line haha.
i’m surprised there are still supporters of elevated subway lines.
show me an example of one that improves an area.
any el i can think of has crappy businesses underneath, but that’s just my opinion. i think the broadway el holds that end of bed-stuy back.