San Francisco – PCC Parade

Rail Transit Online – May 2005

Rehabilitation work has begun at Brookville Mining Equipment Co. in Pennsylvania on 11 former Newark City Subway PCC streetcars purchased last year from New Jersey Transit by the San Francisco Municipal Railway.  The cars, originally delivered to Twin Cities Rapid Transit and later sold to Newark, will be stripped of their lead-based paint and re-liveried in the color schemes of transit operators that once owned PCCs, following the pattern of Muni’s batch of 17 streamliners obtained from Philadelphia  more than 10 years ago for the F-Market & Wharves line.  The first car is due in San Francisco by July, when Newark PCC No. 14, which Muni leased from NJT in February 2002, is expected to be shipped to Brookville.  Deliveries will continue through mid-2006.  In addition to paint, the PCCs will be made accessible and will receive further cosmetic treatment and several mechanical changes required to make them compatible with Muni’s infrastructure, including reversing the front doors to avoid hitting station handicap access ramps, installing a front trolley pole and activating backup controllers.  They will be re-numbered into the Muni series.  The cities being honored and their colors are:

Ø      No. 1070—Newark , New Jersey — Public Service Consolidated Transport gray and blue with red wheels

Ø      No. 1071—Twin Cities Rapid Transit, Minnesota — Original system yellow, green

Ø      No. 1072—Mexico City, Mexico — Green, cream, red

Ø      No. 1073—El Paso, Texas-Juarez, Mexico — Red, green, white

Ø      No. 1074—Toronto, Canada — TTC Maroon, black, cream

Ø      No. 1075—Cleveland, Ohio — Orange, tan, brown, cream

Ø      No. 1076—Washington D.C.-Maryland — DC Transit aqua, green, persimmon

Ø      No. 1077—Birmingham, Alabama — Blue, scarlet, cream

Ø      No. 1078—San Diego, California — Pea green, brown, cream

Ø      No. 1079—Detroit, Michigan — Red, cream, white

Ø      No. 1080—Los Angeles, California — National City Lines Spanish yellow, green, white.

The choice of cities was recommended by the Market Street Railway (MSR), a dedicated volunteer group that has been advocating expanded streetcar service in San Francisco for 21 years and has purchased — or helped Muni acquire — a number of historic trolleys which MSR members have helped restore. 

Muni originally wanted to purchase 15 Newark cars but, according to MSR, was unable to obtain the additional four because of political pressure in New Jersey.  The cars will be used on the F-Line and the new E-Embarcadero Line that was to have linked the Caltrain commuter rail station at 4th and King streets with Fisherman's Wharf.  However, with no loop at 4th and King and only three double-ended PCCs available, the E-Line will most likely be stretched south along the new Third Street Muni Metro extension to a loop at 18th and Illinois streets.  MSR has recommended that Muni start small-scale service to the Caltrain station, operating on weekends or special occasions, in late 2005 because the city lacks funding to cover operating costs for a full schedule.  The latter probably won’t start before 2006 or possibly 2007.  Preliminary studies are also underway to extend streetcars from the Wharf north and west to Aquatic Park and Fort Mason Center, with a possibility of further expansion to the Marina, Crissy Field Environmental Center and the Presidio.