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New heritage trolley to begin operation in Washington State
“Clang, clang, clang” went the trolley
“Ding, ding, ding” went the bell
“Zing, zing, zing” went my heartstrings
For the moment I saw him I fell
“Chug, chug, chug” went the motor
“Bump, bump, bump” went the brake
“Thump, thump, thump” went my heartstrings
When he smiled, I could feel the car shake
He tipped his hat, and took a seat
He said he hoped he hadn’t stepped upon my feet
He asked my name I held my breath
I couldn’t speak because he scared me half to death
“Buzz, buzz, buzz” went the buzzer
“Plop, plop, plop” went the wheels
“Stop, stop, stop” went my heartstrings
As he started to leave I took hold of his sleeve with my hand
And as if it were planned
He stayed on with me and it was grand
Just to stand with his hand holding mine
All the way to the end of the line
I would suggest that people skeptical of these streetcars read “Moving Minds: Conservatives and Public Transportation” by Paul Weyrich and William Lind.
In their book they point out that heritage trolleys are often a very good investment since unlike light-rail they are cheap to build and maintain, the technology and infrastructure being very simple and straight ford.
These little trolley lines attract tourists and local residents, raise real estate values, and bring more foot traffic to local businesses. Kenosha, Wisconsin is the classic example.
Wish we had a trolley line (or trolley bus) in Saratoga Springs that connected the downtown with the race track and Amtrak station.
But Mr. Hays - they are “real” transplanted streetcars. They could have been fake buses dressed as trollies like on “Captain Kangaroo.” They eventually will be followed as systems like this grow by new real things.
Astoria, Oregon, operates a streetcar that pushes and pulls its own power source back and forth along the town’s Columbia River waterfront, rendering it essentially a diesel-electric locomotive in trolley drag. I rode it recently and thought it fairly hideous, but clearly most tourists - ridership was heavy that day - don’t give a rat’s patoot.
I hear ya, Edmonton has some of these too, running along the last few miles of the former CPR Leduc sub. They have a Japanese streetcar, a Melbourne one and an early U2 Siemens car from Germany. I love the fact the ROW is preserved and the fact we have overhead catenary, but I sorta wish cars from this region were preserved enough to run. Love traction as I do railroads, but my only small beef is that we don’t have BUDD RDC’s. Im just a whiner though. Better to have this than nothing.
Another phony trolley. What a waste of resources for the real thingies.
I guess the generator car is cheaper and more PRACTICAL than reconstructing catenary/trolley wires?
Paul O’Neil: there are a bunch of Budd RDCs available in Moncton, NB. Seems VIA isn’t interested in anything but downsizing and scaring customers away. Back to P. E. Troudeau and “Bus Driver” Martin days. Soon ON and QC will be the only provinces with service.
When it first started out, the Northwest Railway Museum at Snoqualmie Falls was a streetcar museum, and used generator cars instead of overhead wires. I wonder if they have any old trolleys or interurban cars that would work for the folks a few miles northeast…