You my friend are THEE MAN for having the presence of mind to film this , let alone preserve the footage. Fantastic, I really mean that. Part of Brooklyn, OUR, MY, history.
I rode this shuttle when I was younger, after they closed it, they gave you a small red transfer ticket to use on the B-35 bus which ran over to the F line from the West End which was the B line at the time. I walked the tracks as a trespasser after they ended the service there, the wood was really rotted and I am surprised I didn't fall through. Memories... I ended up making a career out of being a subway motorman interestingly enough LOL.
I used to trespass into the lower level platforms of 9th ave three years ago and sad to say they removed all the old fashion signs that were on the columns. But definitely one of the best stations I'm glad I got to see for myself.
I used to go for "train rides" when I was a kid in Brooklyn's Bush Terminal section. One of my favs was the Culver Shuttle, running from ninth Ave to (I think) McDonald ave???? You could change for the F train there. Except for the ninth Ave station it was all elevated. It came out from underground running alongside Greenwood cemetery. Ninth Ave was an interesting stop as it was below street level for the West End (B train) and down another level for the Culver Shuttle. Real creepy down there waiting for the Culver, almost never saw another person. The trains cost 15 cents for a ride, this was back around 1960. Also remember they had the oldest cars I'd ever seen on the Culver Line. Many thanks for a trip down memory lane.
same here. those were beautiful. very angry that it was taken down. those were good quality material. I had a kick riding that Culver Shuttle back in the 60's & the 70's. now I have to either walk or take the B35 Bus. those old trains were nicer. I belong to the NY Transit Museum which I visit on & off in downtown Brooklyn.
i rode on this line one day before it was closed. The consist was a set of the first IND equipment from the opening days. It was in terrible shape, but the structure wasn't torn down till 10 years later. About 10 years ago I was on an excursion and we got a tour into the lower section of the 9th Ave station. One of the things that caught my eye through the dust and grime was the mosaics. Unfortunately none of those particular mosaics were preserved .
My job site is currently right on the tracks , right across from greenwood cemetery. The railings are still in the ground where my site is directly. I’m a train nerd so this stuff fascinates me lol
It's something else about the Culver Line , my father was a Motorman on that line shorty after being back from world war two , but he eventually went on to the surface lines with the Transit Authority and operated trolleys , electric buses , and finally regular buses , he finished his career with transit at the 36th St. Depot , or I think they call it the Jackie Gleason depot now , as a bus shifter ,,,,,,, a title for guys that were near retirement and were off the road , but the funny thing was how his career was just starting out near a stones throw away on the Culver Line in the 1940s and finished so close to it , he worked for the Transit Authority for 38 years and unfortunately passed away just a few years after his retirement . I just want to thank you so very much for sharing this video with us all .
I rode the Culver shuttle just once, wanted to do it before it was gone. This back in the 1960's, I was about 13 at the time. This looks like 8mm film, but there WERE "portable" video cameras in 1975, though mostly B&W not color. I remember those 'shovel nose' R40's. The Culver was torn down because of poor ridership, though that was probably due to the uselessness of the short shuttle type of operation. Also the neighborhood was served by the nearby West End line that runs parallel to most of the Culver's route. The transfer between the West End line and the Culver (then the "D") train wasn't that popular. The part of the Myrtle Ave El that was torn down was so old it couldn't handle modern steel cars and had to use the lighter weight wooden ones! It would have been too expensive to rebuild the El to modern standards. The Franklin shuttle had enough ridership to keep it going. It serves neighborhoods between the "A" line and the Brighton, and the connection between the two is used. Workers at Interfaith Hospital make use of the line.
As a native of Brooklyn (having moved out in 1974), I loved riding on the NYC subway system as a kid, and later using it to go to work. These slow speed shuttles (like the Franklin Avenue Shuttle and the 42nd Street shuttle in Manhattan) were fun to ride on. My grandparents lived in Brighton Beach, and almost any Brooklyn bound train from anywhere in the city (except for the "RR"), would wind up in Coney Island, and I could take a BMT (or later IND) train back three stops to Brighton Beach...couldn't get lost!
To me the mid-70s were the heyday of the subway, which I too used to ride just for fun as a kid! The shuttles were a big part of it. Loved seeing those SS shuttles (was there even a TT?) and I SWORE I’d remembered a Franklin Ave shuttle, which I loved because of the types of cars they used if I remember correctly. A little tapered on the top, blue stripe maybe. Awesome.
@Scrimpets1 Off topic but since you mentioned it, yes there was. Now I was born way way after (post-2005) but I've been researching over the years and I found that there briefly were TT trains in 1967. It didn't last long.
It was discontinued long before I was old enough to ride trains, but I remember riding the F train seeing the remnants still there like the track leading out of ditmas
Love this video....born/raised in Brooklyn, and living in Kensington for over a decade now, with Ditmas being my stop. You can see just a little bit of the starting curve of the shuttle structure still remaining, and I was hoping there's be something on RUclips. The take-off at 0:23 is especially wild. Wish I took this shuttle as a kid, looks like a fun ride.
