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August 25, 2005

Bad week for bus drivers...

first the heart attack,now this:

RTA bus smashes light pole; 11 riders report injuries

A Regional Transit Authority bus driven by a supervised student driver went out of control and ran into a light pole Tuesday morning in eastern New Orleans. An RTA employee and two passengers were taken to Charity Hospital with unknown injuries, an RTA spokeswoman said.

Eleven people on the bus, including the supervisor, complained of injuries, but none was believed to be serious, RTA spokeswoman Rosalind Blanco Cook said. The student operator didn't report any injuries, she said.

Posted by YatPundit at 9:38 AM | TrackBack

August 23, 2005

Bus Accident on Chef near Downman

RTA bus driver dies behind the wheel

A 30-year veteran bus driver with the Regional Transit Authority died behind the wheel Monday after passing out on Chef Menteur Highway, sending a bus packed with 32 passengers crashing over a median and into a light pole, RTA officials said.

Robert Taylor, 54, was taken to Charity Hospital shortly after the 5:38 p.m. accident and pronounced dead, RTA spokeswoman Rosalind Blanco Cook said. Cook said none of the passengers was seriously injured in the low-speed collision near Downman Road. Police said a 35-year-old pregnant woman and her 7-year-old daughter, both of New Orleans, complained of pains and were taken to a nearby hospital for observation.

The bus had just crossed the high-rise bridge when Taylor lost consciousness, police said.

Talk about a serious near-miss. Had this happened on the high-rise itself, the consequences could have been much worse. I saw this happen with a taxi once, abut 15 years ago, on Poydras Street. A full bus? *shudder*

Our condolences go out to Mr. Taylor's family, friends, and co-workers, and a tip of the hat to Mr. Hudson for his efforts to control the bus.

Posted by YatPundit at 11:22 AM | TrackBack

August 21, 2005

Crossing St. Charles

Von Dullen streetcar 2020 has just cleared the intersection at Canal Street at St. Charles Avenue. The streetcar is on the “inbound” track, heading for the river. The early morning sun is sneaking past the World Trade Center and the two large hotels a couple of blocks up to partially illuminate 2020. The bulk of commuters who work in the CBD have not begun to fill Canal Street just yet.

For years, Canal Street has not been the hub of commuter traffic coming into downtown for the business work day. Poydras Street has taken over that dubious distinction. Many of the large office buildings in the CBD are located on Poydras, and that street has its own exit off of I-10, so it’s natural for car traffic to flow there. Canal Street is making a commuter comeback, however, because of the streetcars. The increase in the number of hotels in the CBD and Warehouse district has put a pinch on many parking lots and garages. Prices for parking have gone up dramatically, because hotels know they can get away with charging guests double or triple what a commuter is willing to pay. To fight the high prices, many commuters have gone to parking further down on Canal Street, or even Canal Blvd., and taking the streetcar into town. With a monthly RTA pass, the cost of riding the streetcar is minimal compared to downtown parking rates. And you don’t have to drive in the CBD.

Behind 2020 as it makes its way to the river is the Pickwick Club. The Pickwick Club is a private luncheon club that is closely affiliated with the Mystic Krewe of Comus, the carnival organization that held the first Carnival parade in New Orleans. Many Carnival parades would pause here to toast the members of the Pickwick Club, and the club would allow the queens and courts of other krewes to view their parades from their balcony.

Posted by YatPundit at 7:03 AM | TrackBack

August 19, 2005

History of Canal Station

Hoping to duplicate the success of the New Orleans and Carrollton Railroad Company (NO&C), the New Orleans City Railroad Company (NOCRR) purchased Square 365 for the purpose of constructing a transportation facility. Square 365 is bounded by N. Dupre, Iberville, N. White, and Canal. With a construction budget of $5,142, the company constructed a two-building car barn on the square in 1861. The original Canal Street line opened on June 1, 1861, running from the barn to the river. Since the line proved to be popular, service was soon extended lakebound past the barn to the cemeteries. The cars used at this time were “bobtail” cars from the John C. Stephenson Car Company of New York. The cars were mule-powered.

