Reader suggests trolley add-ons
Chikwe Njoku of Baltimore has some suggestions for the people working to get the Charles Street Trolley up and running. I thought they wqere worth passing along.
One suggestion that I would like to offer is that they consider adding a spur from that line at Penn Station up a short segment of Falls Road and connect with the Baltimore Street Car Museum. This spur would allow for them to partner with the Museum and run special excusion trains on selected dates that would certainly enhance efforts to bring more tourists downtown. It may provide the perfect lure to make people venture up Charles Street from the Inner Harbor. Who wouldn't want to catch a vintage trolley at the Inner Harbor or Penn Station and make the loop around the city?
The other part of that suggestion is to take the southern portion of the Charles Street line, which turns off of Conway Street at Light street down Light Street to Hanover Street down onto the line that runs behind The Sun"s facilities at Port Covington on to the cruise terminal. Port Covington is supposed to be redeveloped and could include the Sun building that's down there. If they run the vintage trolleys on cruise weekends it may lure not only tourists but people may stay in the city before and after their cruise and explore the city via this trolley connection.
Comments
A very loud NO to both suggestions. Sorry, but the point of the trolley is to be frequent and reliable. That's it. Don't lengthen it. Don't add spurs. Keep it simple. Just make it easier to ride than to drive from Downtown to Charles Village and back.
Posted by: S. Howard | October 26, 2009 10:18 AM
I think a short stub line up Falls Rd to the Baltimore Streetcar Museum wouldn't be that bad of an idea. I dont think it should be a normal part of the service though.
Instead, the streetcar could use some of the vintage trolleys from the museum for weekend service or special events on the main line. the spur would allow for the connection. I've seen this done in Portland.
Posted by: Chris | October 26, 2009 11:51 AM
I just want to see this built.
Posted by: Jed | October 26, 2009 2:59 PM
there is a small detail that makes it impossible. they won't fit
the old streetcars have tracks of a wide guage of 5ft 4..5 inches between the rails.
modern streetcars use standard guage which is 4ft 8.5 inches between the rails.
Bob
Posted by: Bob | October 26, 2009 4:58 PM
I second Bob's observation. You can't use the historic and vintage equipment at the BSM on the tracks of the Light Rail or proposed Charles Street Trolley unless you either build the Charles Street line to non-standard gauge or retrofit the historic equipment to run on standard track, which would rob it of his historic fabric. There are other issues involved: Any modern "transit" operation would by necessity have to be able to handle wheelchairs and/or scooters, to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. It would be possible to acquire and retrofit "historic" cars from elsewhere, which would also most likely be standard gauge as well--or it may well be cheaper to just build new cars from scratch, or do what Philadelphia did and basically take the old shells of older cars and build a whole new frame, wheels, controls, etc. to fit inside/underneath.
Posted by: Alexander D. Mitchell IV | October 26, 2009 8:25 PM