I grew up on 41st Street and 14th avenue in the 80s. Service was before my time, but I remember when they were tearing down the tracks. I've never seen a video of what each stop looked like so thanks!!!!
Thanks for the post! I missed it by 5 years. I moved to Kensington Park in 1980 at the age of 9. Six months later, I rode the "F" train for the first time on a school trip and from then, I began riding subways by myself! I always wished that I had the opportunity to ride the 9th Avenue shuttle, the Myrtle Avenue El and the 3rd Avenue Bronx El., the QJ and the KK trains. At least I got a chance to ride the "AA" train and the "M" brighton local to Coney Island. Beggars can't be choosers!
It makes me insanely angry that the city took down this line. And the third ave El. "Uhh, yeah, let's just tear that down, it's not like the population of the city will grow, and the trains will get crowded, you know?" You never, ever tear down infrastructure like this. Imagine a sick passenger, or a disabled train, or signal failure at 8 am, a few stops up from Ditmas Ave on the F line. Everyone is cursing, swearing, and pissed off. If this line would be active, they would just reroute F trains via the 9th ave shuttle tracks, and the trains would go directly to the city. Something like this happened to me a few years ago. I was working in the city and being late was a huge no no. The Q took 30 min to get from Sheepshead Bay to Prospect due to signal problems. I took the Franklin Ave shuttle to the 4/5, and got to work exactly on time.
I literally grew up 1/2 block away from the Culver shuttle in the '60s. My block was on the other side of the large factory on 37th st. between 14th and 15th Ave's., easily visible in the film. Friends and I used to climb the I beam pillars onto the catwalk or go up the awning over the stairs. And having used the shuttle until about 1971 I can attest that the condition was such that it needed to come down. The board platforms were splintering and pieces of, well I don't know what fell down along the line often enough to be noted. The shuttle line was, like many other pieces of infrastructure , neglected in that and the succeeding decade. Rust was eating holes in our bridges and elevated train's girder's. And While I agree that it's not a great idea to rip out everything I can also say property developer's had a lot to do with it.
It was 1975, NYC was bankrupt. The city asked the federal govt for money, they said "Drop Dead". NYC had to make cuts everywhere. Schools and hospitals were shut down too.
BrooklynRE In this day and age, the 4th Avenue Line and West End Lines are already at capacity, so no way this useless shuttle can be revived, unless you find room for those displaced trains.
I was lucky to railfan this line once, during the spring 1968 with my younger brother. Rode a 3 car B-type trainset. 9th ave. lower had an original BMT sign hanging from the ceiling and there was another B-type unit layed up on the far track (formerly used by the oubound local). The lighting was only the original yellow incandescent bulbs, and was quite dim. The entire station felt damp, dank, and clammy. There was a stench that could knock you down. I only took a couple of black and white photos at Ditmas ave. of the Steels leaving. Should have taken more - maybe I was almost at the end of a roll of film.
Rode it in 1965. BMT Standards. I used it to go from Bay Ridge to the World's Fair. A water main broke at Lawrence Street and flooded DeKalb Avenue, so no Fourth Avenue, West End, Sea Beach, or Brighton trains were running into Manhattan. I didn't want to transfer to the bus, so I went to 9th and transfered to the F.
wow thank u for that amazing ride, I lived in the Bronx never rode or saw the shuttle joined mta 1998 so this is really kool to see , u can see how they were fazing out the line only one track wood platforms etc
Thank you for posting this...i grew up on 42nd st between 14th and 15th ave..my father would always take me to watch the Bocce underneath the El...rode this plenty of times...thank you for the memories
I rode this many times in my youth. Underneath the El tracks were tracks used by the South Brooklyn Railroad. They would bring new subway cars on those lower tracks to Coney Island Yard using McDonald Ave's abandoned streetcar tracks and wire. After the El was torn down the tracks underneath were abandoned and now Town Houses mostly sit on the site.
Those tracks underneath were actually the original Culver tracks when it ran at grade. The auto traffic ran on either side of them on McDonald Ave. You can find photos online of it.
Ha! I remember when the ramp from Church Avenue to Ditmas was just sitting there, unused, until 1954 when the connection was finally made and the Culver was made to end on that side track at Ditmas. As I recall for awhile they used Staten Island Rapit Transit (SIRT) cars for that line; they were similar to BMT Standards. It was quite the location - the D train on the el, the Culver on the remnant running to 9th Ave, South Brooklyn trolley and diesel freight on McDonald Avenue turning off towards 9th Ave under the El and the McDonald Avenue trolleys running around the IND-Ditmas ramp and on to their terminal at PPW and 20th St. A 5 year old’s delight!
So many memories! I used to see it every day coming in and out of 13 Av Station! Rode it to Ditmas and back to 9 Av. 13 Ave was one of the stations close to my home (the other was Church and McDonald).
