encountered several delays as more rock needed to be excavated than anticipated, and the subway was not completed until 1927 at a cost of over $19 million. New York State Railways (1927–1938) Operations began in 1927 under contract with New York State Railways. Ten former Utica and Mohawk Valley Railway 2000-series cars were transferred from the Utica Lines to provide dedicated service in the Rochester subway. New York State Railways entered receivership in 1929, but continued to operate the subway on a contract basis with the city of Rochester. Interurban railways began using the new subway almost immediately. Starting in 1927, the Rochester and Eastern Rapid Railway connected at Rowlands and terminated at City Hall station. The Rochester and Syracuse Railroad began using the subway in 1928, using a new connection established just east of Winton Road station. The Rochester, Lockport and Buffalo Railroad entered from the west side starting in 1928 using a ramp constructed at Lyell Avenue. In 1929, a special subway–surface operation began using a ramp at Emerson station to connect with the Dewey Avenue line to provide rush-hour service to Kodak Park, a major employer in the city. On June 1, 1929, local service on the Rochester subway was extended from Winton Road to Rowlands loop. When the remainder of the Utica & Mohawk Valley Railway was abandoned, New York State Railways transferred the relatively new and faster steel cars to Rochester to replace the older 2000-series center-door cars that had been in service since the opening of the subway. They were brought to Rochester and reconditioned in 1937. In the aftermath of the Great Depression, New York State Railways fell into bankruptcy along with other railroads that operated interurban lines in the area. By 1931, all of the connecting interurban railways had ceased operation leaving the subway as an east–west line with no rail connections outside the line. Rochester Transit Corp. (1938–1956) The former Rochester Lines of New York State Railways were reorganized as the Rochester Transit Corporation on August 2, 1938, and operation of the subway was transferred to the new company. During World War II, wartime rationing made the subway popular once again, and annual ridership peaked at over 5 million in 1946 and 1947. Proposals to extend the line were briefly considered in the press, but ridership began declining again in 1948, and the city council made plans to abandon the subway