Trolley Thursday 3/29/21 - San Francisco's Cable Cars in Film and Television

There are two things certain in life whenever the city of San Francisco is established in a film: the appearance of the Golden Gate Bridge and the familiar "clang-clang" of a cable car. In the 148 years since the establishment of the Clay Street Hill Railway, San Francisco's once-revolutionary cable cars are as much a part of the city identity as Coit Tower, Fisherman's Wharf, and Lombard Street. Hollywood studios have since caught on to the cable car's inextricable link to the city identity, so much that if a film is set anywhere near San Francisco, there's bound to be the familiar "clang-clang" and clatter of a passing cable car, even if they don't appear! On the last Trolley Tuesday of April, let's look back on the film cameos of these wonderful little cable cars! (And by no means is this an exhaustive list, just some films I find interesting that are worth checking out.)

Trolley Tuesday 4/27/21 - The Modern Market Street Railway

Modern city transit systems are usually not obligated to contain a heritage streetcar line; after all, they're just there to keep the city on the move. However, there are some certain specific exceptions to that rule, whether it's bringing out old equipment on modern lines for excursion services like Chicago or New York, or keeping old lines operating just "as-is" as long as the spares are there like Boston. San Francisco is no different to the art of the heritage streetcar, but it might as well be both the prototype and the codifier on how to do it for the rest of the world. The interplay between tourist trolley and viable transport is on full display on today's San Francisco Municipal Railway (Muni for short), and nowhere is that more evident than through the non-profit organization that keeps the city's historic streetcars running: the Market Street Railway Foundation. On today's Trolley Tuesday, let's see just how the Fabulous F Market and the Exciting E Embarcadero keep history rolling on the street tracks!

Trolley Thursday 4/22/21 - Friedel Klussman, the Cable Car Lady

It's honestly miraculous that San Francisco was able to keep its century-or-so-old cable car system, long after other American cities had scrapped their own in favor of electric cars. The rolling museums of both the Powell Street Lines and the California Street Railway have now become so emblematic of the City by the Bay that they rake in millions of tourist dollars a year (last year excluded, obviously) and are a beloved icon for both tourists and locals alike. But did you know that this San Francisco treat was almost scrapped in favor of trolley buses? In defiance of what was billed as "progress" and "modernization" stood Mrs. Friedel Klussmann, whose efforts to preserve the cable cars as we have them today have earned her the nickname of "The Cable Car Lady". On today's Trolley Thursday, let's raise a glass to the Cable Car Lady and her admirable efforts to preserve San Franciscan History.

Trolley Tuesday 4/20/21 - Muni and MSR's Streetcar Fleet

No, we're not doing a weed joke today. After all, you shouldn't operate public transit while high.

Whenever we talk about the types of streetcars a company's used over its lifetime, it's always a struggle to find out which ones to talk about. Sometimes, a fleet may be a little too boring or too under-reported to write something interesting about, while others may have one or two significant cars with the rest being generics or home-builds. For San Francisco, however, it seems almost every car they've had from the first electric cars in the 1890s all the way to the modern day has been significant in some way. Thus, bear with us (and the length of this report) on this lovely Trolley Thursday as we open up the Muni Geneva Division Carhouse and appreciate the artful cars of the San Francisco Municipal Railway (Muni) and the Market Street Railway (MSR)!

Trolley Thursday 4/15/21 - The San Francisco Municipal Railway

Today, San Francisco boasts one of the most sophisticated and multi-faceted rapid transit systems in the United States in all its different modes. From trolleybuses to light rail vehicles, underground rapid transits to antiquated cable cars, the San Francisco Municipal Railway (Muni for short) really does cover everything under the sun. But, 120 years ago, one of the first city-owned street railways in America not only had a hard time getting established, but also meeting the modern-day demands of the City by the Bay's growing population. On today's Trolley Thursday, we look at how Muni became such a juggernaut in San Franciscan mass transit and how they've remained one of the most famous street railways in the world to this day. Now grab your ClipperCard and let's get riding!

Trolley Tuesday 4/13/21 - The Market Street Railway and the United Railroads of San Francisco

Okay, now it looks like we're back to trolleys after spending so much time on cable cars the past two episodes. I think. I hope? Anyway... Before San Francisco had its single transit system in the form of the Municipal Railway, or MUNI, there were two companies that ruled the roost and made famous the "Roar of the Four" down Market Street. This other company was the Market Street Railway (MSR), which for a time was also known as the much-maligned United Railroads of San Francisco (URR). Under both names, the company experienced earthquakes, deadly labor strikes, and city franchise disputes across their 87-year history before finally folding to the might of the MUNI. On today's Trolley Tuesday, let's take A Trip Down Market Street as we look at the wide and varied history of the Market Street Railway.

Trolley Thursday 4/8/21 - The Golden Age of San Francisco's Cable Cars

Like every great American story, San Francisco's cable cars are a story of grit, determination, and innovation in the face of adversity. However, like we mentioned last time, the era of the cable car was not simply a flat line to success. As this unique mode of transportation picked up in popularity across the city (and across the United States), there soon arose a rift in how the cars were built and operated. Do we go with side-grip or horizontal-grip? Do we add curves to the line or not? What to even do with a rotating horsecar? All of these questions, and more, will now be answered on today's Trolley Thursday, celebrating the Golden Age of San Francisco's Cable Cars!

Trolley Tuesday 4-6-21 - Andrew Smith Hallidie and the Creation of the San Francisco Cable Car

Every time we start a new month here on Trolley Tuesdays and Trolley Thursdays, my editor Nakkune and I ensure to deliver unto you (the reader) a complete history of what we're talking about so you can get the proper historical context for everything we're going to talk about. Most of the time, trying to find the specific history of a streetcar system is quite difficult as almost all streetcar systems grew out quite organically, and with often faceless individuals helming the mighty companies that shaped city life forever. However, this month can deliver a face, a date, and a place: Andrew Smith Hallidie; August 2, 1873; San Francisco, CA. Despite being such an iconic part of the City by the Bay, few know or are aware of the man who invented one of America's few unique moving museums, so on today's Trolley Tuesday let's rectify that as we look back on the life and inventions of Mr. Andrew Smith Hallidie, the Father of the Cable Car!

Trolley Thursday 4-1-21 - The Los Angeles Railway's Diesel and Trolley Coaches

Welcome, dear readers, to a new era of Trolley-Posting! Or rather, Trolley BUS posting! In the best interest to give you the ultimate experience of what it was like to live through the Yellow Car era and show how much of a bad idea it was to get rid of Los Angeles' streetcars, we've decided to "bustitute" ourselves just like the LAMTA! I don't want to waste any more of your time, so enjoy a ride on board a nice, quiet, smooth, rubber-tyred trolley coach as we look at the Los Angeles Railway's (LARy) much-loved, much-welcomed, and much much more successful bus lines!