The San Diego Trolley, the most heavily utilized light rail system in the United States.
Light rail is a mode of rail-based transport, usually urban in nature. When compared to heavy rail systems like commuter rail or rapid transit (subway), light rail systems are typically designed to carry fewer passengers and are capable of operating in mixed traffic (street running) or on routes that are not entirely grade-separated. Systems typically take one of four forms: the "first-generation" legacy systems, the "second-generation" modern light rail systems, streetcars, and hybrid rail systems (light rail with some commuter rail features). All of the systems use similar technologies, and some systems blur the lines between the different forms.
The United States, with its 27 systems (as counted by the Light Rail Transit Association), has a much larger number of "true" light rail systems (not including streetcar systems), by far, compared to any other country in the world (the next largest are Germany with 10 and Japan with 9).[1]
From the mid-19th century onwards, horse-drawn trams (or horsecars) were used in cities around the world. The St. Charles Avenue Line of New Orleans' streetcar system is the oldest continuously operating street railway system in the world, beginning operation as a horse-drawn system in 1835.[3]
From the late 1880s onwards, electrically powered street railways became technically feasible following the invention of a trolley pole system of collecting current by American inventor Frank J. Sprague who installed the first successful electrified trolley system in Richmond, Virginia in 1888. They became popular because roads were then poorly surfaced, and before the invention of the internal combustion engine and the advent of motor-buses, they were the only practical means of public transport around cities.[4]
The streetcar systems constructed in the 19th and early 20th centuries typically only ran in single-car setups. Some rail lines experimented with multiple unit configurations, where streetcars were joined to make short trains, but this did not become common until later. When lines were built over longer distances (typically with a single track) before good roads were common, they were generally called interurban streetcars or radial railways in North America.
Historically, the rail gauge has had considerable variations, with a variety of gauges common in many early systems (e.g. the broad Pennsylvania trolley gauge, etc. used by New Orleans' streetcars and by the light rail systems in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh). However, most modern second-generation light rail systems now operate on standard gauge rail.[5]
After World War II, six major cities in the United States (Boston, Newark, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, San Francisco) continued to operate large first-generation streetcar systems, although most of them were later converted to modern light rail standards.[6] Toronto in Canada marks the other city in North America with a continuing first-generation streetcar system. Additionally, a seventh American city, Cleveland, maintained an interurban system (e.g. the Blue and Green Lines) equivalent to what is now "light rail", that opened before World War I, and which is still in operation to this day.[6]
When several of these cities upgraded to new technology (e.g. San Francisco, Newark, and Pittsburgh), they called it "light rail" to differentiate it from their existing streetcar systems since some continued to operate portions of both the old and new systems.
In the United States, most of the original first-generation streetcar systems were decommissioned from the 1950s onward through approximately 1970 as the usage of the automobile increased through government policy.
Although a few traditional streetcar or trolley systems still exist to this day the term "light rail" has come to mean a different type of rail system. Modern light rail technology has primarily German origins, since an attempt by Boeing Vertol to introduce a new American light rail vehicle was a technical failure. After World War II, the Germans retained their streetcar (Straßenbahn) networks and evolved them into model light rail systems (Stadtbahn).[5]
The renaissance of light rail in the United States began in 1981, when the first truly second-generation light rail system was inaugurated in the United States, the San Diego Trolley in California, which adopted use of the German Siemens-Duewag U2 light rail vehicle. (This was just three years after the first North American second-generation light rail system opened in the Canadian city of Edmonton, Alberta in 1978, and which used the same German Siemens-Duewag U2 vehicles as San Diego).[6] Other North American cities, particularly on the West Coast, began planning their own light rail systems in the 1980s.[7]
As of March2020[update], there are a total of 53 operational light rail-type lines and systems (noting that some cities, such as Philadelphia, Portland, San Francisco and Seattle, have more than one light rail system) that offer regular year-round transit service in the United States: 26 modern light rail systems,[8] 14 modern streetcar systems, and 13 heritage streetcar systems (including the San Francisco cable car system).