In 1876, the city gave NOCRR permission to operate a steam-powered street railway line from Canal and Carondelet Streets downtown to Lake Pontchartrain. This became the West End line, and the steam motive equipment for the line was stored and serviced at Canal Station until the line was electrified in 1898.

With the discontinuance of the Canal streetcar line in 1964, NOPSI converted Canal Station to an all-bus facility. The company turned over the transit system to the New Orleans Regional Transit Authority (RTA) in 1983. RTA demolished Canal Station in 1992, to make way for the A. Philip Randolph SIS facility. In 2003, a streetcar barn returned to Canal Street, in the back section of the Randolph facility.
Canal Station was extended back to Bienville Street in 1883, with the acquisition of Square 366. The station’s tracks were extended across Iberville Street and a new barn was constructed for the steam equipment.

The barn housing the steam equipment, as well as the blacksmith and saddlery shops were destroyed in a fire on January 20, 1887. Losses were put at approximately $100,000, but service on the Canal line was not interrupted. The facility was re-built, with the original 1861 buildings being incorporated into two larger buildings.

Canal Station was electrified in the spring of 1894, and the Canal line began operating Brill semi-convertible electric cars in August of 1894. The station was turned over to New Orleans Public Service, Incorporated (NOPSI), in 1924, as part of the overall consolidation of the city’s transit system.

Canal Station was the scene of numerous protests during the transit strike of 1929, with the station and its streetcars receiving minor damage from strikers. Even though NOPSI expanded the use of diesel-powered buses in the 1930s, Canal Station remained exclusively a streetcar facility. In 1940, NOPSI acquired the two adjoining lakebound squares and expanded Canal Station, adding facilities for buses. Building Number 2 was converted to a bus garage, and the expansion area became unsheltered bus storage.

Posted by Edward J. Branley at 12:07 PM | TrackBack

Streetcars of New Orleans: The Morris Cars

Named after E. J. Morris, who was Master Mechanic of the shops at Canal Station, these cars were built by the New Orleans Railways Company in 1902 and 1903. The design of the Morris cars was based on the Barney & Smith cars in use by the New Orleans City R.R. on the West End line. (The NOCRR merged into the NO Rys. Co. in 1902.)

The Morris cars were 52 feet long and just over 8 feet wide. They seated 64 riders. Originally they were built with open platforms on either end. They were numbered 046 to 057, following in sequence behind the original “Palace” cars.

This photo of car 055 shows it running on the Canal Belt line. The open platform indicates that the photo was shot before the Morris Cars were re-fitted with closed platforms in 1904. The Morris Cars were renumbered 513 to 524 in 1917. Cars 519-524 had their motors removed in 1918 and pulled by powered cars as trailers on the Canal-Cemeteries line. The motorized cars were removed from service and scrapped from 1921-24, with 518 being kept on until 1931. The trailers were scrapped from 1930-32.

Specifications:

* Builder: New Orleans Railways Company
* Date: 1902-03
* Trucks: Taylor Hi Speed “A”
* Wheels: 33”
* Motors: four GE 800 (25hp)
* Length: 52’ 0”
* Width: 8’ 5”
* Body Length: 40’ 8”
* Number of seats: 64
* Type of seats: cross
* Cost per car: $5,440.87

Posted by Edward J. Branley at 11:37 AM | TrackBack

"Bobtail" Streetcars

The very first streetcars to operate on the Canal Line were built by the John Stephenson Car Company of New York. The cars were designed for one-man operation. The rounded front end was for the driver; passengers boarded from the rear on a set of “bobtail” steps.

We don’t have any builders’ specifications on these cars, but they appear to be similar in length to a 7-window, single-truck electric car. That puts their length at approximately 28’. They most likely seated 26-28 passengers.

The Stephenson cars were usually horse-powered, but mules were the primary power for the cars in New Orleans. Mules are tougher workers in New Orleans’ summer heat and humidity.

The Stephenson cars operated by the New Orleans City RR Company on the Canal Line were painted red and white, while the Orleans RR Company cars (like the one in the above photo) were painted green for the Bayou St. John Line and Red for the French Market Line.

Posted by Edward J. Branley at 10:33 AM | TrackBack

August 16, 2005

CanalStreetCar (dot com) Weekly

Initial Test Post

Posted by YatPundit at 11:24 AM | TrackBack