With the advent of the automobile at the turn of prior century, the railroad faded into the background as the people of the United States became less reliant on the railroad to get them from one place to another. 

The railroads, however, continue to play a vital role in the transportation of goods across the country–they are a vital part of the American infrastructure connecting the sea ports with industrial centers in the landlocked interior.

On a recent afternoon photographer Alex Ramos got a glimpse of the inner workings of local railroad institution the San Francisco Bay Railroad (SFBR), headquartered in Hunters Point and in operation since the second half of the nineteenth century.

Using both his film and video camera, Ramos recorded industrial railroad professionals operating the locomotives and freight cars that transport soil from San Francisco construction sites to disposal centers nationwide–the primary business of the SFBR.

The opening reception for Alex Ramos’s first solo exhibition An Afternoon At The San Francisco Bay Railroad will be at the Mission Workshop on August 17, 2012 from 6 pm to 10 pm

• Tag: Alex Ramos, Mission Workshop, photography