As new development flocks to downtown Los Angeles, momentum is building to bring back the historic 'Red Car' trolley system that dates to the 1920's.
"During its heyday in the 1920s, and later in the 1940s, the Pacific Electric Railway's Red and Yellow cars carried passengers from Downtown to San Bernardino, Santa Ana, San Pedro and San Fernando with a fleet of as many as 900 streetcars. But as the popularity of the automobile grew, ridership declined. The last Red Car was retired in 1961."
A scaled down version being proposed to study would include a fleet of just 10 cars: "Conductors would pick up passengers every five minutes at up to 24 stops. The route would connect South Park, the Financial District, Civic Center, Bunker Hill, Chinatown and the Historic Core. The system would pass within at least three city blocks of every major Downtown attraction, with possible extensions into Exposition Park and Echo Park."
The University of Southern California maintains a Red Car Archive with photos of the historic cars.
Thanks to Chris Steins
FULL STORY: Red Car Rising
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