One of San Francisco’s great photographic treasures belongs to Muni! Or more specifically, its parent agency, the SFMTA. It includes wonderful images that actually extend back before Muni opened in 1912: glass plates and negatives from erstwhile competitors United Railroads (URR) and our namesake, Market Street Railway, acquired in the 1944 merger of transit systems in the city.
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.
We’ve got an engaging exhibit at our San Francisco Railway Museum, a series of “then and now” photos of locations along Market Street celebrating 150 years of rail transit along our main drag. One period most folks don’t know about is the time that upper Market was all steamed up. This shot (from the collection of the late Walter Rice) was snapped on Market near Castro, sometime between 1880 and 1888. We’re looking at what’s called a “dummy and trailer” combination. The “dummy,” to the right, is actually a mini steam engine. This being San Francisco, you’re already asking, “Where were the NIMBYs?” But a quick look up the hill reveals precious few neighbors to complain, at least at this end of the line.The car to the left, emblazoned “Market Street Railway Co.” (one of several companies of that name over the decades, including our non-profit today) was probably a former horse car. When this “Market Street Extension” line went in, horse cars ran from the Ferry out Market as far west as Valencia. But even though the city cut through a piece of what’s now called Mint Hill at Dolores and Duboce to extend Market westward, the grades on this part were still too steep for horse power.But not for steam, nor for cable cars, which took over this route in 1888, running from the Ferry Terminal all the way out Market to Castro, then south on Castro over the Hill to 26th Street in Noe Valley. (The Castro Street part of the cable car line lasted until 1941; the Market Street part was replaced with streetcars right after the 1906 Earthquake and Fire.)”All the Way Out Market” is the name of the “then and now” exhibit at the museum, which is free, and open every day from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. (except Mondays, when we’re closed). We’re at the F-line Steuart Street stop at the south end of Ferry Plaza, behind Hotel Vitale at 77 Steuart Street. Pay us a visit and check out other exhibits, historic films on view, and our unique collection of San Francisco gifts as well!
As readers of our member newsletter, Inside Track, saw last month, we found a fabulous photo.
The Port of San Francisco has gotten a lot more developer interest in historic Pier 70 than they expected, according to the Chronicle’s City Insider. Last fall, we outlined the value of historic streetcar service to Pier 70. We noted that Muni has already invested significant money in a partially-completed streetcar loop off the T-line that could allow the future E-line historic streetcar service to terminate near front door of Pier 70, just north of the landmark Bethlehem Steel headquarters building, pictured below, at 20th and Illinois Streets.Market Street Railway strongly believes this loop should be completed expeditiously and used as the southern E-line terminal. The current proposed terminal, which would be shared with the N-line at the Caltrain Depot, can only be used by double-end historic streetcars, of which Muni has relatively few, while the Pier 70 terminal can be used by every historic streetcar in the fleet. Adequate low-level boarding platforms already exist along the stretch of the T-line that would be shared, and the existing high-level T-line platforms can be used to board wheelchairs on E-line streetcars.The E-line streetcars would provide an attractive public transit connection between Pier 70, the fast-developing Mission Bay/UCSF neighborhood, the Giants’ ballpark, South Beach, the Ferry Building, the Barbary Coast/Golden Gateway neighborhood, the Cruise Ship terminal, Fisherman’s Wharf, and, later, Aquatic Park and Fort Mason. It would connect more National Landmark Districts than any other transit line in America. We call on Muni and the Port to work together to bring the E-line to Pier 70, increasing the value of this priceless historic district.
If you’ve been following the news at all, you know that Australia is in the midst of historic flooding, following torrential rains that in turn followed an extended (and devastating) period of drought. Our hearts go out to all those affected. But the rain has also replenished reservoirs, brought salvation to farmers and ranchers, and given the country a good rinse — including its historic trams in Melbourne.<
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.
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.
Our friends at Streetsblog San Francisco offer some solid coverage of an offer Audi has made to the city: install two blocks of pedestrian amenities, including widened sidewalks and seating areas, on Powell Street between Ellis and Geary. We won’t duplicate what they wrote, but will note that beyond the pedestrian benefits, which could be considerable, this should make cable car operation in that area safer and more reliable.With parked automobiles and trucks in the curb lane, running board riders take the risk of getting whacked by vehicle mirrors if they let it all hang out just a little too far. And motor vehicles pulling in and out of the parking spaces can cause significant delays.We’re assured that the design shown above is only conceptual; final decisions will be made locally. We hope so. The concept of the Otis Spunkmeyer lookalike drinking some kind of green Caribbean cocktail on Powell is a tad jarring. To add to the somewhat surreal scene, there’s no cable car in sight, but riding the tracks we can clearly discern — a vintage VW Microbus! Did Ken Kesey design this?Seriously, if they actually intend to install benches like the ones “conceptually” shown, the people who actually occupy them probably won’t look like the folks in the drawing. Will the result be inviting to pedestrians, or will it turn into a gauntlet like you often find in the cable car passenger queue at Powell and Market?Just asking.With the right installation, though, this could be a huge plus for lower Powell Street, giving pedestrians much needed additional room to walk and clearing the way for at least a modest improvement in cable car service.Best of all, if this temporary installation works, it can help pave the way for something permanent, perhaps modeled on the existing one-block cable car plaza between Market and Ellis.The promenade is scheduled to be installed by April 2011. It is being managed by the Union Square Business Improvement District.
