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First Test for KC Streetcar
November 6, 2015, was a historic day for public transportation in Kansas City, Mo., when streetcars returned to the city streets for the first time since the Kansas City Public Service trolleys were discontinued in 1957. The first new vehicle for the developing KC Streetcar network between the River Market, Downtown, and Union Station was pulled by a tow truck at walking speed to check for potential clearance issues before the formal operating tests commence. Revenue service is anticipated to begin later in 2016.
PHOTO BY CHRISTIAN GOEPEL
old friends, I spent some time watching the plow pit in operation. We boarded a Cabin John streetcar (Cabin John was the name of the termination point) right in front of Union Station after our 9:00 a.m. arrival on a train from Philadelphia. The Cabin John car went down Penn- sylvania Avenue, past the White House,
and then eventually reached George- town University. There we came upon a plow pit, at which point a staff member raised the trolley pole while a worker in the pit removed the plow that gathered electric power from the underground third rail. Outbound cars had the plow removed and inbound cars had the plow
attached. The aim was to remove trolley wire from the downtown area. I don’t re- call any other North American cities us- ing underground third rail except New York, but there may be other cities who used this technology, such as London, England. As I recall, the London cars had the plow removed automatically.
An Outstanding New Title from Signature Press! American Car & Foundry Box Cars, 1960–1981,
Edward S. Kaminski Te last period of AC&F building of box cars was during 1960–1981, and this book provides both the history and extensive color photography, along with details of car design and construc- tion in this period. Many colorful paint schemes were in use by railroads and lessors, large and small, and they are shown here, including many Incentive Per Diem schemes. A complete roster of the box cars built is also provided. Coverage includes 40-foot as well as 50-foot inside-post cars, 50-foot outside-post cars, and 60-foot inside- and outside-post cars. Author Kaminski is an acknowledged authority on freight car history and has extensively re-
searched AC&F records to write this account. Modelers of the 1960s or later, or freight car fan, will want this book.
256 pages, 466 photos, 41 drawings and graphics, roster, index. Price: $75 Another of our fine rail history titles: Rails Around Lake Tahoe, Mallory Hope Ferrell
Lake Tahoe lies along the California-Nevada border. Its first railroads were logging roads, deliver- ing mine timbers and cordwood from mills at lakeside to the Comstock mines. Steamboats plied the waters to move people and log booms. As logging declined, tourists flocked in. A narrow- gauge railroad was built, to bring tourists from the Southern Pacific to the lakeshore, and new steamboats carried travelers around the lake. Te story is a vivid part of Lake Tahoe’s history. 256 pages, 294 photos, 55 maps and graphics, rosters, bibliography, index. Price: $60
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($40 shipping for foreign individual orders, Canada $30) California residents add 8% sales tax per book.
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