Working in partnership with the Rochester & Genesee Valley Railroad, the two organizations completed their demonstration rail line and held a “Golden
Spike” ceremony in 1992.
Rides were initially offered using a fleet of rebuilt track cars and trailers while the two museums made plans to electrify their railroad.
With a detailed plan for electrifica- tion in hand, poles were set along the right of way starting in 1996, while the search for operable trolleys was con- ducted. There were some possible can- didates in the NYMT collection, but in 1996 the four SEPTA cars in Keokuk, Iowa, became available. The museum chose to acquire cars 161 and 168 and bring them to Rochester.
Following tests in 2000, the first cars were operated for the public in 2001 on a quarter-mile of electrified track using a generator. This initial success spurred both museums to pool re- sources and continue the electrification program. Between 2005 and 2006 a new power substation was constructed to allow NYMT to purchase power from utility Niagara Mohawk and convert it into the high-voltage d.c. needed to run the trolleys. To help speed the progress of electrification, the museum enjoyed the benefit of many professional electri- cians, engineers, and linemen who do- nated their time to the cause.
The joint investment paid off as scheduled trolley operations began in 2006. The overhead wire was extended in 2007 and again in 2008 to its present end at the appropriately named Mid- way Station. Visitors enjoy a nearly one-mile ride on the trolley before transferring at Midway to a train that continues the rest of the way to the R&GV Railroad Museum housed in the former Erie Railroad depot at Industry.
BELOW: Is it 1931 or 2013? The rarely-seen Car 168 passes a barn near NYMT in the early evening of July 20, 2013. It’s hard to tell that the tracks were only put in place twenty years ago. The property surrounding the museum was once used as a state agricultural school. JOE NUGENT PHOTO BOTTOM: The operator prepares to hoop up train orders to Car 161, while a Ford Model A waits patiently at the crossing. The “operator” is none other than the author, who is also an active volunteer at the museums. STEVE BARRY PHOTO
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