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light rail construction in the United States. Revenue service


of the San


Diego Trolley began in 1981 on nearly 16 miles between downtown and the Mexico border near Tijuana. Since then, service has expanded and today includes 53 stations on more than 50 miles of track, carrying 32 mil- lion riders a year. The original line to


the border at San Ysidro has since be- come the “Blue Line.” In 1986, the “Or- ange Line” opened from the old Santa Fe depot to the El Cajon Transit Cen- ter. In 2005 the “Green Line” to Santee Town Center was added to the system. The 160 light rail vehicles are best known for their bright red paint jobs, which have evolved only slighty since


the system opened in 1981. The New Silver Line


Planning for the Silver Line began in the 1990s with the completion of the downtown loop. The idea was to create and promote a downtown circulator service, while using vintage trolleys as a tourism draw. Initially, MTS consid- ered using second-hand trolleys from Vienna, Austria, but that idea was scrapped in favor of using PCC’s in 2005. MTS initially acquired six used PCC cars that formerly served in San Francisco and Philadelphia. In a unique public-private partnership, MTS has been working with the non- profit San Diego Electric Railway Asso-


OPPOSITE: San Diego Vintage Trolley PCC 529 departs American Plaza in downtown San Diego. The station opened in 1991 and was recently renovated as part of


the “Trolley


Renewal Project,” a $620 million system upgrade.


LEFT: San Diego PCC rolls along


Harbor Drive. This stretch connects the historic Santa Fe depot with attractions like the Convention Center, Gaslamp Quarter and Petco Park. Pedestrian walkways also flank the streetcar tracks. BELOW: The Public Services building looms over the streetcar at West Broadway, just opposite the Santa Fe depot.


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