By RICHARD SCHACK

The dangerous and difficult, 15-year task of spanning the waters between Queens and Manhattan finally came to an end in 1909 as the Queensboro Bridge was completed and the cultural exchange began.

The Vanderbilt Parkway, the world’s first highway built in Queens in 1911, could have never accommodated today’s traffic on the Grand Central Parkway. Tribune Photos By Ira Cohen

The Queensboro ushered in a new era for the new century. Gone were the days of ferry travel to Manhattan and finally on their way were the days of modern roadways, subway and bus travel, and, of course, Queens’ infamous traffic.

Over a century ago in the mid 1880’s, the innovations in transportation that now move Queens residents throughout the city and keep us sitting still in that traffic were just daydreams in the imaginations of those who dared to dream of what New York could be.

Horse-drawn vehicles were developed in 1831 and New York City quickly became home to the leading manufacturers of the vehicles until manufacturers moved out west later in the century. The "omnibus" was used for public transportation, and then horse-drawn vehicles began to run on tracks. Although the vehicles were commonplace in Manhattan neighborhoods, omnibuses and the like didn’t make their way to Queens until the close of the century and were soon outdated by rail stations, the likes of which opened in Auburndale. Horse-drawn vehicles were officially retired as viable means of transport in 1908.

The earliest motorbuses made their way into Queens in the very early 1900’s. Motorbuses were quickly the vehicle of choice, and the technology developed rapidly, with more advanced versions of the buses soon appearing.

Reliable and durable vehicles, double decker buses were the next new fad to hit the streets of Queens and although they would be considered unorthodox looking and slow by today’s standards, the creation and development of buses run by motors soon paved the way for more advanced ways of getting around, including a large network of bus operations and electric train services.

After the electric trains arrived, Queens public transportation was never the same. The original electric train service in the borough ran from Penn Station through the East River. The train followed the Long Island Rail Road through Queens.

Rarely used bike lanes like this one came to Queens in the early 1980s. Tribune Photo By Ira Cohen

Several years later, construction was completed on the first elevated railways in Queens over the Queensboro Bridge providing access to 2nd Avenue in Manhattan from Astoria and Corona. That same year the Queensboro Subway opened for the first time, with service between the Grand Central Terminal and Long Island City. The 7 train was connected to Queensboro Plaza, extended to Corona, and finally reached Main Street, Flushing over a decade later.

With autobuses and trains gaining popularity quickly, networks began to form fledgling operations in the borough. Joint train service was provided early on by the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company (BRT) and the Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT). Both later went bankrupt and the city purchased them, leading to the formation of the City’s first Board of Transportation, later the New York City Transit Authority (NYCTA). Original bus operators included North Shore Buses, Green Buses, Triboro Coach, Jamaica Buses, Queens Transit, and Steinway Omnibus. Still existing operations later merged to form the Queens Surface Corporation.

When the city eventually formed the NYCTA, there were a number of noticeable changes in public transportation operations. City transit workers banded together to form the Transit Workers Union (TWU), and subway fares were immediately raised to 10 cents. Although it may seem like nothing now, the fare had previously been five cents up until that point. Problems evolving from the formation of the TWU as well as fare hikes would later play a prominent role in the history of transportation in the borough.

For the more affluent Queensites who owned their own private vehicles, roads fit for motor cars began to cut new lines through the neighborhood landscape and add to the character of the borough.

The Vanderbilt Parkway, opened in 1911, was the first motor parkway in the world and spanned 48 miles through Queens, Nassau and Suffolk.

Horace J. Harding was a respected Queens banker and a member of a country club and golf course in Long Island. Unhappy with how long daily commutes to the club were taking him, he urged the construction of a highway from Shelter Rock in Nassau County to Queens Boulevard in Elmhurst, improving access to the club. The highway was named the Horace Harding Expressway after his death.

Meanwhile, new, modern bridges were appearing all over the borough. The first bridge in New York connecting more than two boroughs, the Triborough Bridge lived up to its name, connecting Queens to Ward’s Island and Manhattan-Randalls Island.

The Marine Parkway-Gil Hodges Bridge was the third connecting Queens to sister borough Brooklyn, while Queens was connected to the Bronx for the first time with the construction of the Bronx-Whitestone Bridge, finished the same year as the Cross Bay-Veterans Memorial, Flushing, Kosciuszko, Whitestone Expressway, and the Midtown Highway Bridges.

In the borough’s more recent commuter lifetime, buses have experienced a number of innovations. Express buses eventually found their way to Manhattan from Queens and reduced rates were given to seniors and the handicapped. But while buses were booming, transit ran into problems. The TWU went on strike, demanding wage settlements and provisions for early retirement. Fares continued to rise, including three times in the 1970’s. By late in that decade, the transit system was in turmoil.

This Queens motorman paused for a station break at 71st Avenue/Continental Avenue in Forest Hills.

Ridership continued to fall as revenue was lost to "fare beaters." By 1980, all transit construction had been suspended as focus lay on repairing aging facilities and reversing decay as well as crime, panhandling, graffiti, and homelessness. The transit system eventually was returned to its former glory after nearly $11 million was committed to fixing it and police presence was increased and new, counterfeit-free tokens introduced. In 1999, MetroCard vending machines were introduced at major subway stations and new, ultra high-tech subway cars were unveiled for future use.

In the last 50 years, five more bridges were introduced to the borough. The Pulaski Bridge was built over Newtown Creek, the Roosevelt Island Bridge was built over the East River, the Throgs Neck became another connection for Queens and the Bronx, and Queens’ first pedestrian bridge, the Hawtree Basin Bridge was built. The last bridge to be built in Queens was the Rikers Island Bridge, hanging high over Bowery Bay.

Riding the rails must have been a vastly different experience – as one can expect by looking at this panoramic photo of the Broadway Station circa 1910. Photo courtesy of the Oppenheimer archives.

MetroCards have now begun to replace tokens, much like man’s increasing grasp on technology replaced horses with motors so many years ago. The 7 train is now considered a mobile landmark, recently added as one of only 16 sites in America on the National Millennium Trail.