S (Los Angeles Railway)

S
Overview
Owner	Los Angeles Metropolitan Transit Authority
Locale	Los Angeles
Termini	Western Avenue and Santa Monica Boulevard Central Avenue and Firestone Boulevard
Stations	67
Service
Type	Streetcar
System	Los Angeles Railway, Los Angeles Metropolitan Transit Authority
Rolling stock	PCC streetcars
Daily ridership	21,230 (1940) [1]
History
Opened	1898
Closed	March 31, 1963 (1963-03-31)
Technical
Line length	12.41 mi (19.97 km)
Track gauge	3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm)
Electrification	Overhead line,  600 V DC
Route map Legend 1950–1963 8th and Western 8th and Serrano 8th and Harvard 8th and Irolo 8th and Mariposa 8th and Catalina 8th and Vermont   V   7th and Vermont   V   7th and Westmoreland 7th and Magnolia 7th and Hoover 7th and Coronado 7th and Park View 7th and Alvarado 7th and Union 7th and Valencia 7th and Witmer 7th and Garland 7th and Bixel I-110 Harbor Freeway 7th and Francisco 7th and Figueroa 7th and Flower 7th and Grand   J   7th and Olive 7th and Hill 7th and Broadway   P    5   7th and Spring 7th and Main 7th and Los Angeles 7th and Maple 7th and San Pedro   R   San Pedro and 9th San Pedro and 11th San Pedro and Pico San Pedro and 14th San Pedro and 16th San Pedro and Washington San Pedro and 21st San Pedro and 16th San Pedro and 23rd San Pedro and Adams San Pedro and 30th San Pedro and Jefferson Avalon and Santa Barbara Avalon and 41st Avalon and 42nd Avalon and Vernon   J    V   Avalon and 46th Avalon and 48th Avalon and 51st Avalon and 54th Avalon and 56th Avalon and Slauson Avalon and 59th Avalon and 61st Avalon and Gage Gage and McKinley Gage and Central Central and 68th Central and Florence Central and 75th Central and 77th Central and 79th Central and Nadeau Central and 81st Central and 83rd Central and Manchester This diagram: view talk edit

S was a streetcar line in Los Angeles, California. Early parts of the line opened in 1898 under the Main, Fifth and San Pedro Railway, an arm of the Los Angeles Railway. After the rerouting of Yellow Car lines in 1920, the service acquired its letter designation. Los Angeles railway operated the service until 1958, then by the Los Angeles Metropolitan Transit Authority from 1958 to 1963. The route was very popular due to its proximity to Hollywood as well as the sizable manufacturing district in South Los Angeles.

History

San Pedro Line

The Main, Fifth and San Pedro Railway constructed a streetcar line on its namesake streets in 1898. ^[2]

Eleventh Street Line

Beginning in September 1910, the Los Angeles Railway rerouted several cars though downtown to relieve congestion. The North Main and West Eleventh Street car line, formerly operating in Hoover and West Eleventh Streets and via Broadway, Spring and Main Streets to Eastside Park, began running west from Hoover Street in Tenth Street to Gramercy Place, then the terminal of the West Eleventh Street Line. ^[3] In October 1917, work began on an extension west to Los Angeles High School. ^[4]

S Line (1911–1963)

With the great rerouting of 1920, a new curve at Seventh and San Pedro was required to connect the San Pedro Line with the Western Avenue line. A delay in procuring materials delayed construction until a few weeks after other lines had changed routes. ^[5] The San Pedro line then ran from San Pedro Street to Seventh Street from Downtown to the outskirts of Westlake. Here, the route took advantage of an old LAIU track on Hoover, Wilshire, and Commonwealth to continue northwest via Sixth Street, Vermont Avenue, Third Street, and Western Avenue to Santa Monica Boulevard on the southern edge of Hollywood. That same year, both ends of the line were extended. The south end was extended on Avalon, Merrill (Gage), Merrill, and Central Avenue to 68th and the north side on Western Avenue to Santa Monica Boulevard. ^[6] In 1921, the route was given the letter designation "S." ^{[7] [8]}

During the LARy and LATL eras, further route changes were made. The LAIU shortcut to Sixth Street was eliminated and the route ran straight on 7th between San Pedro and Vermont, while the route's southern terminus was extended 1.25 miles (2.01 km) further south to the intersection of Avalon and Firestone Boulevard. ^[9] When the N line was decommissioned in 1950, S was re-routed to fill in its route along 8th street. ^{[10] [6]}

Operation of the line passed to the Los Angeles Metropolitan Transit Authority in 1958. Streetcar service ended on March 31, 1963, ^[11] by which time the southern terminus had become Central and Manchester Avenue. ^[12]

Rolling stock

After 1955, PCC streetcars replaced the old rolling stock on the line. ^[13]

Sources

1. Breivogel, Milton; Bate, Stuart (1942). "Mass Transit Facilities and Master Plan of Parkways" (PDF). Los Angeles City Planning Commission. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
2. "Street Railways". Los Angeles Record. Los Angeles, California. July 7, 1898. p. 4. Retrieved August 20, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
3. One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain : "Street Railway Plan Changes in Car Runs". Los Angeles Herald. Los Angeles, California. September 22, 1910. p. 3. Retrieved August 21, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
4. "Car Line Extension to New School Promised". Morning Tribune. Los Angeles, California. October 18, 1917. p. 15. Retrieved August 21, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
5. "Two Rerouting Changed Pend". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. June 20, 1920. p. V6. Retrieved August 21, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
6. "'S'". Electric Railway Historical Association of Southern California. Retrieved September 19, 2020.
7. "May 1: This Date in Los Angeles Transportation History". Metro Dorothy Peyton Gray Transportation Library and Archive. Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved February 16, 2022. 1921: Large letter signs indicating the routes of different lines are placed on top of Los Angeles Railway streetcars.
8. "Cars To Have Letter Signs" (PDF). Two Bells. Vol. 1, no. 48. Los Angeles Railway. May 2, 1921. p. 1. Retrieved February 16, 2022.
9. H.P. Noordwal (1938). "Route Map Los Angeles Railway Electric Car and Bus Routes" (Map). Barry Lawrence Ruderman Antique Maps Inc. Los Angeles Railway. "Alternate link" (Map). via Google .
10. "Transit Lines Fete Changes of Routes". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. September 8, 1950. p. II-3. Retrieved August 21, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
11. "March 31: This Date in Los Angeles Transportation History". Dorothy Peyton Gray Transportation Library and Archive. Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved February 16, 2021.
12. Walker, Jim (2007). Los Angeles Railway Yellow Cars. Arcadia Pub. p. 107. ISBN   9781531629410.
13. "No.1080 Los Angeles Transit Lines". Market Street Railway . Retrieved January 23, 2021.

External links

• S Line Archives — Pacific Electric Railway Historical Society
• "Los Angeles Railway". Electric Railway Historical Association of Southern California.