Muni News
This Week: Evening Buses on the F-line
Cam Beach, Remembered
Cameron Beach was well remembered at a touching service at Grace Cathedral on Thursday, attended by hundreds of friends. Comments about his great smile abounded; stories of how he bridged the divide between streetcar fans and bus fans brought laughter. We will have extensive coverage of this service and a tribute to Cam’s life in the forthcoming issue of our member newsletter, Inside Track, on which we are starting work now. (The newsletter members will receive in their mailboxes in the next few days was being printed at the time of Cam’s unexpected death.)Meantime, the S.F. Municipal Transportation Authority currently has a tribute to Cam on its main page.
Cameron Beach, 1949-2011
Fort Mason Streetcar a Step Closer
Historic streetcar service to Aquatic Park and Fort Mason came a step closer today with the release of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the extension. The National Park Service was the lead agency on the DEIS because much of the 0.85 mile extension from Jones and Jefferson Streets to Fort Mason Center traverses federal parkland. However, the final design, construction, and operation of the extension would be done by Muni (part of the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency).
Testing. Testing.
Two very different renovated streetcars were out for test drives on The Embarcadero today.1912 Muni Car No. 1 (yes, its very first streetcar) made its first test run outside the car barn, from 25th and Illinois up the T and F lines to Fisherman’s Wharf and back. It has been completely rebuilt by Brookville Equipment Company of Pennsylvania, whose engineers were on board, checking out some tweaks made on the car after it was delivered. It’s still some months from service.On this rainy day, somber gray “battleship” No. 1 met up at the Ferry Building with eye-popping yellow PCC No. 1071, the pilot car of a group of 11 ex-Newark New Jersey streetcars that is being completely rewired and given new propulsion components, again at Brookville. No. 1071 is also being tested before going into service. There are interesting stories with these cars, which we’ll share with our members in the next issue of our newsletter, Inside Track, which goes to press soon.
Happy 98th Birthday, Muni! And for your present…
On December 28, 1912, Mayor James Rolph, Junior stepped onto a streetcar platform at Geary and Kearny Streets. He deposited one of the first 40 nickels to be minted in San Francisco into the farebox and took the controls, piloting the streetcar westward out Geary to Tenth Avenue, to open America’s first publicly owned big city transit system. Here’s a picture of that first run, with the Mayor highballing across Jones Street. And as a 98th birthday present, Muni welcomes back that very streetcar, No. 1, from a total rebuilding at Brookville Equipment Company in Pennsylvania. The work took longer than expected — the contract called for delivery in May, but the contractor took great pains to preserve the historic fabric of the streetcar. From initial observation, they did a fabulous job on the appearance of the streetcar. Of greatest importance, of course, is how it runs.One day short of its 98th birthday, it took its first tests after delivery in the Metro East yard, just running back and forth on a track inside the yard. It will not operate on its birthday proper — hey, you should get that day off! — but there is still talk of a ceremony later this week. We will let you know as soon as we hear anything.Market Street Railway is working with Muni on its 2012 centennial, where No. 1 will play a central role. Those wishing to volunteer to pitch in on events for the centennial should send us an email here.
Do Not Open Until (Just After) Christmas!
Muni (and Market Street Railway) got the Christmas present of a lifetime delivered today. At 7:30 this morning, SIlk Road Trucking rolled up to the Metro East light rail facility at Cesar Chavez and Illinois Streets and unloaded a special gift, shrink-wrapped in white, just in time for the holidays. Naturally, like little kids, the temptation was too great to resist, so a little corner of the package was torn open to see what’s inside…and oh, my!!!!But we can’t spoil the surprise. For now, let it be said that this one may be unwrapped for the public as soon as next week in a special ceremony. Check back here for details.
First Run of 1071
Another step forward for Muni’s program to get its 11 PCCs from the 1070 class into permanent, reliable service. Streamliner No. 1071, painted to honor its original (1947) owner, Twin City Rapid Transit of Minneapolis-St. Paul, operated under its own power from Muni Metro East, on the T-line at Cesar Chavez Street near Third Street, across town to Geneva Division some seven miles away. It’s believed to be the first time this streetcar, acquired by Muni six years ago, has operated a substantial distance under its own power.Pictured above on The Embarcadero connector track near Howard Street during its move on December 16, this streetcar is the first of its class to be returned to San Francisco following complete rewiring and installation of updated (but still traditional) propulsion components by Brookville Equipment in Pennsylvania. It is part of an $18 million contract that also includes the complete remanufacture of five additional PCCs.No. 1071 was delivered to Metro East on November 20, but some of the new components were out of adjustment and the streetcar would not operate. Muni towed it over to Geneva Division for a ceremony in conjunction with the dedication of the new covered storage facility for historic streetcars, then towed it back, where this week representatives from Brookville and its subcontractors have been making the adjustments. They will incorporate the lessons learned from the renovation of this “pilot car” into the work being done on other streetcars in this group. This streetcar will soon enter acceptance testing by Muni. Look for it on the N-Judah line as well as the F-line and J-line. After acceptance, it will start carrying passengers for the first time since Muni acquired it, as soon as a month from now. (Of the 11 PCCs in this class, acquired third-hand from Newark, New Jersey, only 5 have carried passengers so far in San Francisco.)
It’s Official: Geneva Canopy Dedicated
SFMTA CEO Nat Ford (pictured at the microphone above) led the cheers today at the dedication of the new Geneva Canopy project — the covered storage facility for 24 streetcars in Muni’s historic fleet. The building was erected under a $6.9 million design build contract with Shimmick Construction. An SFMTA press release put the total project cost at $10.1 million dollars, meaning that so called “soft costs” came to about a third of the total, despite the fact that design and engineering was wrapped into the construction contract. Market Street Railway President Rick Laubscher also spoke at the dedication, paying tribute to two former MSR board members, Art Michel and George Miller, for leading our advocacy efforts on the much-needed project for years. He also thanked the San Francisco Municipal Railway Improvement Corporation, a special purpose financing entity, which provided major funding for the project.A few streetcars have been using the facility on a test basis for the past month while the contractor was finishing up work. Now, it will be filled with F-line cars every night, just in time to avoid the coming storms.
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