http://local.lancasteronline.com/4/26792

Sloan

Today, I received a report from the Lancaster County Metropolitan Planning Organization. In part it reads: "RRTA (Red Rose Transit Authority) completed a feasibility study of developing a heritage streetcar route within downtown Lancaster in February 2006. As part of the study, a Streetcar Streering Committee was formed of community organizations and leaders to further explore the concept and develop community support to move forward with such a project. With the support of the City of Lancaster and the Steering Committee, the consensus was to move forward with preparing an application for funding under the Federal Transit Administration's Very Small Starts Program to further evaluate and perform the Environmental Review for this project."

A timetable in the report lists fiscal year 2008 (begins October 2008) for gathering funds for construction.

Stone Consulting www.stoneconsulting.com is the project engineer.

Sloan

The project seems to be gathering momentum. See page 19 of October 2007 Railway Age.

http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/sb/ra1007/index.php

Sloan

I read on another message board that the group in Lancaster is also looking into purchasing four ex-Philadelphia PCC cars from the Baltimore Streetcar Museum, which has had a glut of them ever since SEPTA's PCC fire sale in 2005.

A "Streetcar Steering Committee"??? I've heard of useless committees, but that's the ultimate government boondoggle!

I happened to be east to Baltimore this past week and visited Baltimore Street Car Museum. I was given a brief tour and the conversation went to the various PCCs that were on site. I seem to recall something being said about a number of the extra SEPTA cars were going to be sold.

I'm not officially connected to the BSM (they let me have the run like I'm the carbarn cat, but that doesn't mean much), but I can say that the reports of the SEPTA cars going to Lancaster are, as of yet, premature. I was *told* that Lancaster had *looked* at some of the cars, but as I recall:

*at least one (possibly two) is owned by the Friends of the Philadelphia Trolley, and is/are to be preserved as such (and one has been repainted);

*the one that is rebuilt as an overhead wire maintenance car will serve exactly that role at BSM, and also maybe a possible parts source if needed decades from now;

*The El Paso/San Diego one (under the tarp outside the barn) was originally to be rebuilt to be wheelchair-accessible, as well as replicate a different Baltimore PCC series and be "expendable", and certainly isn't going anywhere;

*The "Brooklyn" or whatever car (tarped, in the loop) is a privately owned car that's there only for a long-overdue truck swap, surrendering broad-gauge trucks for the standard-gauge ones that were under the El Paso car. It goes away sometime. We hope.

If I'm counting right, this leaves 2-3 PCCs for potential acquisition/rebuilding by Lancaster. And lord knows who ends up with what in terms of motors, parts, trucks, etc. As I'm to understand it, at least some of the cars in question may have been purchased outright from Philly with personal checks written by members (I'm not sure whether the story of someone running to an ATM to get the necessary cash on the spot that afternoon in Philly was a joke or not!), but I'm sure that proper channels have been traversed to transfer ownership to the BSM in the interim.

In other projects, the ex-Philly snowsweeper is now sitting on jacks, looking like it's been "jacked for its rims" by thieves, as the axles/wheels are out for minor regauging. I've been told an (expensive) motor repair is going on to original Baltimore PCC 7407.