Editor’s note: On December 3, the San Francisco Examiner took note of Market Street Railway’s car cleaning activities, led by Market Street Railway Director Emeritus and former president Art Michel. The article, reprinted here by permission, highlights our growing outreach to volunteers from other nonprofit groups, and accurately portrays the pride they feel helping keep the F-line cars looking great.
F-line operator Renea Ajayi (left front) greets the Market Street Railway cleaning crew onboard car No. 1007 at 17th & Castro Streets. Director Emeritus Art Michel (rear center) and job coach Dennis Waterhouse (right) are joined by Virgelio Villanueva, Tom Lam, Rachel Cragen, and Christine Gunabe (left-right). San Francisco – car rental Rick Laubscher photo.
Almost every weekday around noon, four or five people arrive at the corner where Market, Castro and 17th streets meet. Donning green jackets and caps adorned with a ‘Market Street Railway’ logo, they pull a variety of cleaning products out of a locker at the Municipal Railway stop and get to work.
As their jackets say, the group of volunteers is dedicated to ‘preserving historic transit in San Francisco’. The Market Street Railway group, named for the company that operated The City’s streetcars until 1944, does everything from restoring the historic cars that run on Muni’s F Line to cleaning them.