"First-generation" legacy systems
The first-generation legacy systems are typically vestigial elements of sprawling streetcar systems that were decommissioned from the 1950s onward through approximately 1970 as automobile usage increased. These systems were spared that fate due to these systems having high ridership and typically some form of exclusive right of way.[6]
Many of these streetcar systems have been at least partly upgraded to more closely resemble the more modern second-generation light rail systems, while some continue to operate with few changes
While changes were made to the original 1897 Tremont Street subway in 1962 and 2004, and to some of the line routes over the years, and the Green Line's streetcar A branch was closed in 1969, both systems have run intact with mostly uninterrupted service since their opening dates.
Aside from line and station renovations in the early 1980s, and the Waterfront extension in 1996, these lines have operated essentially uninterrupted as light rail (interurbans) from their opening.
The St. Charles Avenue Line is the oldest continuously operating street railway system in the world, beginning operation as a horse-drawn system in 1835; the line was electrified in 1893. Three additional lines built to more modern standards have been added since 1988.
The subway–surface trolley lines began operation as a mixed subway/streetcar system in 1906, and have continued operation essentially unchanged since that time.
SEPTA Routes 101 & 102 (the Media-Sharon Lines) began operation as rail lines in mostly exclusive rights-of-way (light rail) in 1906, and have also operated mostly unchanged since then.
SEPTA Route 15 (the Girard Avenue Line) started as a horse car line, electrified in 1895. It was replaced with buses in 1992, but service on the line with heritage streetcars resumed in 2005.
Began as a streetcar network, but was partially converted to light rail. By the 1970s, most routes were converted to bus, and the remaining streetcar lines (all of which still used the 1904 Mt. Washington Transit Tunnel) were converted to light rail. This included the construction of a new 1.1 miles (1.8km) downtown tunnel. The converted system partially opened for service in 1984.
World's last manually operated cable car system. Of the 23 lines established between 1873 and 1890, only three remain. While the cable cars are used to a certain extent by commuters, the vast majority of their seven million annual passengers are tourists.
Began as a streetcar network, but was partially converted to light rail. While most of San Francisco's original streetcar lines had been converted to buses, five lines with dedicated rights-of-way could not be converted. The streetcars were partially converted to light rail in 1980, sending the lines into the Market Street subway. The lines still operate as streetcars on surface streets. The T Third Street and S Shuttle lines added later are true light rail.
Established in 1982 during a closure of the cable car system for refurbishment, to provide an alternative tourist attraction. Streetcars operated on the Market Street tracks recently abandoned by the streetcar lines that became the Muni Metro. Service proved popular and was retained and expanded.
"Second-generation" modern systems
The second-generation of modern light rail systems began in 1981 with the San Diego Trolley, which ushered in several systems that generally feature large multi-car trains that travel larger distances, and make fewer stops, on exclusive rights-of-way.[10][11] These systems were inspired by the German Stadtbahn (English: city rail) systems.[5]
The modern streetcar era started in 2001 with the Portland Streetcar, which inspired several other systems that generally feature smaller single-car trains that travel on short routes, with frequent stops, in lanes that are shared with automobile traffic (street running). There are also some heritage streetcar lines, which operate in the same manner using vintage vehicles or historic vehicle replicas, which have been built before and after the modern streetcar movement.
Hybrid rail systems, routes operating on the national rail network which do not operate with commuter rail characteristics, were introduced in 2004 with New Jersey's River Line. Hybrid rail systems operate vehicles which do not meet Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) guidelines, usually (but not always) small multiple unit railcars like a light rail system, but like commuter rail, they are typically powered by diesel engines over tracks which may be shared with freight trains (which typically only operate overnight, when passenger service has stopped).[78] Unlike most commuter rail systems which only operate during the weekday peak travel periods, hybrid rail systems operate all-day, every day, but typically at longer headways than light rail.
The following table lists entirely new light rail, streetcar, or hybrid rail systems under construction.[85] Systems that are in the planning stages but not yet under construction (e.g. Glassboro–Camden Line, Interborough Express, and the Austin CapMetro RailProject Connect system), are not listed; expansions of existing systems are also not listed here.
