D.C. Area Seeks Streetcar Rebirth

"Several new streetcar lines are on track to arrive in the area, planned by municipalities hoping to return their commercial corridors to the pedestrian- and tourist-friendly places they were before the automobile began to dominate the scene."

"Urban areas around the country are doing likewise, hoping to ride trolleys toward the dual ends of traffic reduction and tourist promotion."

"Locally, the desire for streetcars has centered on two congested corridors in Northern Virginia and two recovering ones in D.C."

"While there are recent stories of rejuvenated foot traffic and retail sales around streetcar lines in cities such as Portland, Ore., and Little Rock, Ark., the Washington region has been down this track before: The D.C. streetcar system was the envy of cities around the country during the "trolley fever" that swept the country in the early 1900s. But its last car was taken off the track in 1962."