Market Street Railway depends on the generosity of volunteers to make things happen, and the more help we have, the more we are able to do. The F-Market & wharves line is a testament to what we can accomplish with your help.
E-mail volunteer@streetcar.org or call us at (415) 956-0472 to become a volunteer.
Market Street Railway offers a wide variety of volunteer opportunities, some requiring little or no skill (just energy and time!), some requiring basic knowledge, and some requiring advanced skills. We will provide training in some areas.
Below are some of the volunteer opportunities we’re looking for help with.
Streetcar Stewards
Market Street Railway car stewards function as guardians of the historic streetcars. They keep them looking great in service by cleaning them up at terminals, removing trash, washing windshields and smudged windows, even bringing operators water or soda. It’s a much appreciated gesture, and you’ll make friends among riders and operators alike.
Streetcar Docents
Market Street Railway volunteers serve as docents stationed at key stops to answer questions from the public and distribute information about the streetcars and our San Francisco Railway Museum. It’s an enjoyable social activity.
Web Site & Newsletter Contributors
Our website blog and our quarterly newsletter, Inside Track, are the primary ways we communicate with members and prospective members. We welcome original contributions, such as photographs (old and new), articles on contemporary issues, articles of an historical nature, interviews, reminiscences, oral histories, et cetera.
Fundraising
We need to grow our membership and win grants from foundations to support and extend the efforts of our organization and our volunteers. Those who are willing to approach merchants along the F-line route, or initiate outreach to community and other groups, or who have experience in writing grant proposals are especially welcome.
School Outreach
Volunteers are needed to help put together a program that reaches out to children who will be the recipients of the legacy we are working so hard to preserve.
Vehicle enhancement and interpretation
Now that we’ve pretty much done what we as volunteers can do to restore streetcars, we are more focused on enhancement and interpretation of Muni’s historic streetcar and cable car fleet. This includes occasional deep cleaning (“detailing”) of individual streetcars to remove embedded grime and freshen the interiors. We generally do this at our David L. Pharr Historic Streetcar Facility at Duboce & Market. We also prepare interpretive material to display on historic streetcars and cable cars: the history of that particular vehicle, what its livery represents, stories of historic transit in San Francisco, maps, and more. We can always use volunteers to help us prepare these displays and to keep them looking great in the cars. Besides volunteering, we’d appreciate your consideration of a donation to our vehicle enhancement fund.
Office and field support
Volunteers are always welcome to help with office and clerical duties.
Board of Directors
The Market Street Railway Board of Directors are volunteers as well. Please mail or email volunteer@streetcar.org it to us.