They are indeed destined for the rt15. The cars were supposed to be running already but because of some confusion with the track to and from their depot at 59th and Callowhill, they are sitting idle.
The short reason that SEPTA spent something like $2mil/vehicle and they are now sitting idle is that there is not enough room on 59th street for 2 way traffic, a parking lane and the trolleys. Who is at fault can vary by who you ask. SEPTA "informed" the city that 59th street would have to be one way shortly before the service was to begin in June. The neighbors have various complaints about living near Callowhill depot and feel that since 59th street has always been a 2 way street, there should be another way of allowing the trolleys to access the depot. They also contend that SEPTAs community relation person for this project never mentioned that they would have to deal with their street being made one way. SEPTA is fine doing nothing. Nobody ever holds them accountable anyway. So the upshot is that Saturday is the first time that the rebuilt old cars ran with passengers, even if they weren't paying passengers. Now I have a question for folks that rode the trolleys; what did you think? Which trolleys do you like better, the rebuilt 1947 ones, or the big, white japanese cars that we are all used to? My oppinion? I like the look of the green cars on the outside better; the white always looks dirty and the modern trolleys have all the grace of a cinderblock. Once inside the trolley, however, I think I liked the modern ones. The windows are much larger (giving a nice view of the neighborhood) and they seemed bigger to me. On the other hand, the renovated cars had the old-school interior lights that were pretty classy. As a point of interest, SEPTA has an option they can exercise to rebuild 8 more trolleys like this. I'd love to see this, especially if they were to run the "streetcar loop" that I read about on the UCHS website. (http://www.uchs.net/Streetcars/trolleyloop.html) -j. scott clinton -----Original Message----- From: Andrew Diller [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Monday, October 18, 2004 3:54 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Cc: [EMAIL PROTECTED]; [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: [UC] Re: Trolley service I think they are all destined for Girard ave, which is sad. I wish they would run here in west philly. http://www.phillytrolley.org/girardavenue.html -andy diller On Oct 18, 2004, at 3:32 PM, Hispanic Review wrote: > > Dear Neighbors, > > My question is, what was it the likelihood that we may be able to ride > these cars again in the future? Does anyone on the list have any > information on the renovated trolley cars and their future? > ---- You are receiving this because you are subscribed to the list named "UnivCity." To unsubscribe or for archive information, see <http://www.purple.com/list.html>. ---- You are receiving this because you are subscribed to the list named "UnivCity." To unsubscribe or for archive information, see <http://www.purple.com/list.html>.