Very cool. I love quirky, historic lines. Quite sad it's gone but it isn't really needed so it makes sense the service ended. They could have left the line standing though and used it for redundancy or fleet movements.
Thank you for posting this! I've got lots of still photographs but this is my first time seeing movies of it! I moved to Flushing in 1975 at the age of 6. I didn't get into the NYC Subway system until the Mid-Eighties. Unfortunately, this was gone by then.
This brings back a whole lof of memories. My best friend Joey and I used to ride this thing. Watched them film the movie "Who is Harry Kellerman" at the ninth Avenue station
My grandparents lived near the Ditmas Avenue station in Brooklyn and there were many times when we rode the F train there from Queens. I clearly remember the side track at Ditmas and the structure curving away from the main tracks. I never saw the shuttle train actually operating on that track.
Been riding the “F” train since 1967 (I was a little boy). Lived at 18th Ave/Parkville Ave stop. Never took the shuttle, but a,ways saw the tracks and wondered where they went. One day, the tracks disappeared.
I remember the shuttle in the 70s..also remember when they were tearing down the elevated portions along the route..the shuttle was essentially replaced by the B35 bus...
Forgotten ny website has a good piece on this. Also, this line would be sooo clutch now for the borough park/Kensington residents that needed a connection to 9th ave.
The TA knew in the late 50’s that three el’s would not be around much longer when they did the project to replace wooden platforms with cement and they didn’t do three: the Myrtle west of Broadway , the Bronx 3rd ave and the Culver. all 3 gone by 1975:
Things were bad in the '70s, the city was on the verge of bankruptcy. The Culver Shuttle was a basically a railfan line by 1975 and it was a luxury the city couldn't afford. The South Ferry shuttle was discontinued two years later and the city tried to shut down the Franklin Avenue shuttle a number of times in the '70s and '80s, but the neighborhood persevered. Its still running now.
The B35 was a poor replacement. It was used as an excuse and justification to close the shuttle. Even today, that bus line is inadequate, overcrowded, and on a different route.
I grew up when my dad used to drive by the trestle, and i always wished they would reactivate it! Thanks for recording this!! Perhaps run it through a stabilizer?
Judging from the film stock with its faded color, my guess would be the camera operator used Kodachrome Super 8mm film. Because the beginning of the film had sound, he must have been using a sound equipped camera. Too early for videotape as BetaMax debuted about 2 years earlier and was too expensive for the average person. VHS was still in final development stages and I do not believe it was available yet to the home consumer.
Also back in those days, there were no "camcorders"; the camera and recorder were separate items that both had to be taken out into the field for on-location shooting.
This video is so Awesome!!! 👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾 Thank you so much to whoever posted this video. I am so Thankful to see this type of Historical footage. As a kid I never got a chance to ride that line because I always rode the F-line. But I remember there is a part of the old Culver line structure still there at the north end of the Ditmas station on the south bound side.
The R42 sound was added in post production. The line actually used a dozen R27/R30 cars that were modified to be in series while in shuttle service. After the line was abandoned, these cars were converted back to normal operations on the main line.
Neat how the camera operator made the change of direction appear seamless after entering the tunnel. Ah, the good old days when most crime was graffiti and you could stand near the edge of the platform without worrying if some homeless lunatic, or criminal, was going to push you onto the tracks!
Excellent footage Notchit!!!! I was a kid in the 60s and there was the North and Southbound still operating. The way they worked it was 2 trains, oneon each side timed so one train could be unloading and loading at Ditmas. My mom and I would take the Culver line at Ditmas to catch the Seabeach at 9th Ave to 14th street, then walk through the enlarge station ( always bought a large hot pretzel before going onto the 14th street moving platform Lex #6 line...Pelham Bay to Soundview Ave. The SeaBeach had those round disks on the floor between the "enclosed" walkthru to the next car. I always sat in the second car as there was a private seat enclosed area near the front of the car. I imagine I was the engineer. TooT TooT! Which model BMTs were they?
And at the 0:34 to 0:36 second mark, off to the left, you see an Amoco gas station. There’s still one there today, it’s a shell now. I went there to get gas and as I looked up at the elevated tracks, you can see the piece of the structure that would’ve made that curve that you see it making in the video. Lol this stuff fascinates me I need to get off RUclips now lol.
Same here. I was sadden when it was closed. It was a beautiful structure. I love looking at these old footage. I grew up in the 1950's ,60's , & the 1970's.. Those were beautiful trains. I wish I knew what year this was filmed.
+GeneralHawk505 I agree, the soundtrack is not in sync with the movement of the train, nor does it sound like an R-27 or whatever they ran on that line.
Great video. I live not far from the 9th Ave stop and was always curious about the lower level. Love it. I wish they didn't add the sound bite of a train coming and going. It's not in sync with the video and you can tell it's from when this was shot.
