San Diego (re)joins PCC club
Written by William C. Vantuono, Editor-in-ChiefSan Diego’s Metropolitan Transit System on Thursday planned to activate PCC streetcar 529, built in 1949 for use in San Francisco, on the Silver Line downtown loop of the city’s light rail transit system. MTS and others note 1949 was when San Diego terminated trolley service.
Car 529 is one of five MTS holds, and was restored by volunteers and rail experts at a cost of about $850,000. The car’s retrofit includes equipment updates to conform with current safety standards and San Diego Trolley operations. It will operate on weekends, beginning Aug. 27.
MTS Board Chairman Harry Mathis has led the effort to reintroduce PCC cars to San Diego. As part of a longstanding program, San Francisco continues to rehabilitate and operate several PCC cars on its streets, most of them purchased from other U.S. cities that retired their PCC fleets.
