Editing Dual Contracts (section)

==Contracts==
[[Image:1910 IRT plan.png|thumb|150px|1910 plan for IRT expansion]]

===Contracts 1 and 2===
{{main|Early history of the IRT subway}}
Built before the Dual Contracts, the first regularly operated [[rapid transit|subway]] in New York City was built by the city and leased to the [[Interborough Rapid Transit Company]] (IRT) for operation under city Contracts 1 and 2. Until 1918, when the new "H" system that is still operated – with separate [[IRT Lexington Avenue Line|East Side]] and [[IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line|West Side]] lines – was placed in service, it consisted of a single trunk line below [[96th Street (IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line)|96th Street]] with several northern branches. The system had four tracks between [[Brooklyn Bridge–City Hall (IRT Lexington Avenue Line)|Brooklyn Bridge–City Hall]] and 96th Street, allowing for local and express service on that portion.

Contract 1 was for the original 28 stations of the subway system that opened on October 27, 1904, from [[City Hall (IRT Lexington Avenue Line)|City Hall]] to [[145th Street (IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line)|145th Street]], as well as for stations opened before 1908 on several IRT extensions. The original system as included in Contract 1 was completed on January 14, 1907, when trains started running across the [[Harlem Ship Canal]] on the [[Broadway Bridge (Manhattan)|Broadway Bridge]] to [[Marble Hill–225th Street (IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line)|225th Street]],<ref name="225th">''[[The New York Times]]'', [https://www.nytimes.com/1907/01/14/archives/farthest-north-in-town-by-the-interborough-take-a-trip-to-the-new.html Farthest North in Town by the Interborough], January 14, 1907, page 18</ref> and the Contract 2 portion was opened to [[Atlantic Avenue–Barclays Center (IRT Eastern Parkway Line)|Atlantic Avenue]] on May 1, 1908.<ref name="Atlantic">''The New York Times'', [https://www.nytimes.com/1908/05/02/archives/brooklyn-joyful-over-new-subway-celebrates-opening-of-extension.html Brooklyn Joyful Over New Subway], May 2, 1908, page 1</ref>

===Contracts 3 and 4===
The Dual Contracts were signed on March 19, 1913. The contracts bound Interborough Rapid Transit Company and the [[Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company]] (BRT; later [[Brooklyn–Manhattan Transit Corporation|BMT]]) to build and operate lines for 49 years.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1913/03/20/100611839.pdf|title=Subway Contracts Solemnly Signed; Cheers at the Ceremonial Function When McCall Gets Willcox to Attest.|date=March 20, 1913|work=The New York Times|access-date=January 11, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Contract 3 was signed between the City and the IRT. Contract 4 was signed between the City and the Municipal Railway Company, a subsidiary of the BRT, formed especially for the purpose of contracting with the city for construction of the lines.

Under the terms of Contracts 3 and 4, the city would build new subway and [[elevated railroad|elevated line]]s, and rehabilitate and expand certain existing elevated lines, and lease them to the private companies for operation. The expansions would total {{convert|618|mi|km}} of new trackage across both systems; by comparison, the existing systems had {{convert|296|mi|km}} of tracks. The city's third major rapid transit company, the [[Hudson & Manhattan Railroad]] (now [[PATH (rail system)|PATH]]), was excluded from the contracts.<ref name="NYTimes-618Miles-1913"/> The projected $337 million cost would be borne mostly by the City, which was to pay $226 million, and the companies would pay the difference.{{sfn|Derrick|2001|p=7}}<ref name="NYTimes-618Miles-1913">{{cite web | title=618 MILES OF TRACK IN THE DUAL SYSTEM; City Will Have Invested $226,000,000 When Rapid Transit Project Is Completed. | website=The New York Times | date=August 3, 1913 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1913/08/03/archives/618-miles-of-track-in-the-dual-system-city-will-have-invested.html | access-date=April 25, 2018}}</ref> The City's contribution was in cash raised by bond offerings, while the companies' contributions were variously by supplying cash, facilities and equipment to run the lines.

===Queensboro Plaza===
[[File:Queensboro Plaza.png|thumb|right|250px|[[Queensboro Plaza (New York City Subway)|Queensboro Plaza]] track plan]]
The contract negotiations were long and sometimes acrimonious. For instance, when the IRT was reluctant to cede the BRT's proposed access to [[Midtown Manhattan]] via the [[BMT Broadway Line|Broadway Line]], the city and state negotiators immediately offered the BRT ''all'' of the lines under proposal. This included lines that would have only been operable using IRT rolling stock dimensions, such as the upper [[IRT Lexington Avenue Line|Lexington Avenue Line]] and both lines in Queens. The IRT quickly gave in to the "invasion" of Midtown Manhattan by the BRT.{{sfn|Public Service Commission|1913|loc=chapter 1}}{{sfn|Rogoff|1960}}

The assignment of the proposed lines in [[Queens]] proved to be an imposition on both companies. Instead of one company enjoying a monopoly in that borough, both proposed lines—a [[BMT Astoria Line|short line]] to [[Astoria, Queens|Astoria]], and a [[IRT Flushing Line|longer line]] reaching initially to [[Corona, Queens|Corona]], and eventually to [[Flushing, Queens|Flushing]]—were assigned to ''both'' companies, to be operated in what was called "joint service". The lines would start from a large interchange station, [[Queensboro Plaza (New York City Subway)|Queensboro Plaza]]. The IRT would access the station from both the 1907 [[Steinway Tunnel]] and an extension of the [[IRT Second Avenue Line|Second Avenue Elevated]] from Manhattan over the [[Queensboro Bridge]]. The BRT would feed the Queens lines from the [[60th Street Tunnel]] in Manhattan. Technically the line was under IRT "ownership", but the BRT/BMT was granted [[trackage rights]] in perpetuity, essentially making it theirs also.{{sfn|Public Service Commission|1913|loc=chapter 1}}{{sfn|Rogoff|1960}}

The BRT had a big disadvantage, as both Queens lines were built to IRT specifications. This meant that IRT passengers had a one-seat ride to Manhattan destinations, whereas BRT passengers had to make a change at Queensboro Plaza. This came to be important when service was extended for the [[1939 World's Fair]], as the IRT was able to offer direct express trains from Manhattan, and the BRT was not. This practice lasted well into the municipal ownership of the lines, and was not ended until 1949. Both companies shared in the revenues from this service. To facilitate this arrangement originally, extra long platforms were constructed along both Queens routes, so separate fare controls/boarding areas could be established. This quickly turned out to be operationally unworkable, so eventually a proportionate formula was worked out. The bonus legacy of this construction was that the IRT was able to operate 11-car trains on this line, and when the BMT took over the [[BMT Astoria Line|Astoria Line]], minimal work had to be done to accommodate 10-car BMT units.{{sfn|Rogoff|1960}}