Portland Leases last two Council Crest Replica Streetcars

[Bob]

Later this year, TriMet will send the last two of Portland’s four old-timey street trolleys to St. Louis. When it does, downtown Portland will lose a local icon and a little piece of its streetcar history. TriMet, which owns the streetcars, said in an era of cutbacks, it’s unavoidable. Critics say "you'll regret it."

The streetcars aren't actually vintage, being replicas built by Gomaco, but they're pretty faithful to the originals and look quite good. They got as close as they could while complying with the regs for new car construction.


The cars have run on a very infrequent basis the last few years. Apparently the powers that be at Tri-Met don't like them in the mix of regular streetcars. It's unfortunate, as the general public, especially tourists, love them!


They're giving St Louis a sweetheart deal, $80K for 10 years.

Pending federal approval, TriMet will give St. Louis a 10-year lease on the two cars for $80,000. That city has been struggling to build a new old-fashioned streetcar loop to help revitalize one of its commercial districts.

Full story here: http://www.kgw.com/news/Portland-vintage-trolley-trimet-streetcar-loses.html