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August 15, 2004
Busy Afternoon!
Busy Afternoon!
I was early to pick up my son from Brother Martin High School out in Gentilly last Thursday, so I passed by the Cemeteries terminal to see what was going on. I caught three Von Dullen cars maneuvering at end of Canal Street. On the left, car 2011 has just pulled out of the single-track terminal. Notice the low, yellow barriers on either side of car 2012. Those barriers separate the neutral ground from the street. This illustrates clearly how the beginning of the inbound track is actually in the left-hand traffic lane of Canal Street. The city wisely installed a traffic signal (visible just above car 2011 on the left) so the car operators can stop auto traffic turning onto Canal from City Park Avenue, allowing the riverbound cars to proceed out of the terminal track onto the inbound track.
As 2011 pulls away, car 2020 is waiting to take its place on the terminal track. The operator has already unloaded passengers during the wait for the terminal to clear. He’ll pull the car onto the single track, switch the trolley poles, board passengers, and pull out to return downtown. Then the third car, 2012 (on the right in the foreground) will follow the same process.
It’s unusual for three streetcars to be bunched at the terminal like this. Car 2011 was definitely behind schedule, because there was a RTA supervisor at the terminal, telling the operator not to dawdle and to move out. The time was around 4pm, so the supervisor naturally wants things to run smooth during rush hour.
Posted by Edward J. Branley at August 15, 2004 07:11 PM
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