@@TheRailLeaguer what do mean by “why “?! this line was eliminated was I was born All i could do was ask my dad about the line and his memories about it !(i would have ❤️🧡to have rode this line)
@@TheRailLeaguer it would have served a great purpose (if you wanted to get to coney island) faster if you’re a brooklyn resident! (we bronx and manhattan residents we had to”sit it out “ for a hour&a half/two hours)the shuttle would have served a great deal (now) if you’re saying that this shuttle wouldn’t serve a purpose (right) now is similar to saying the 42 nd street and the franklin avenue shuttle wouldn’t serve a purpose either
@@dominicanamariposa21 Those routes do serve wonderful purposes (the Franklin Avenue serves Prospect Heights in a north-south direction, while the 42nd Street shuttle takes a quick crosstown ride). Here the Culver shuttle would’ve served virtually nobody. Plus the West End Line through Bensonhurst is already a fast option for Brooklyn residents.
motorman1017 Wow you were a motorman back in 81? What was it like back then. I’m a motorman now. I started in the IRT, then went to miscellaneous, now I’m in the B division miscellaneous. I love these shots, especially that slant 40 pulling into Ditmas on the Fox
![[READ PINNED] The Culver Shuttle - History & Remnants](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/0h5BhUOL2HY/mqdefault.jpg)
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![[ AI Upscaled / Stabilized ] Final Days of the Culver Shuttle 1975 footage](/img/1.gif)
What amazes me is back in May 1975 the person who shot this had the foresight to document this on film.
1400deadwood are you still in the area!?
I was thinking the same thing ADM. i’m from Brooklyn born in September of that year and had no idea of this.
Too bad there’s no sound (the sounds you hear are from some other rail trip)
You my friend are THEE MAN for having the presence of mind to film this , let alone preserve the footage. Fantastic, I really mean that. Part of Brooklyn, OUR, MY, history.
I rode this shuttle when I was younger, after they closed it, they gave you a small red transfer ticket to use on the B-35 bus which ran over to the F line from the West End which was the B line at the time. I walked the tracks as a trespasser after they ended the service there, the wood was really rotted and I am surprised I didn't fall through. Memories... I ended up making a career out of being a subway motorman interestingly enough LOL.
Ken Hasard Wow,that is awesome
My dad was a Conductor for NYCTA for 24 years, he worked out of East 241st in The Bronx. As a kid I've been up in that tower so many times.
Sounds great. I always wanted to be a subway motorman. Since my early childhood the transit system fascinated me.
I used to trespass into the lower level platforms of 9th ave three years ago and sad to say they removed all the old fashion signs that were on the columns. But definitely one of the best stations I'm glad I got to see for myself.
Ken Hasard ff
Love the shot of the R40 slant with the graff on it pulling into Ditmas
I used to go for "train rides" when I was a kid in Brooklyn's Bush Terminal section. One of my favs was the Culver Shuttle, running from ninth Ave to (I think) McDonald ave???? You could change for the F train there. Except for the ninth Ave station it was all elevated. It came out from underground running alongside Greenwood cemetery. Ninth Ave was an interesting stop as it was below street level for the West End (B train) and down another level for the Culver Shuttle. Real creepy down there waiting for the Culver, almost never saw another person. The trains cost 15 cents for a ride, this was back around 1960. Also remember they had the oldest cars I'd ever seen on the Culver Line. Many thanks for a trip down memory lane.
You are correcto....I was a kid in the 60s...it was a 3 or 4 car train back then.
Thank You. An amazing piece of New York history and fewer and fewer people remember this little Brooklyn ride. Brings back incredible memories.
same here. those were beautiful. very angry that it was taken down. those were good quality material. I had a kick riding that Culver Shuttle back in the 60's & the 70's. now I have to either walk or take the B35 Bus. those old trains were nicer. I belong to the NY Transit Museum which I visit on & off in downtown Brooklyn.
Alex Litvak you rode it ?
i rode on this line one day before it was closed. The consist was a set of the first IND equipment from the opening days. It was in terrible shape, but the structure wasn't torn down till 10 years later. About 10 years ago I was on an excursion and we got a tour into the lower section of the 9th Ave station. One of the things that caught my eye through the dust and grime was the mosaics. Unfortunately none of those particular mosaics were preserved .
This is some history piece!!!! A R40 slant on the F line!!! The casualty of Gerald Fords "Drop Dead New York" politricks.
My job site is currently right on the tracks , right across from greenwood cemetery. The railings are still in the ground where my site is directly. I’m a train nerd so this stuff fascinates me lol
It's something else about the Culver Line , my father was a Motorman on that line shorty after being back from world war two , but he eventually went on to the surface lines with the Transit Authority and operated trolleys , electric buses , and finally regular buses , he finished his career with transit at the 36th St. Depot , or I think they call it the Jackie Gleason depot now , as a bus shifter ,,,,,,, a title for guys that were near retirement and were off the road , but the funny thing was how his career was just starting out near a stones throw away on the Culver Line in the 1940s and finished so close to it , he worked for the Transit Authority for 38 years and unfortunately passed away just a few years after his retirement . I just want to thank you so very much for sharing this video with us all .
