User:SounderBruce/Sandbox/Streetcars

=Seattle–Everett Interurban Railway=

The Seattle–Everett Interurban Railway was an interurban railway that operated from Seattle, Washington to Everett from 1910 to 1939. The railway, owned by Stone & Webster, covered a distance of 29 mi in 70 minutes and served 29 total stations.

History
Passenger train service between Everett and Seattle was operated by the Great Northern Railroad, which used a waterfront route that was built in 1891.


 * Construction
 * 1907: Reached Lake Ballinger?
 * 1909: Haller Lake to Everett construction begins
 * 1910-04-30: First interurban run


 * Operation
 * Alderwood Manor development


 * Replacement
 * February 20, 1939: Final run with 1,500 spectators; souvenir collectors tear apart cars that needed police souvenirs
 * Highway 99
 * North Coast Line buses (operated by S&W until 1946)


 * Modern systems
 * Highway 99 buses (E Line, Swift) and Interstate 5
 * Sounder North Line in 2003
 * Light rail to Everett in 2036


 * Fates
 * No. 55 converted into diner south of Everett (1962)


 * Modern remnants
 * PUD corridor
 * Ronald Place
 * Interurban Trail
 * Alderwood Park
 * Waiting for the Interurban
 * Greyhound depot (demolished 2014 for Hedreen Hotel)

Route
The interurban began at a depot in Downtown Seattle, located at 9th Avenue and Stewart Street. Interurbans ran non-stop along tracks shared with city streetcars on Westlake Avenue, in accordance with the city's franchise agreement.

Service

 * 29 miles long
 * 70 minutes from Seattle to Everett (33 trains per day)
 * Frequency: 30 minutes between 5 and 7; 60 minutes from 7 to 12
 * Flag stops between depots

Stations

 * 30 stations
 * Everett depot at Colby & Pacific (still standing)

Rolling stock

 * Top speed of 55 to 60 mph near Alderwood

History

 * Timeline, 2007

Modern era

 * Waterfront Streetcar
 * 1982-05-29: Service begins between Pioneer Square and Pier 70, using 1920s Melbourne heritage trolleys
 * 1990-06-23: Streetcar extension to 5th & Jackson opens, extending line to International District bus tunnel station


 * SLU Streetcar
 * 2006-07-07: Groundbreaking for SLUS held, with officials making the first weld on the streetcar tracks
 * 2007-12-12: SLU Streetcar begins service

History

 * Timeline, 2007

Horse and cable cars
By 1892, Seattle was served by 48 miles of streetcar lines and 22 miles of cable car lines


 * 1879: First municipal streetcar franchise granted to Irving Ballard for proposed 1st Avenue line (never built)
 * 1884-09-23: First horse-drawn streetcar line established by Frank Osgood and his Seattle Street Railway, with fare set at 5 cents; 2nd Avenue selected after downtown retailers feared streetcars would frighten normal horse traffic on 1st Avenue; line financed by Arthur Denny, Thomas Burke and George Kinnear
 * 1887-09-28: First cable car introduced on Lake Washington Cable Railway by J. M. Thompson and Fred Sander, running on Yesler Way and Jackson Street from Pioneer Square to Leschi Park; mainly linking Elliott Bay steamers with Lake Washington ferries
 * 1888: Thompson and Sander build Front Street cable line, from Pioneer Square to Pike Street on 1st Avenue (NB) and 2nd Avenue (SB)

Private electric streetcars

 * 1889-04-05: First electric streetcars enter service, introduced by Frank Osgood to replace his horse-drawn fleet; Seattle becomes the first West Coast city with a fully electric streetcar service
 * 1891: Thompson and Sander build North Seattle Cable Railway to top of Queen Anne Hill
 * 1901: Queen Anne Hill line electrified, counterbalance system added

Consolidation of private lines

 * 1898: Consolidation begins, with banker Jacob Furth buying private lines for Seattle Electric Railway Company (subsidiary of Stone & Webster)
 * 1900: Seattle Electric Railway awarded 40-year city franchise

Municipal operation

 * December 31, 1918: Voters approve $15 million takeover
 * April 1, 1919: Municipal operation begins

Decline and replacement

 * 1937-03-09: Seattle votes to scrap streetcars, replace with trackless trolleys
 * First wave of conversions: January 1940 (Madison), February 1940, June 1940 (Ballard)
 * 1941-04-13: Final streetcar run on Route 28?

Routes

 * As of January 26, 1941

History

 * 1982-05-29: Service begins between Pioneer Square and Pier 70, using 1920s Melbourne heritage trolleys
 * 1990-06-23: Streetcar extension to 5th & Jackson opens, extending line to International District bus tunnel station
 * 2005-11-18: Service suspended, replaced by Route 99 bus


 * Proposals
 * Extension to Seattle Center suggested by George Benson in 1988 as part of Disney proposal

Replacement

 * Route 99 bus begins with same hours and free fare in November 2005
 * Formerly used special green and yellow livery to mimic old streetcars
 * February 2011: Northbound on 1st Avenue and southbound only on Alaskan Way (previously bidirectional)
 * June 2011: "Waterfront Streetcar Line" branding removed
 * June 2012: Later evening schedule for summer season
 * September 2012: Reduced to peak only service for winter/spring seasons
 * September 2013: All trips moved to 1st Avenue because of waterfront construction
 * Deleted in March 2018
 * Seasonal waterfront shuttles began in August 2018, operated by DSA with WSDOT grant