I used to ride the 88 Frankstown and the 'Flying Fraction' (77/54) several times a week.
Honestly, like Forbes Field, the nostalgia is just wonderful, but in reality, they were not all that great.
All it took was a truck to be parked a couple inches too far from the curb, and the street car was stuck until the driver could come and move the truck. Once I started driving, negotiating the tracks was another challenge --- and make darn sure your tires were not riding the rails if it was raining --- it was like a sleigh ride.
And then their were 'Safety Islands' ... probably the most dangerous place you could be.
Yes, I miss the Street Cars, but I don't want to go back to them either.
Don't get me wrong, because I use those streetcars ("StrasseBahn" or "street train") when over in Europe -- convenient and inexpensive. But you know, the governments in some of those countries that kept their systems weren't necessarily all that great or beautiful.
In Seattle at least they developed an alternative: electric buses -- and the ones that leave the city for the suburbs are often dual electric/diesel. Not as pretty as street trains but a lot more flexible.
But I agree America would be a much more beautiful place if it weren't run by elites who know so much better than we do what's best for us that they take our money in order to spend it for us. Just like those who "gave" Seattle a really shiny brand-new light-rail system that's not being much used.
They were replaced by buses. At least Ralph Cramden was working.
That's funny! Because nobody who had to ride them regretted their loss at all. A '48 Chevrolet was a.) less expensive and b.) more useful than the interurban or the street car.
If, perchance, the interurban or the street car becomes a.) less expensive than the '11 Malibu or b.) more useful than the family car, I would expect their resurgence.
In the meantime, put your money where your mouth is: invest in solar-powered interurbans and green lawn mowers. If you've guessed right, you'll make a fortune...
Not only are they gone, but the Rights-of-Way have more often than not been converted to “hiking and biking” trails after pulling up the tracks so rebuilding them would be outrageously expensive...
Years before I was born we had what were called Doodlebugs. The major streets all around here had tracks running down the center of them that they ran on. I remember the tracks being torn out in the very early 60’s here(pre ‘64?).
Sad that L.A. lost the streetcars, but one thing that San Francisco did right was in keeping them. (San Francisco was run by Repubs until 1964, so the credit doesn’t go to Democrats alone.) Although we lost a couple lines over time, S.F. has managed to build completely new lines in the last 20 years. I’ve seen streetcars in other cities in the U.S. and Canada, so they’re not all gone. What does L.A. have in regards to light rail?