The BL&R Trolley - 1908-1931
Electricity had made its debut; and light-rail lines like the BL&R began to spring up to challenge the dominance of steam railroads. Electric powered trolleys provided a cleaner and quicker ride than steam trains; but the price of a ticket was about the same either way. The BL&R ran its 54 mile high-speed line from Lockport to Rochester. The trolleys were equipped with 75hp at first, and later with 125hp motors on each "truck" (four trucks per car). The cars came geared for speeds up to 80mph; but 60mph was the practical limit. In places where the BL&R and NYCRR tracks ran next to each other, races between the two competitors were not unheard of. (Rochester, Lockport and Buffalo R.R., Wm R. Gordon, 1963)

The years before WWI were the glory days for electric interurban trolleys: In 1915 the BL&R logged 1,474,750 miles carrying 2,033,749 passengers. A Sunday excursion to Niagara Falls from Rochester cost $1.60, and to Toronto cost $2.75 plus the boat fare (see below). After the war America began a massive program of highway expansion, which eventualy spelled the end of the interurban railroads.

A Beginning and an End The Buffalo, Lockport and Rochester Railway opened on September 2, 1908 at Albion, NY (Albion was midway on the 54 mile run from Rochester to Lockport). The Buffalo, Lockport and Rochester Railway (1908-1919) was reorganized to become the Rochester, Lockport and Buffalo Railroad Corp (April 1919 - April 30, 1931) The Rochester, Lockport and Buffalo Railroad Corp. sent its last car down the tracks - the local from Rochester to Albion - on April 30, 1931.

Toronto Specials A brisk tourist industry developed on the back of the BL&R and its cohort the International Railway (seen here). International owned the tracks from Lockport to three destinations: Buffalo, Niagara Falls and Olcott on Lake Ontario to the north. Steam excursion boats met passengers at Olcott and carried them across the Great Lake to Toronto. Passengers who caught the early morning BL&R at Rochester could go to Toronto and be back in Rochester that same evening.

AC vs DC DC was all that was available when trollies were new; but DC was expensive and not practical to transmit over long distances. Early trollies were therefore limited to use in urban areas near to their generating stations. High-voltage AC could be transmitted long distances, but it was dangerous to use near people - especially where motors and connections could become wet with rain (eg. in trolley cars). By placing a series of substations in which "rotary converters" like the one shown here changed AC to DC, interurban trollies like the BL&R became practical.

Freight Cars The BL&R was able to supplement its passenger income with both local and express freight business, as well. The rates were in line with those charged by the competing NYCRR; and from the first, the BL&R did a considerable business hauling the fruit, vegetables and milk for which the region had become famous. Freight traffic was generally scheduled for nights, when regular passenger service did not run.