Streetcars in New Orleans

Streetcars in New Orleans

Streetcars in New Orleans have been an integral part of the city's public transportation network since the first half of the 19th century. The longest of New Orleans' streetcar lines, the St. Charles Avenue Streetcar, is the oldest continuously operating street railway system in the world, according to the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. Today, the streetcars are operated by the New Orleans Regional Transit Authority (RTA).

There are currently three operating streetcar lines in New Orleans: The St. Charles Avenue Line, the Riverfront Line, and the Canal Street Line. The St. Charles Avenue Line is the only line that has operated continuously throughout New Orleans' streetcar history (though service was interrupted after Hurricane Katrina in August 2005 and resumed only in part in December 2006. All other lines were replaced by bus service in the period from the late 1940s to the early 1960s; preservationists were unable to save the streetcars on Canal Street, but were able to convince the city government to protect the St. Charles Avenue Line by granting it historic landmark status. In the later 20th century, trends began to favor rail transit again. A short Riverfront Line started service in 1988, and service returned to Canal Street in 2004, 40 years after it had been shut down.

The wide destruction wrought on the city by Hurricane Katrina and subsequent floods from the levee breaches in August 2005 knocked all three lines out of operation and damaged many of the streetcars. Service on a portion of the Canal Street line was restored in December of that year, with the remainder of the line and the Riverfront line returning to service in early 2006. On December 23, 2007, the Regional Transit Authority (RTA) extended service from Napoleon Avenue to the end of historic St. Charles Avenue. On June 22, 2008 service was restored to the end of the line at South Carrollton Avenue & South Claiborne Avenue.

The standard fare for all three lines is $1.25, with discounts for senior citizens. Passengers with disabilities and passengers two and under are admitted free. Transfers to other routes are available for $0.25.

In 1902, there was protest when the Louisiana legislature mandated that public transportation must enforce racial segregation. At first this was objected to by both white and black riders as an inconvenience, and by the streetcar companies on grounds of both added expense and the difficulties of determining the racial background of some New Orleanians.

In 1929, there was a widespread strike by transit workers demanding better pay which was widely supported by much of the public. Sandwiches on baguettes were given to the "poor boys" on strike, said to be the origin of the local name of "po' boy" sandwiches. The same year, the last of the 4 ft 8½ in (1,440 mm) (standard gauge) tracks were converted to 5 ft 2½ Inch (1588 mm) to match the rest of the streetcar lines.

After World War II, as with much of the United States, many streetcar lines were replaced with buses, either internal combustion (gasoline/diesel) or electric (trolley coaches).

In December 2006, NORTA received a $46 million grant to help pay for the car restoration efforts.


Copyright 2011 by Preston Smith, Walker Enterprises/Silver Dollar Press. All Rights Reserved.

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