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One of the most
interesting aspects of US streetcar systems are the many new vehicles
that were built as
"replicas" of vintage designs. Building on the traditions of
America's streetcar shops of the past, these new vehicles strove to
incorporate the classic looks of vintage streetcar designs, with the
reliability and durability of a new vehicle. Although not all
vintage trolley operators had the
need, or the funding, to acquire new
vehicles, over 50 were built during the ten year period beginning in 1997.
Since 2007, sales of new replica cars
have fallen off noticeably, as market attention has turned to modern
streetcar vehicles. However, replica cars are still being offered today
by Gomaco
Trolley and other suppliers. While they demand a higher price
tag, new vehicles
also come with the advantage of lower maintenance costs, higher
reliability, a more predictable price
and delivery schedule, as well as the ability to incorporate modern
features such as air conditioning and ADA accommodations.
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As an alternative to replica cars, some systems have
acquired cars from overseas or restored vintage cars from their local area. Unfortunately, the pool of original equipment surviving intact from America's trolley
era is relatively small, and those that remain "in the wild" are
typically without running gear and other vital operational components.
Although there are still a good many unrestored PCC cars out there,
conventional trolleys in complete form are largely in the collections of railway museums around the country. Depending on
the car's condition, museums may be unwilling to expose these rare pieces to the
potentially consumptive use of daily service on a busy transit operation.
Maintenance of
vintage vehicles can also be a problem, owing to evolving safety
standards, lack of
spare parts and difficulty in finding the necessary expertise to maintain
the older technology.
The largest sources of overseas cars have
been Australia, Portugal and Italy. Large scale exports of Australian
trams ended in about 1990 when the government decided it was better to
retain its retired trams, and the export of Portuguese cars also ended as
the supply of cars was exhausted. Throughout the 1990's, cars have been available from Milan, (and
remain so) although the fact that they are
single-ended limits their utility.
Today, opportunities to import trams from Australia
are once again available; Newstead
Tramcars and Bendigo
Tramways offer vintage parts, as well as
entire trolleys, for sale. The Bendigo website includes a page detailing the latest offerings. Additional cars
may also become available again in Australia,
see our Australian Trams page for more
information.
In the US, the Gomaco
Trolley Company offers complete trolleys and refurbishment services. The Brookville
Equipment Corporation manufactures new running gear, refurbishes
trolleys (including major rebuilds of PCC cars) and is also pursuing the replica trolley market.
TIG/m is also offering battery powered replica
trolleys.
It should also be noted that the majority of the
"new" replica cars built to date have used some percentage of refurbished
vintage components, typically trucks, motors, controllers, and some air
brake system components. The extent to which refurbished components are
used on future orders will depend on the requirements of the individual customer, and the
types of parts the car builder has access to. A number of cars have used
parts from retired Melbourne trams, although the export ban has
effectively dried up this source. Additionally, Milan has also proven to
be an excellent resource, and a great many parts have been acquired from
this city as their older trams are gradually phased out. New Orleans is notable as being an exception to the
use of refurbished parts, opting instead to purchase everything new for
its 23 Canal St. replica cars, including the trucks and motors.
The New Orleans cars use newly built PCC-derivative running gear and modern
chopper control.
Other factors influencing the development of replica
cars includes the 2005 introduction of the "APTA Standard for Vintage
/ Heritage Trolley Vehicle Equipment", which provides important new
guidelines for vehicle manufacturers and operators. The table below details all of the replica vehicles
built or on order in North America since 1984.
Corrections, updates, and additional information would, of course, be
welcome.
Replica
VT cars built since 1984, compiled by John Smatlak
Year Built |
City |
Customer |
Desc. |
Builder |
Number of Cars |
Cost |
Length |
Weight |
Seats |
1984 |
Lowell, Mass. |
NPS |
15-Bench open car |
Gomaco |
2 |
$270K* |
43' 6" |
34,000 |
15 bench |
1986 |
Tampa |
Gomaco |
15-Bench open car |
Gomaco |
1 |
tbd |
43' 6" |
34,000 |
15 bench |
1987 |
Lowell, Mass. |
NPS |
semi-
convertible
|
Gomaco |
1 |
$290K* |
39' 8" |
38,000 |
40 |
1987 |
Galveston |
Galveston Park Board |
diesel- electric |
Miner Railcar |
4 |
$600K |
41' 9" |
63,000 |
40 |
1988 |
Denver |
DRHS |
diesel- electric |
Gomaco |
1 |
$350K |
43' 6" |
tbd |
15 bench |
1991 |
Portland |
Tri-Met |
Council Crest |
Gomaco |
4 |
$504K |
40' |
55,000 |
40 |
1993 |
Memphis |
MATA |
single-truck |
Gomaco |
1 |
note 1 |
30' |
24,400 |
24 |
1997 |
New Orleans |
RTA |
Perley Thomas |
RTA |
6 |
note 2 |
47' 8" |
tbd |
40 |
1999 |
New Orleans |
RTA |
Perley Thomas |
RTA |
1 |
note 3 |
47' 8" |
tbd |
40 |
2000 |
Tampa |
HARTline |
double-truck Birney |
Gomaco |
8 |
$620K |
46' 1" |
43,000 |
48 |
2001 |
San Pedro |
Port of LA |
PE 500 |
POLA |
2 |
$1.2M |
43' |
58,500 |
48 |
2001 |
Los Angeles |
The Grove |
double deck battery tram |
Ent. Eng. / T.I.G. |
1 |
$1M |
31' 8" |
53,300 |
70 |
2001 |
Little Rock |
CAT |
double-truck Birney |
Gomaco |
3 |
$755K |
44' 6" |
48,500 |
40 |
2002 |
New Orleans |
RTA |
Perley Thomas |
RTA |
23 |
$1.3M
note 4
|
47' 6" |
48,000 |
40 |
2002 |
Memphis |
MATA |
double-truck Birney |
Gomaco |
1 |
$564K
note
5
|
47' 10" |
46,000 |
48 |
2003 |
Charlotte |
CATS |
double-truck Birney |
Gomaco
note
6
|
3 |
$716K |
44' 6" |
48,500 |
40 |
2005 |
Tampa |
HARTline |
double-truck Birney |
Gomaco |
1 |
$634K |
46' 1" |
43,000 |
48 |
2006 |
Little Rock |
CAT |
double-truck Birney |
Gomaco
note
6
|
2 |
$868K |
44' 6" |
48,500 |
40 |
2007 |
Baha Mexico |
PLC Marina |
double deck battery tram |
T.I.G./m |
2 |
tbd |
31' 8" |
53,300 |
70 |
2007 |
Glendale CA |
Americana |
battery tram w/ trailer |
Gomaco |
2 |
tbd |
tbd |
tbd |
tbd |
|
|
|
|
total: |
69 |
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*
Customer also provided some of the parts
Note
1- Sold as part of package which included refurbished Melbourne cars
Note
2- Built in-house by New Orleans RTA, estimated cost $900K
Note
3- Built in-house by New Orleans RTA, prototype for new Canal St.
fleet
Note
4- Cars built in-house by New Orleans RTA, with major components subcontracted out.
$30 Million overall vehicle budget
for 23 cars.
Note
5- No air conditioning, no inverter
Note
6- Modern chopper control system used in lieu of K-type high voltage control.
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