Thank you SO much for this posting! I've spent all but about 6 years of my life within a short distance of at least one, often two, Red Arrow lines; I've ridden at least one example of every vehicle shown from the center-door cars to the N-5s. If I may, I'd like to add more information accumulated as a long-time traction fan: > The West Chester line was actually well-used in the early 1950s. It was closed solely because the state wanted to widen West Chester Pike from two to four lanes. The new road was designed with a median that was wide enough to hold the trolley ... except that the PA Highway Dept. decided to add turn lanes that blocked any possibility of shared rail service. There was actually an unofficial referendum organized to save the trolley; it won with something like *80%* support but that being the car-crazed 1950s the state simply ignored it. > The losses of the Ardmore trolley line and Strafford P&W branch _might_ have been avoided if not for bad timing. - The Strafford branch was closed in 1956 due to low ridership. However within about 4 or 5 years that area's population had grown to the point where it could likely have supported rail service. - The Ardmore line closed not due to low ridership but because private transit was in trouble nationwide. Even the once-mighty Red Arrow hadn't been able to replace cars that were OOS due to accidents and age. They looked into buying three second-hand cars so there'd be enough to keep full service going, but the system was so cash-strapped they couldn't raise even the $500K (in 1966 bucks, of course) that was needed. It's perhaps unrealistic, but there's some thought that if Ardmore had survived into the SEPTA era there was a chance it could have gotten those additional cars. > The Electroliners were purchased for a planned P&W branch to the growing Exton area. But like the West Chester trolley, the idea fell victim to a state that was allergic to any new rail transit. The Liners were then relegated to Norristown service on the P&W. I reveled in the 1940s interior décor and snack bar, and would even adjust my travel schedule so I'd be sure to catch a Liner. Unfortunately they proved too heavy and electron-hungry for the system as it then existed. Service was cut back to two afternoon express runs followed by the sale of both trainsets. Thank heavens that both have been preserved!!
Very nicely done. I've lived in the Philadelphia suburbs all of my life, yet while I never had the opportunity to ride the Red Arrow trolleys, I do believe my maternal grandmother would take them to and from the city.
Great video and amazing camera quality! It's always nice to see someone cover the history and various rolling stock models of lesser known interurbans, especially those that ran in high density regions of the northeast. I must say, cars 25-27 look quite odd as standard streetcars with the Red Arrow Lines' iconic plows.
Thank you SO much for this posting! I've spent all but about 6 years of my life within a short distance of at least one, often two, Red Arrow lines; I've ridden at least one example of every vehicle shown from the center-door cars to the N-5s. If I may, I'd like to add more information accumulated as a long-time traction fan:
> The West Chester line was actually well-used in the early 1950s. It was closed solely because the state wanted to widen West Chester Pike from two to four lanes. The new road was designed with a median that was wide enough to hold the trolley ... except that the PA Highway Dept. decided to add turn lanes that blocked any possibility of shared rail service. There was actually an unofficial referendum organized to save the trolley; it won with something like *80%* support but that being the car-crazed 1950s the state simply ignored it.
> The losses of the Ardmore trolley line and Strafford P&W branch _might_ have been avoided if not for bad timing.
- The Strafford branch was closed in 1956 due to low ridership. However within about 4 or 5 years that area's population had grown to the point where it could likely have supported rail service.
- The Ardmore line closed not due to low ridership but because private transit was in trouble nationwide. Even the once-mighty Red Arrow hadn't been able to replace cars that were OOS due to accidents and age. They looked into buying three second-hand cars so there'd be enough to keep full service going, but the system was so cash-strapped they couldn't raise even the $500K (in 1966 bucks, of course) that was needed. It's perhaps unrealistic, but there's some thought that if Ardmore had survived into the SEPTA era there was a chance it could have gotten those additional cars.
> The Electroliners were purchased for a planned P&W branch to the growing Exton area. But like the West Chester trolley, the idea fell victim to a state that was allergic to any new rail transit. The Liners were then relegated to Norristown service on the P&W. I reveled in the 1940s interior décor and snack bar, and would even adjust my travel schedule so I'd be sure to catch a Liner. Unfortunately they proved too heavy and electron-hungry for the system as it then existed. Service was cut back to two afternoon express runs followed by the sale of both trainsets. Thank heavens that both have been preserved!!
Very nicely done. I've lived in the Philadelphia suburbs all of my life, yet while I never had the opportunity to ride the Red Arrow trolleys, I do believe my maternal grandmother would take them to and from the city.
Great video and amazing camera quality! It's always nice to see someone cover the history and various rolling stock models of lesser known interurbans, especially those that ran in high density regions of the northeast. I must say, cars 25-27 look quite odd as standard streetcars with the Red Arrow Lines' iconic plows.
Great video!
Infamous? because of the Declaration of Independence