I rode the Culver shuttle just once, wanted to do it before it was gone. This back in the 1960's, I was about 13 at the time.
This looks like 8mm film, but there WERE "portable" video cameras in 1975, though mostly B&W not color.
I remember those 'shovel nose' R40's.
The Culver was torn down because of poor ridership, though that was probably due to the uselessness of the short shuttle type of operation. Also the neighborhood was served by the nearby West End line that runs parallel to most of the Culver's route. The transfer between the West End line and the Culver (then the "D") train wasn't that popular.
The part of the Myrtle Ave El that was torn down was so old it couldn't handle modern steel cars and had to use the lighter weight wooden ones! It would have been too expensive to rebuild the El to modern standards.
The Franklin shuttle had enough ridership to keep it going. It serves neighborhoods between the "A" line and the Brighton, and the connection between the two is used. Workers at Interfaith Hospital make use of the line.
Very informative. Explains a lot. Thank you.
As a native of Brooklyn (having moved out in 1974), I loved riding on the NYC subway system as a kid, and later using it to go to work. These slow speed shuttles (like the Franklin Avenue Shuttle and the 42nd Street shuttle in Manhattan) were fun to ride on. My grandparents lived in Brighton Beach, and almost any Brooklyn bound train from anywhere in the city (except for the "RR"), would wind up in Coney Island, and I could take a BMT (or later IND) train back three stops to Brighton Beach...couldn't get lost!
rolex452 where’d you move to and why? And what part of bk were you from?
To me the mid-70s were the heyday of the subway, which I too used to ride just for fun as a kid! The shuttles were a big part of it. Loved seeing those SS shuttles (was there even a TT?) and I SWORE I’d remembered a Franklin Ave shuttle, which I loved because of the types of cars they used if I remember correctly. A little tapered on the top, blue stripe maybe. Awesome.
@Scrimpets1 Off topic but since you mentioned it, yes there was. Now I was born way way after (post-2005) but I've been researching over the years and I found that there briefly were TT trains in 1967. It didn't last long.
It was discontinued long before I was old enough to ride trains, but I remember riding the F train seeing the remnants still there like the track leading out of ditmas
Someone actually went out into the remnants to film where the Culver shuttle used to be lucky thing he didn't fall down
Love this video....born/raised in Brooklyn, and living in Kensington for over a decade now, with Ditmas being my stop. You can see just a little bit of the starting curve of the shuttle structure still remaining, and I was hoping there's be something on RUclips. The take-off at 0:23 is especially wild. Wish I took this shuttle as a kid, looks like a fun ride.
I grew up on 41st Street and 14th avenue in the 80s. Service was before my time, but I remember when they were tearing down the tracks. I've never seen a video of what each stop looked like so thanks!!!!
Loved the Culver line....mom took me shopping to Fulton Street on it many times! Many happy memories...
I loved that old shuttle. What a relic it was.
Thanks for the post! I missed it by 5 years. I moved to Kensington Park in 1980 at the age of 9. Six months later, I rode the "F" train for the first time on a school trip and from then, I began riding subways by myself! I always wished that I had the opportunity to ride the 9th Avenue shuttle, the Myrtle Avenue El and the 3rd Avenue Bronx El., the QJ and the KK trains. At least I got a chance to ride the "AA" train and the "M" brighton local to Coney Island. Beggars can't be choosers!
It makes me insanely angry that the city took down this line. And the third ave El. "Uhh, yeah, let's just tear that down, it's not like the population of the city will grow, and the trains will get crowded, you know?" You never, ever tear down infrastructure like this. Imagine a sick passenger, or a disabled train, or signal failure at 8 am, a few stops up from Ditmas Ave on the F line. Everyone is cursing, swearing, and pissed off. If this line would be active, they would just reroute F trains via the 9th ave shuttle tracks, and the trains would go directly to the city. Something like this happened to me a few years ago. I was working in the city and being late was a huge no no. The Q took 30 min to get from Sheepshead Bay to Prospect due to signal problems. I took the Franklin Ave shuttle to the 4/5, and got to work exactly on time.
my grandfather had a hardware store in 161 and 3rd ave. i remember when they took it down. shocked the whole neighborhood.
I literally grew up 1/2 block away from the Culver shuttle in the '60s. My block was on the other side of the large factory on 37th st. between 14th and 15th Ave's., easily visible in the film. Friends and I used to climb the I beam pillars onto the catwalk or go up the awning over the stairs. And having used the shuttle until about 1971 I can attest that the condition was such that it needed to come down. The board platforms were splintering and pieces of, well I don't know what fell down along the line often enough to be noted. The shuttle line was, like many other pieces of infrastructure , neglected in that and the succeeding decade. Rust was eating holes in our bridges and elevated train's girder's. And While I agree that it's not a great idea to rip out everything I can also say property developer's had a lot to do with it.
