Harbingers of the Coming Collapse

While the Central Terminal served its community and nation, several factors were driving passenger rail service into decline.

In 1916, 98 percent of commercial intercity travelers went by rail, and most of the remainder by inland waterways. By 1950, railroad’s share of the transportation industry had dropped to less than 50 percent, and that number would keep falling. Four primary suspects would cause the near collapse of the rail industry.

Passenger airlines, which had gotten off to a slow start in 1914, began to really take off after the Second World War. Commercial aviation quickly grew, fed by the numbers of post-war pilots looking for jobs. Factories pivoted from military to civilian and cargo aircraft, and planes offered faster delivery of mail and packages.

The other three culprits effectively worked together. After the Second World War, highways began to connect American cities. This made traveling by car more comfortable, leading to a boom in the manufacture and sales of automobiles. The rise of highways also caused a boom in truck delivery companies and long-distance bus companies. All these factors would eventually cause massive declines in moving people and goods by train as rail travel became increasingly seen as outdated and inconvenient.

Photo courtesy of Mark Lewandowski Jr.