Rochester, Lockport & Buffalo trolley route?

Does anybody know the route of the Rochester, Lockport & Buffalo trolley line in Brockport, Spencerport and Rochester? I ask here because it parallels the FRR for 90% of its route. I have 5% of the rest (by staring at aerial photos and looking at the property lines that Google has added recently), but the 5% of street running within the cities is impossible to discern without a description or map of the route. Help?

In Brockport and Spencerport it was still very close to the canal.
I will see if I can find more details. In Brockport they recently moved the depot along an east - west street a few blocks and it is being used as a museum or visitors center on the canal.

Hugh

I don't have street names; but, do have a map of the route from 1933. The map isn't perfect as I know of a big error here in Medina.

In Brockport the Falls Branch RR was quite a bit south of the canal and the trolley line went north toward the canal thru the village and returned to the Falls Branch near the village boundaries.

It ran between the Falls Branch and the canal from Brockport into Rochester and they were all fairly close together. There was a slight separation as it ran through Spencerport. It probably followed the major streets as it went through the villages.

This topic might get more attention if it was posted in the NYS section.

In Albion the RL&B ran down State Street; in Medina it ran down E. Center Street took a right on to Main St. then down Commercial Street leaving that street on the west end for a private ROW that is very visible now, then around the hospital and through the countryside for Middleport; in Spencerport it ran right down the middle of West Avenue; in Brockport it ran down Erie Street and State Street; in the Rochester it ran north of the Falls Road and between Long Pond Road and Lee Rd it ran on its own ROW and road was built on it and is now known as TROLLEY BLVD and if you look to the east of Lee Rd you will see twin bridges: the one on the left-north is the double track BR&L bridge and to the south is the Falls Industrial track. The Trolley then ran down Lyell Ave to Broad Street then down a ramp into the Rochester Subway!

David MV

Anyone have a pic of the trolleys, or know what thy looked like? I was born in the early 70's and lived on Trolley Blvd, I remember the big 'ole Black Penn Central Locomotives, and then the more modern longer lower bright blue Conrail locomotives that came along.

There are a couple of books out on the RL&B First the long out of print book by Bill Gordon a softcover book that sometimes appears on ebay or Amazon. Also there is a new book out Travelectric: The Story of the Rochester, Syracuse and Eastern Railroad and Associated Lines [Bulletin 143 of the Central Electric Railfans' Association] [Hardcover] available on Amazon. It has a section on the BR&L/RB&L here's a link to Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Travelectric-Roch ... 0915348438

David Monte Verde

I just found the Bill Gordon book on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Buffalo-Lockport- ... =1-2-fkmr0

The story of the Buffalo, Lockport, and Rochester Railway, 1908-1919: The Rochester, Lockport and Buffalo Railroad Corp., April 1919-April 30, 1931 ; ... to Buffalo, Niagara Falls and Olcott Beach [Paperback]
William Reed Gordon (Author)


David J. Monte Verde

Yep, William Gordon's book is essential to have.

med-train wrote: In Brockport they recently moved the depot along an east - west street a few blocks and it is being used as a museum or visitors center on the canal.

Hugh

That's in Spencerport, not Brockport:

http://www.spencerportdepot.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Scot

It's been very nicely restored. Well worth a visit.

It seems a few portions of NY Route 31 have been used from this former trolley line. West of Middleport
near Telegraph Road, the RL&B crossed over Telegraph Rd and the current Falls Road it seems and you can
see where the line curves to the West toward 31. Naturally it's much easier to see this when there is no vegetation
to contend with.

Charlie