An "El" Train System based on the razed, 19th-Century Era

Manhattan Els



Hold up - What's an 'El' ?



El (noun) - an elevated railroad or section of railroad, especially that in Chicago ('L') or New York ('El').



A Background on "El's" in Manhattan (What the entire in-game system is based on).



New York's "El's" (Elevated Rail lines) in Manhattan were torn down long ago, but not Chicago's. Why? Manhattan's were seen as blights. Chicagos on the other hand, saw the value & importance of its lines and the system ultimately doubled as a tourist attraction itself. Back to the topic of the Manhattan lines: they blocked the sun from the streets, decreased the properly values of buildings along the Els, and were noisy. Subway lines intended to replace them resulted in their closure and demolition. The last of the El lines in Manhattan was discontinued due to pressure from real estate developers to make way for new skyscrapers. Now, have you ever wondered why Manhattan has so many skyscrapers, especially in midtown ? It's because the "El's" were demolished. Had they been kept, New York would still have many tenements and far less high rises in the city, since they lowered property values. However, it is still likely that the city would have went through with the construction of its many skyscrapers, even with some of the "Els" around (They'd have to get some offices done at some point, right?). The demolition of the Els started a boom in skyscraper construction along the avenues and neighborhoods they once ran along / through.

Though they were a nuisance, the city would be different if they had just kept the last one out of the four Manhattan Els. The Third Avenue El's demoltion has left the Lexington Avenue Line, being the only subway line currently left on Manhattan's East Side (until 2016 on part of 2nd Avenue), extremely packed, and its demolition contributed to the deterioration of the Bronx starting in 1973, which left parts of it an utter wasteland for several years.

For More Information and the NYC Els and it's transit system, or any other city's transit system please visit : http://nycsubway.org

To view a Gallery of the long gone NYC Els, visit



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