So, what in the world is the New York Central Belt Line?
Trains go by along it, and we pass underneath and over it and we get around the city, without always realizing that these lines, and the places they connect, share a common geography.
It’s easy to conclude that railroads crisscross Buffalo at random angles without any coherent direction, because their interrelationships are not always apparent when viewed from street level.
It is therefore forgivable to not be familiar with these rail lines as being part, in fact, of an elegant, coherent system. This system, or organizing framework, is the New York Central Belt Line, a hide-in-plain-sight secret that was Buffalo’s most consequential transportation project since the Erie Canal.
The Belt Line is 15 miles long, forming a continuous loop through Buffalo’s downtown as well as the city’s prominent industrial loft clusters that it helped to create, such as the Larkin District, Highland Park, Great Arrow, and others.
The Belt Line was established as both a freight and commuter rail line, with 19 commuter stations that transported passengers between employment centers from 1883 until the end of World War I. A trip cost a nickel with about 26 trains running per day. These helped create Buffalo’s early commuter suburbs, such as Parkside, Grant/Amherst, North Park, Parkside, and Hamlin Park, each of which had its own station.
What may be next for the Belt Line and the places it connects?
Find out from Chris Hawley, an urbanist and self-described “amateur historian” who has made the story of the Belt Line one of his many Buffalo interests.
On Wednesday January 8th at 8pm | St Peters Episcopal Church Hall on Longmeadow and Callodine in Amherst.
The lecture is sponsored by the Greater Buffalo Bottle Collectors Association. The regular meeting begins at 7. The event is free to the public and light refreshments will be served. For more info call 716-440-7985
Lead image: BuffaloAH.com | Map: JI @ BRO