The Wreck That Built a Subway

Fourteen years before the city opened its own subway, a company's decision to keep trains running during a labor strike led to the deadliest crash in New York City subway history. On November 1, 1918, the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company pressed an untrained dispatcher named Edward Luciano into service after its motormen walked out on strike, and his train derailed in a Brooklyn tunnel, killing at least ninety three people. The wreck became the political origin point for Mayor John Hylan's crusade against privately run transit, and on September 10, 1932, the city opened the first line of its own Independent Subway System, built and operated without the private companies whose decisions had proven so costly. This is bsnsHistory, the daily podcast about the moments when business quietly reshaped the world.Written and hosted by Ron Trucks. Research and editing by Rodney Russ. Sound design by Angela Cahoy. Music by Cody Martin and Soundstripe.For more daily business stories, visit www.bsnsDAILYpodcasts.com