Lancaster — Streetcar Sidetracked

Rail Transit Online, June 2007

Planning for the proposed 2.6-mi. downtown circulator streetcar project has been significantly slowed after the FTA rejected the city’s application for federal funding from the Small Starts program.  It had been hoped to obtain up to 80 percent of the estimated $14.1-million capital cost for the initial line, a north-south loop on Queen and Prince streets linking the Amtrak station to Southern Market Center at South Queen and Vine streets.  Weekday ridership is projected to be about 7,000 and the line is expected to stimulate economic growth and reduce traffic congestion.  David Kilmer, executive director of the regional Red Rose Transit Authority, said proponents are now pinning their financing hopes on a future earmark in the federal budget sponsored by Pennsylvania’s U.S. senators.  State funds may also be available; the streetcar project is listed in Gov. Ed Rendell's capital budget.  “It's just going to take a little longer to do,” Kilmer told the Lancaster New Era.  Red Rose does not have the financial resources to participate in the project but Kilmer is involved in its planning.  New estimates call for starting construction in three to five years.