The Dual Contracts, also known as the Dual Subway System, were contracts for the construction and/or rehabilitation and operation of rapid transit lines in the City of New York. The contracts were signed on March 19, 1913, by the Interborough Rapid Transit Company and the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company. As part of the Dual Contracts, the IRT and BRT would build or upgrade several subway lines in New York City, then operate them for 49 years.
The original "H" system that predated the contracts
The large Chambers Street station was the BMT's Manhattan hub.
The IRT rebuilt the Steinway Tunnel, originally a trolley tunnel, for subway use.
1911 plan, giving all the contracts to the BRT
Interborough Rapid Transit Company
The Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) was the private operator of New York City's original underground subway line that opened in 1904, as well as earlier elevated railways and additional rapid transit lines in New York City. The IRT was purchased by the city in June 1940, along with the younger BMT and IND systems, to form the modern New York City Subway. The former IRT lines are now the A Division or IRT Division of the Subway.
A New York Transit Museum set of IRT Lo-Voltage motor cars at Mosholu Parkway station
The IRT Powerhouse
An old IRT sign remains at Wall Street station.
Routes of the Interborough Rapid Transit Company, 1924