Are PCC's in service in Boston in 2021?
YES!!!! On the scenic Ashmnt - Mattapan line, reached by the Red Line's Ashmont southern branch. (The other brasnch goes to Quincy.)
Go to other Boston PCC thread (Classic Trains) and see photos.
The cars are the single-end air-electric, no-standee-window "Wartime Series" that have been air-cnditioned. They are painted, now, in the traditinlal Boston Elevated orange, with silver roofs.
This line is isolated from the other light rail lines.
Great news! Thanks for your help, Dave.
daveklepper This line is isolated from the other light rail lines.
Do they truck them to a depot when maintenance is required?
Yes. Mattapan now has a ramp, and so do the shops at Reservoir. and the "T" has a flatbed truck with rails.
Reservoir is at the end of the Beacon Street ("C" Green) line and adjacent to the Reseroir Station of the Riverside Line ("D," ex-B&A/NYCen. Highland Branch) station with track connection, and connected to the Commonwealth Avenue Line ("B") by well-maintained service streetcar tracks on Chestnut Hill Avenue. Worth a visit.
Some more Mattapan = Ashmont PCC photod from Richard Allman. Definitely not 50 years ago, and thus here and nopt on the Classic Trains Foruym:
MBTA 3262 Ashmont-bound at Capen Street, Milton MA3/14/2009
Capen Road. Milton MA on 3/13/2009-Ashmont-bound
MBTA 3262 Mattapan -bound at Central Avenue, Milton MA 3/14/2009:
Grove Street, Dorchester MA approaching Ashmont on unseasonably warm 1/1/2012
Mattapan-Bound @ Milton
Thanks for the very colorful & interesting photos of what seems to be a picturesque line. Orange looks good on these cars. I'm not sure I've ever seen a standee-window-less PCC before.
This line is on my to-do list for my next Boston trip, thanks to you, Dave.
Although I'm a bit early, may I wish you Chag Pesach Sameach.
For your good wishes.,
Todah, thanks, shukhran.
Look forward to reading your report after your visit.
The prewar PCC's on Chicago Surface Lines (the Blue Geese) did not have standee windows. I'm sure that PCC's in other cities also did not have them.
You sre correct. No pre-WWII PCCs had standee windows except Brooklyn's 1000, which was (is at Kingston. NY, needing restoration) aluminum and built by Clark Eq.
Prewar PCCs operated in Brooklyn, Pittsburgh*, Chicago*, Boston*, St. Louis", Baltimore, Cincinnati, Los Angeles*, LA-Pacific Electric, Montreal, Vacouver, Toronto*, Washington*, Philadelphia*, and Dallas.
Starred cities also operated post-WWII PCCs with standee windows.
Cities starred also operated post-WWII PCCs with standee windows.
Illinois Terminal's post-WWII PCCs lacked standeed windows, and so did Kansas City's where prewar and postwar PCCs had the same body desugn.
Johnstown, Birmingham, Detroit, and Shaker Hwights (Clecveland) operated only post-WWII standee-window PCCs.
Brooklyn's year 1936 1000, the first transit vehicle to hace standee windows:
A typical prewar PCC in Baltimore:
Chicago post-WWII PCC, 2-man, rear-entrance:
All of Toronto's non-standee window PCCs were sold to Alexandria in Egypt after they were made redundant by the opening of the Bloor-Danforth subway in 1966.
Forgat San Diego and El Paso with the pre-WWII cars. Here added.
Some captions have been prvided by Richard Allman for his photos and have been edited in to that previous posting.
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