It was 1975, NYC was bankrupt. The city asked the federal govt for money, they said "Drop Dead". NYC had to make cuts everywhere. Schools and hospitals were shut down too.
BrooklynRE In this day and age, the 4th Avenue Line and West End Lines are already at capacity, so no way this useless shuttle can be revived, unless you find room for those displaced trains.
@@TheRailLeaguer is west end line useless
I was lucky to railfan this line once, during the spring 1968 with my younger brother. Rode a 3 car B-type trainset. 9th ave. lower had an original BMT sign hanging from the ceiling and there was another B-type unit layed up on the far track (formerly used by the oubound local). The lighting was only the original yellow incandescent bulbs, and was quite dim. The entire station felt damp, dank, and clammy. There was a stench that could knock you down. I only took a couple of black and white photos at Ditmas ave. of the Steels leaving. Should have taken more - maybe I was almost at the end of a roll of film.
Rode it in 1965. BMT Standards. I used it to go from Bay Ridge to the World's Fair. A water main broke at Lawrence Street and flooded DeKalb Avenue, so no Fourth Avenue, West End, Sea Beach, or Brighton trains were running into Manhattan. I didn't want to transfer to the bus, so I went to 9th and transfered to the F.
Back in May 1984, 9 years after the shuttle closed, I shot a whole roll of film of the entire length from Ditmas Ave to Ft Hamilton Pky.
Was that before they demolished it? Do you have the photos uploaded anywhere?
Excellent Job! This specific train line has always been fascinating to me since I was a kid back in the 70's
wow thank u for that amazing ride, I lived in the Bronx never rode or saw the shuttle joined mta 1998 so this is really kool to see , u can see how they were fazing out the line only one track wood platforms etc
Thank you for posting this...i grew up on 42nd st between 14th and 15th ave..my father would always take me to watch the Bocce underneath the El...rode this plenty of times...thank you for the memories
I rode this many times in my youth. Underneath the El tracks were tracks used by the South Brooklyn Railroad. They would bring new subway cars on those lower tracks to Coney Island Yard using McDonald Ave's abandoned streetcar tracks and wire. After the El was torn down the tracks underneath were abandoned and now Town Houses mostly sit on the site.
Those tracks underneath were actually the original Culver tracks when it ran at grade. The auto traffic ran on either side of them on McDonald Ave. You can find photos online of it.
There were glimpses of the SBKRR trackage in the video.
@@tommybrill9107 You can still see some remnants on Google Street View too, and from above you can see the original alignment, pretty cool
Ha! I remember when the ramp from Church Avenue to Ditmas was just sitting there, unused, until 1954 when the connection was finally made and the Culver was made to end on that side track at Ditmas. As I recall for awhile they used Staten Island Rapit Transit (SIRT) cars for that line; they were similar to BMT Standards. It was quite the location - the D train on the el, the Culver on the remnant running to 9th Ave, South Brooklyn trolley and diesel freight on McDonald Avenue turning off towards 9th Ave under the El and the McDonald Avenue trolleys running around the IND-Ditmas ramp and on to their terminal at PPW and 20th St. A 5 year old’s delight!
I just realized this is 1975 the year the R44 & R46's were being brought in
And R46s are still in service til this day? That's a long time
@Owly123 Well they still are, but are now scheduled for retirement.
@@Chris-zs5qbLet's hope they retire them soon....
I was born May 01, 1975. So the shuttle was still running 10 more days after I was born. Crazy.
So many memories! I used to see it every day coming in and out of 13 Av Station! Rode it to Ditmas and back to 9 Av. 13 Ave was one of the stations close to my home (the other was Church and McDonald).
Letticia Rosado wowwwww...are you still in the area?
Very cool. I love quirky, historic lines. Quite sad it's gone but it isn't really needed so it makes sense the service ended. They could have left the line standing though and used it for redundancy or fleet movements.
Thank you for posting this! I've got lots of still photographs but this is my first time seeing movies of it! I moved to Flushing in 1975 at the age of 6. I didn't get into the NYC Subway system until the Mid-Eighties. Unfortunately, this was gone by then.
As an old train afficionado, AND from BROOKLYN, THIS WAS GREAT !
This brings back a whole lof of memories. My best friend Joey and I used to ride this thing. Watched them film the movie "Who is Harry Kellerman" at the ninth Avenue station
My grandparents lived near the Ditmas Avenue station in Brooklyn and there were many times when we rode the F train there from Queens. I clearly remember the side track at Ditmas and the structure curving away from the main tracks. I never saw the shuttle train actually operating on that track.
Been riding the “F” train since 1967 (I was a little boy). Lived at 18th Ave/Parkville Ave stop. Never took the shuttle, but a,ways saw the tracks and wondered where they went. One day, the tracks disappeared.
I remember the shuttle in the 70s..also remember when they were tearing down the elevated portions along the route..the shuttle was essentially replaced by the B35 bus...
Which then took almost twice as long....
Used the Culver Shuttle in 1965. Running with BMT Standards.
