Utica-Reid, Brooklyn

The other day, a passenger killed a bus driver with a knife in Brooklyn. The importance of the tragedy is the loss of life. Off to the side, far less important, I would like to point out the route and location. The B46 bus on which this murder happened would have been a Utica-Reid streetcar in the 1940's. The bus route begins at Williamsburg Bridge Plaza, travels under the Broadway Brooklyn el and turns south on Malcolm X. Blvd, previously known as Reid Avenue. At Fulton Street it shifts to Utica Avenue. Sometime before 1940, the BMT combined several trolley routes, combining Reid with Utica, Myrtle with Court, Sumner with Sackett. I think the Utica-Reid trolley terminated at Avenue N. During some era, the Utica-Reid cars may have crossed the bridge to the underground loop at Delancey Street. Nowadays, the bus continues south of Avenue N to Kings Plaza shopping center.
The assailant did not pay his fare. Approaching Gates Avenue, he demanded a paper transfer. When the driver refused, the assailant killed him. I would point out that the intersection of Gates and Reid was probably a high-volume transfer point in streetcar days, the two routes being important.
Link to an update with a different account of the murder is here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/03/nyreg ... f=nyregion

Well, that is horrible news. I used to take the Utica-Reid Trolley car to the Williamsburg bridge, transfer to the bridge shuttle and I was on Delancey st. Great Delis there, and relatives. At that time I lived off of Pitkin Ave, in good old Brownsville section of Brooklyn. By the way, the music shop, Sam Atkins, was at Utica and St. John's place, one of my hangouts. Now they are coast to coast, and there is one nearby in Southern California.

As an aside, in those days those neighborhoods were safe. And you went through several ghettos as well. I remember coming out of the Fulton st. exit of the IND, Utica ave. station, and there was singing in the lobby, great echos. I joined them for a while, and we had some good old Rock and Roll songs to sing. No problems with fighting, arguments, yelling, etc. As I remember it, we sounded really good. My Alto blended in quite well.

Don't you mean Sam Ash?

Sam Ash it is, and thanks for straightening out a " Senior Moment ". Isn't it amazing that Sam Ash is now a coast to coast chain music store ?