Overview | |
---|---|
Owner | Springfield Street Rwy. Co. |
Area served |
|
Transit type | Light rail
|
Headquarters | 2257 Main Street Springfield, MA 01107-1905 |
Operation | |
Began operation | March 10, 1870 [2] : 915 June 6, 1890 (electrified) [3] 1923 (bus) [4] |
Ended operation | June 23, 1940 (rail) [5] November 3, 1981 (bus, merged with PVTA) [6] |
Technical | |
Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge [2] : 915 |
The Springfield Street Railway (SSR) was an interurban streetcar and bus system operating in Springfield, Massachusetts as well as surrounding communities with connections in Agawam, Blandford, Chicopee, East Longmeadow, Longmeadow, Ludlow, Monson, Palmer, Russell, Ware, Westfield, and West Springfield. With the first modern streetcars appearing in 1891, by 1905 the system had more miles of electrified track than New York City with its fledgling subway. [7]
Today the former headquarters of the Springfield Street Railway Company serves as the maintenance facilities of Peter Pan Bus Lines, known colloquially as the Trolley Barn. Following prolonged negotiations, in 1981 the company, its property, and employee payroll at that time, were acquired and merged with the Pioneer Valley Transit Authority, into what is now known as its Springfield Area Transit Company (SATCo) division. [6]
The General Motors streetcar conspiracy refers to convictions of General Motors (GM) and other companies that were involved in monopolizing the sale of buses and supplies to National City Lines (NCL) and its subsidiaries, and to allegations that the defendants conspired to own or control transit systems, in violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Antitrust Act. The suit created lingering suspicions that the defendants had in fact plotted to dismantle streetcar systems in many cities in the United States as an attempt to monopolize surface transportation.
The Pioneer Valley Transit Authority (PVTA) oversees and coordinates public transportation in the Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts. Currently the PVTA offers fixed-route bus service as well as paratransit service for the elderly and disabled. The PVTA was created by Chapter 161B of the Massachusetts General Laws in 1974. It is based in Springfield, Massachusetts, serves Hampden and Hampshire counties, and provides connecting service to the FRTA in Franklin County. It is the largest regional transit authority, and second largest public transit system in Massachusetts after the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority, providing service to over 11 million riders annually across 24 municipalities in the region, with about 70% of all riders using the system as their primary mode of transit.
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Timeline of mass transit in Atlanta:
The Shore Line Trolley Museum is a non-profit organization located in East Haven, Connecticut. It is the oldest operating trolley museum in the United States. It was founded to preserve the heritage of the trolley car. The museum includes exhibits on trolley history in the visitors' center and offers rides on restored trolleys along its 1.5 miles (2.4 km) track. The ride includes a tour of the museum's historic trolley collection.
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Watertown Carhouse is a bus maintenance facility and former streetcar carhouse located in the southern section of Watertown, Massachusetts, across the Charles River from Watertown Square. As Watertown Yard, the site also serves as a bus depot serving local and express routes, with additional connections available at Watertown Square on the opposite end of the Watertown Bridge.
The Holyoke Street Railway (HSR) was an interurban streetcar and bus system operating in Holyoke, Massachusetts as well as surrounding communities with connections in Amherst, Belchertown, Chicopee, Easthampton, Granby, Northampton, Pelham, South Hadley, Sunderland, Westfield, and West Springfield. Throughout its history the railway system shaped the cultural institutions of Mount Tom, being operator of the mountain's famous summit houses, one of which hosted President McKinley, the Mount Tom Railroad, and the trolley park at the opposite end of this funicular line, Mountain Park.
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