We’ve got a new strategy to extend the streetcar north past the Broadway light rail station. Don’t use the new CHS Street & Sidewalk issue map — just let the old trolley tracks reveal themselves.
Hill flickrite tell leo once snapped these photos of an old track that has surfaced in a pothole on 10th Ave E between Highland and Prospect and added them to the CHS pool. We’ve shown the streetcar works on Broadway. Looks like there’s not much work to bring it back on 10th Ave, too. 15th Ave E, anybody?
As for updates on determining a route for the streetcar planned to start serving Capitol Hill, the Central District and First Hill starting in 2013, we’ll have more for you on that process in the morning.
I love it when history reveals itself like this.
all of this has happened before and all of this will happen again
Turns out the streetcar used to run on 14th too, up to Mercer, where it could turn around and head back south on 15th, or keep going north towards Volunteer Park on 15th. Here’s a track map from 1930 that I scanned: http://www.flickr.com/photos/afiler/3967606052/sizes/o/in/se Once I found that on the map I walked over to 14th & Mercer, and I found that you can see a strip of asphalt covering the area where the tracks curved. I followed that strip of asphalt down 14th for a long way, seeing it off and on all the way to Union.
By the way, Craig Snyder is collecting locations and photos of spots of track visible for a 4 Culture/Great City project: “In an effort to collect locations of these chunks of rail, I’m putting out a call for lost tracks ! If you know of any places in your neighborhood, or commute path, or local walking routes, please let me know via [email protected]. Pictures are welcome as well, but just a simple note of the cross streets is all it takes.”
Really not lost – just paved over.
I bet most of the old system is there, with little removed. Removal would have been expensive and a big project. They just paved over.
Tracks on Madison and Rainer came to the surface during new paving projects a few years back, as did some great red brick street paving, oh, the days of yore.