Rode this line back and forth once in 1971.
Good for you
Oh they definitely need to bring that back!! And now the city is getting more crowded. Absolutely. 💯
WOW incredible! It says it was film 1975? But if you see the train passing a SNAKE 76 tag?! Did you peep the VINNY piece. Classic
Yes indeed I peeped that, Graff pioneers joints running right in their hay day
As a new road Motorman in 1974, I broke in on the shuttle, but never operated a run on that line.
Congratulations on your operating career!!
Forgotten ny website has a good piece on this. Also, this line would be sooo clutch now for the borough park/Kensington residents that needed a connection to 9th ave.
Instead of going to Coney Island to get the d they could just catch the d on fort hamilton
The TA knew in the late 50’s that three el’s would not be around much longer when they did the project to replace wooden platforms with cement and they didn’t do three: the Myrtle west of Broadway , the Bronx 3rd ave and the Culver. all 3 gone by 1975:
This is awesome, too bad that the MTA had to close it
rafael asuncionXD it was not the mta there was another company who onwned it at the time also it was the mayor's descision to d it
DitmasParkKid MTA was formed in 1968. This shuttle closed in 1975, so it was in the MTA Era.
Things were bad in the '70s, the city was on the verge of bankruptcy. The Culver Shuttle was a basically a railfan line by 1975 and it was a luxury the city couldn't afford. The South Ferry shuttle was discontinued two years later and the city tried to shut down the Franklin Avenue shuttle a number of times in the '70s and '80s, but the neighborhood persevered. Its still running now.
@@paktype yet we couldn't evem save the bronx irt 8 line aka the bronx 3rd av el
@@paktypeHowever, the Franklin Avenue Shuttle is a mere shadow of what it once was....
I was born and raised around the corner on 38th Street between 12 and 13 avenues........crazy good times
Replaced by a transit bus route, we're need this line back again
The B35 was a poor replacement. It was used as an excuse and justification to close the shuttle. Even today, that bus line is inadequate, overcrowded, and on a different route.
@@johnd.lictro1312Not to also mention that it takes more than twice as long....
I grew up when my dad used to drive by the trestle, and i always wished they would reactivate it! Thanks for recording this!! Perhaps run it through a stabilizer?
I think he didn’t record this video-
Judging from the film stock with its faded color, my guess would be the camera operator used Kodachrome Super 8mm film. Because the beginning of the film had sound, he must have been using a sound equipped camera. Too early for videotape as BetaMax debuted about 2 years earlier and was too expensive for the average person. VHS was still in final development stages and I do not believe it was available yet to the home consumer.
Also back in those days, there were no "camcorders"; the camera and recorder were separate items that both had to be taken out into the field for on-location shooting.
This video is so Awesome!!! 👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾
Thank you so much to whoever posted this video. I am so Thankful to see this type of Historical footage. As a kid I never got a chance to ride that line because I always rode the F-line. But I remember there is a part of the old Culver line structure still there at the north end of the Ditmas station on the south bound side.
What makes me
The R42 sound was added in post production. The line actually used a dozen R27/R30 cars that were modified to be in series while in shuttle service. After the line was abandoned, these cars were converted back to normal operations on the main line.
*Brings back memories back in the days*
This video is platinum. Must have been an expensive camera
These are sound effects, the recording is a r42, nothing like a 32
Neat how the camera operator made the change of direction appear seamless after entering the tunnel.
Ah, the good old days when most crime was graffiti and you could stand near the edge of the platform without worrying if some homeless lunatic, or criminal, was going to push you onto the tracks!
When I rode this growing up, I never knew it was the original Culver line.
Excellent footage Notchit!!!! I was a kid in the 60s and there was the North and Southbound still operating. The way they worked it was 2 trains, oneon each side timed so one train could be unloading and loading at Ditmas.
My mom and I would take the Culver line at Ditmas to catch the Seabeach at 9th Ave to 14th street, then walk through the enlarge station ( always bought a large hot pretzel before going onto the 14th street moving platform Lex #6 line...Pelham Bay to Soundview Ave.
The SeaBeach had those round disks on the floor between the "enclosed" walkthru to the next car. I always sat in the second car as there was a private seat enclosed area near the front of the car. I imagine I was the engineer. TooT TooT! Which model BMTs were they?
Easy! BMT D types from 1927, 1928.
I have miss this day =(
And at the 0:34 to 0:36 second mark, off to the left, you see an Amoco gas station. There’s still one there today, it’s a shell now. I went there to get gas and as I looked up at the elevated tracks, you can see the piece of the structure that would’ve made that curve that you see it making in the video. Lol this stuff fascinates me I need to get off RUclips now lol.
I wish it was still opened
Same here. I was sadden when it was closed. It was a beautiful structure. I love looking at these old footage. I grew up in the 1950's ,60's , & the 1970's.. Those were beautiful trains. I wish I knew what year this was filmed.
