On September 9, Muni streetcar No. 162 made history, moving under its own power on its home system for the first time in 47 years.
It was a baby step–just ten feet inside the safe confines of Market Street Railway’s David L. Pharr Historic Streetcar Facility, to connect up to Muni’s Unimog tractor that towed it over the pit track–but it was “a beautiful sight,” according to Market Street Railway project manager Jack Smith. Air pressure on the vintage 1914 car moved up steadily to a normal 90 pounds. Then, “The switch group hissed and clicked and clattered,” and with one point of power, No. 162 moved.