Light rail is a form of passenger urban rail transit using rolling stock derived from tram technology while also having some features from heavy rapid transit.
The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) is a regional public transportation authority that operates bus, rapid transit, commuter rail, light rail, and electric trolleybus services for nearly four million people throughout five counties in and around Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It also manages projects that maintain, replace, and expand its infrastructure, facilities, and vehicles.
Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) is a transit agency serving the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex of Texas. It operates buses, light rail, commuter rail, and high-occupancy vehicle lanes in Dallas and twelve of its suburbs. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 50,463,300, or about 166,700 per weekday as of the second quarter of 2024.
Trinity Metro is a transit agency located in and serving the city of Fort Worth, Texas and its suburbs in surrounding Tarrant County, part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area. Since 1983, it was previously known officially as the Fort Worth Transportation Authority (FWTA), and branded itself as The T. As of January 29, 2018 the Board of Directors has voted to rebrand bus services as Trinity Metro, replacing the previous and long standing name. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 5,717,800, or about 18,500 per weekday as of the second quarter of 2024.
The Willamette Shore Trolley is a heritage railroad or heritage streetcar that operates along the west bank of the Willamette River between Portland and Lake Oswego in the U.S. state of Oregon. The right-of-way is owned by a group of local-area governments who purchased it in 1988 in order to preserve it for potential future rail transit. Streetcar excursion service began operating on a trial basis in 1987, lasting about three months, and regular operation on a long-term basis began in 1990. The Oregon Electric Railway Historical Society has been the line's operator since 1995.
TRAX is a light rail system in the Salt Lake Valley of Utah, in the United States, serving Salt Lake City and many of its suburbs throughout Salt Lake County. The official name of Transit Express is rarely, if ever, used. The system is operated by the Utah Transit Authority (UTA). All TRAX trains are electric, receiving power from overhead wires.
The San Diego Trolley is a light rail system operating in the metropolitan area of San Diego. The trolley's operator, San Diego Trolley, Inc., is a subsidiary of the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS). The trolley operates as a critical component of the MTS, with connections to and integrated travel tickets with the local bus systems.
Various terms are used for passenger railway lines and equipment; the usage of these terms differs substantially between areas:
The M-Line Trolley is a heritage streetcar line in the Uptown neighborhood of Dallas, Texas. The trolley line, which has been in service since 1989, is notable for its use of restored historic streetcar vehicles, as opposed to modern replicas.
Light rail is a commonly used mode of public transit in North America. The term light rail was coined in 1972 by the Urban Mass Transportation Administration to describe new streetcar transformations which were taking place in Europe and the United States. The Germans used the term Stadtbahn, which is the predecessor to North American light rail, to describe the concept, and many in UMTA wanted to adopt the direct translation, which is city rail. However, in its reports, UMTA finally adopted the term light rail instead.
Streetcars or trolley(car)s were once the chief mode of public transit in hundreds of North American cities and towns. Most of the original urban streetcar systems were either dismantled in the mid-20th century or converted to other modes of operation, such as light rail. Today, only Toronto still operates a streetcar network essentially unchanged in layout and mode of operation.
The MATA Trolley is a heritage streetcar transit system operating in Memphis, Tennessee. It began operating on April 29, 1993. Service was suspended in June 2014, following fires on two cars. After nearly four years and repeated postponements, the reopening of the Main Street Line took place on April 30, 2018. The system's two other lines remained suspended as of December 2022, but with reopening of both planned. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 365,400 but ceased running in August 2024
↑ "METRO About Us". Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County, Houston, Texas. Archived from the original on June 24, 2013. Retrieved July 23, 2013.
↑ "FY2012 Business Plan & Budget"(PDF). Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County, Houston, Texas. 2012. Archived from the original(PDF) on September 18, 2013. Retrieved August 10, 2013.
↑ "METRORail Rider Guide"(PDF). Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County, Houston, Texas. December 22, 2013. Archived from the original(PDF) on March 30, 2014. Retrieved January 8, 2014.
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