Welcome to the official site of the Electric Railroaders’ Association, Inc. Founded in 1934, the ERA is a non-profit educational organization consisting of people from all walks of life interested in the history and progress of electric railways. The benefits of joining are numerous:

Headlights

All ERA members receive an annual issue of Headlights, America’s premier journal dedicated to light rail transit, subways, interurbans, electric railroads and other forms of electric transportation around the world. Each full color, ad-free issue is packed with in-depth coverage contributed by leading writers and photographers in the transit field.

The Bulletin

All ERA members receive monthly issues of The Bulletin, which consists primarily of news about New York-area transit, with additional reporting devoted to national and international systems. Sample covers from most issues since 2004 can be seen here.

Monthly Meetings

All ERA members may come to our monthly meetings for free (they’re $5 for non-members) to see photo and movie presentations by well-known transit writers and photographers. The meetings take place on the third Friday of each month at the St. John’s University Manhattan campus, located at 101 Murray Street (between Greenwich and West Streets).

ERA Convention

All ERA members are invited to attend the ERA Convention, held annually in a North American city with electric rail operations. The 2012 ERA Convention will be held in Boston.

European Tours

Every other year the ERA conducts a two-week tour of urban, rural and interurban traction systems in a European country. The next tour will be Tramways and More in Italy, to be held in May 2012.

The Sprague Library

All ERA members may take advantage of the ERA’s extensive collection of electric railway literature and images at the Frank Julian Sprague Memorial Library at ERA headquarters in Grand Central Terminal. The first books and papers in the library were donated to the ERA by Harriet (Mrs. Frank) Sprague and consisted of elements of Mr. Sprague’s personal collection.

Join or Renew Today

Joining the ERA, or renewing your membership, has never been easier. For future members we have our new, easy to use Online Membership Application. And for current members, we’ve made renewal easier with our ERA / LRTA Joint Renewal Notice and Remittance Coupon (link to PDF below).

ERA / LRTA Joint Renewal Notice

Friday, February 17, 2012

Eric Oszustowicz to Present February Slideshow

Our February program will be presented by Eric Oszustowicz. Eric’s slideshow will recap his 2011 trips to India, Salt Lake City and Edmonton. These are highly unusual and diverse subjects, most of which have never been seen at any of our programs, so please join us for an interesting evening. For more information, click here.

February 2012

Track Map Offer #59

Once again, the ERA is selling excess material from the Sprague Library. To take advantage of this special offer, click here.

Track Map Offer #59 Order Form

May 10–25, 2012

Tramways and More in Italy

Every other year the ERA conducts a two-week tour of urban, rural and interurban traction systems in a European country. For 2012, the ERA is proud to announce its 11th European tramway tour will take place in Italy. Click here to see the full 2012 Itinerary.

August 30–September 4, 2012

2012 ERA Convention in Boston

The 2012 ERA Convention will be held on Labor Day weekend, August 30 to September 4, in Boston. We will return to downtown Boston’s historic Omni Parker House Hotel as our convention headquarters. Full details and applications will be on this website and mailed to all members and friends well in advance. In the meantime, be sure to block out the weekend on your calendar and plan to join us for another memorable convention.

Dues Renewal Changes

Beginning with January 2012, ERA will expand its activities and member services by assuming operations of the NY Division. With this renewal, both 2011 ERA and 2011 NYD members can send in one renewal check and receive the combined benefits of monthly entertainment, monthly receipt of The Bulletin, an annual issue of Headlights and more. For more merger news, click here.