At 0:37 secons is 38th park only the hand ball wall remains in there originally. My neighborhood , I still live here 2nd an Cortelyourd.
In 1972, I made a point to ride the 3rd Avenue El in the Bronx. Glad I did. I was 12.
Thanks for sharing. I thought it was was much later.
RIP The Culver Shuttle
Wait so is that what the missing tracks are in ditmas ave?
Is it me or i just realized the Sound is a Recording of an R42 M or J train....with static in the backround
+GeneralHawk505 I agree, the soundtrack is not in sync with the movement of the train, nor does it sound like an R-27 or whatever they ran on that line.
8mm cameras record videos on mute so I’m guessing the R42 sounds are likely fillers.
Great video. I live not far from the 9th Ave stop and was always curious about the lower level. Love it. I wish they didn't add the sound bite of a train coming and going. It's not in sync with the video and you can tell it's from when this was shot.
*it's not from
i never rode the that stuttle i use to see it at the 9th station on the West End B line at that time
7:26 - F Train approaching!
Letticia Rosado ... Covered in graffiti
Rip The R40 Train
Now I Imagine it as a R46
@@smrtc151productions4YUCK!
I always rode the F line. I saw a train on these tracks once.
Those tagged up slants
why doesn't this show 9th avenue station?
Ninth Avenue station was too dark and murky for it to be filmed at that point.
It was film. You have to be selective of what you photographed.
Hey what's wrong with the sound quality of the video.
From NYCTA (New York City Transportation Authority) to MTA (Metropolitan Transportation Authority)
This ran along 39th St. in Boro Park. How many stops along the way did it have, and where were they?
i remember riding it when i was a child it will always beremembered by all new yorkers
Where's 9th Av?
You noticed that too, huh?!
this shuttle should not have been demolished
Why?
@@TheRailLeaguer what do mean by “why “?! this line was eliminated was I was born All i could do was ask my dad about the line and his memories about it !(i would have ❤️🧡to have rode this line)
@@dominicanamariposa21 You don’t need this line to be bought back just to relieve memories. Plus today it wouldn’t serve an important purpose.
@@TheRailLeaguer it would have served a great purpose (if you wanted to get to coney island) faster if you’re a brooklyn resident! (we bronx and manhattan residents we had to”sit it out “ for a hour&a half/two hours)the shuttle would have served a great deal (now) if you’re saying that this shuttle wouldn’t serve a purpose (right) now is similar to saying the 42 nd street and the franklin avenue shuttle wouldn’t serve a purpose either
@@dominicanamariposa21 Those routes do serve wonderful purposes (the Franklin Avenue serves Prospect Heights in a north-south direction, while the 42nd Street shuttle takes a quick crosstown ride). Here the Culver shuttle would’ve served virtually nobody. Plus the West End Line through Bensonhurst is already a fast option for Brooklyn residents.
It would have been nice if the sound continued throughout the whole entire film what happened at 8:15 until the end ... no more sound??
Excellent!
NYRavage sorry it was taken down. i use to ride this back in the 1970's. it was a thrill. those were the beautiful quality machines.
Bring it back
There are new housing developments along the path now. It's also not worth the cost as the B35 can do the job just fine.
@@TheRailLeaguerThat B35 does a TERRIBLE job; it gets stuck at so many red lights that it takes TWICE as long as the train did!
@@CraigFThompson Which is why Interborough Express is planned.
went to motors in 1981
motorman1017 Wow you were a motorman back in 81? What was it like back then. I’m a motorman now. I started in the IRT, then went to miscellaneous, now I’m in the B division miscellaneous. I love these shots, especially that slant 40 pulling into Ditmas on the Fox
A very well done effort here. That shuttle seemed to be an after thought for both the passengers and the TA. Makes no real sense in theory.
why weren’t the station stops announced?!
MAN I WAS ONLY 4 YEARS OLD THEN I WAS LIVING IN BROOKLYN
When did the whole former northbound section of the Culver Shuttle close?
This was an elevated shuttle above 9 th Ave?
Thee shuttle ran between 37th and 38th Streets connecting Sunset Park and Kensington, something the B35 does now.
Brilliant footage for the 1970s!
Hi Great Footage .. can i use a few small pieces for a Brooklyn project i'm working on...??
Does this still exist
No
what year was this?
Jonah omorebokhae Seriously?
1975
1975
@@diegocarvajal6165 LOL
Remind me what borough is this
Is the sound actually a soundtrack from another video?
He didn't blow for the adjacent track set up, the 3 yellow flags
Odd that only one track and one platform was being used. I guess the other track was already dismantled.
It appears that there were THREE tracks at one time....
They should have kept the line
Y is it turned around left north to right
They rehabbed and fixed the Franklin Ave. shuttle. Too bad they didn't do it here.
The line carried lower ridership than the Franklin Avenue Shuttle
@@TheRailLeaguerWhich even THEN was severely butchered down to single-track operation....
Back at a time where if you wanted sound on your video you had to pay extra for it 🤣
i remember it well