Galveston Island Trolley
Info
Type	heritage streetcar
Status	operation suspended
Locale	Galveston, Texas
Operation
Opened	July 23, 1988
Owner	City of Galveston
Technical
Line length	6.8 miles (10.9 km)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in)
Electrification	none

The Galveston Island Trolley is a heritage streetcar in Galveston, Texas, United States. As of late 2006, the total network length was 6.8 miles (10.9 km). There are 22 stations. The Galveston Island Trolley is operated by Island Transit. Operation has been suspended since September 2008, due to heavy damage from Hurricane Ike.^[1]

[edit] History

Galveston has had streetcars before. The first urban rail public transit system was introduced in 1867. The cars were pulled by mules. In 1891 electric trolleys were introduced. They remained in service till May 1938.

Galveston Island Trolley, a heritage streetcar system, was opened on July 23, 1988. Barry Goodman Associates (now the Goodman Corporation) was a key consultant in the creation of the Trolley, leading the early design studies and helping to secure funding. The project was designed by HNTB, engineers, who were responsible for all aspects of track and vehicle design; Ochsner Associates, architects, were responsible for the maintenance facility and the passenger shelter (on 20th Street).

Initially, the Galveston Island Trolley connected the historic Strand District on the north side of Galveston Island with the Seawall beach area. It was mainly used by tourists. In the 1990s planning for an extension of the line began. The new branch to the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) opened on March 14, 2005. This line was popular among UTMB staff, students and patients.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Rolling stock

The Galveston Island Trolley cars look like vintage electric trolleys, but actually they are modern build and diesel-electric powered. Therefore, there are no overhead wires in Galveston. This means that the vehicles are not rightfully referred to as "trolleys," since they do not "troll" for power from overhead wires, but they are "streetcars."

There are four cars. All of them are technically identical, though they are painted in different colors. The cars were built by Miner Railcar, Pennsylvania.^[2] Each car can accommodate 80 passengers: 40 sitting and 40 standing. Cars are designed for an operational speed of 25 mph (40 km/h). Each car weighs 63,000 lb (28,576 kg).^[2]

In 2005, all cars were equipped with air conditioning.

[edit] Hours of operation

Service has been suspended indefinitely since September 13, 2008, as a result of heavy damage caused to the cars and tracks by Hurricane Ike.^[1] Before the suspension, the Trolley was scheduled to operate seven days a week, from after 10 a.m. to before 6 p.m. On weekdays it ran every 40 minutes, using one car, and on weekends every 20 minutes, using two cars.

[edit] References

[edit] Sources

• Island Transit official site
• Galveston Island Trolley (web page by Jon Bell)
• The book: Trams 2007 by B.A. Schenk and M.R. Van Den Toorn. Alk publishings, Netherlands, ISBN 90 6013 466 4 (book in Dutch)
• North American Vintage Trolley Systems

v • d • e City of Galveston Attractions Balinese Room  • Bishop's Palace  • East End Historic District  • Elissa (ship)  • Fort Crockett  • Galveston Island State Park  • Galveston Railroad Museum  • Galveston Seawall  • Galveston Island Trolley  • Grand 1894 Opera House  • Lone Star Flight Museum  • Moody Gardens  • Moody Plaza  • Ocean Star Offshore Drilling Rig & Museum • Rosenberg Library  • St. Mary Cathedral Basilica  • Schlitterbahn Galveston Island Waterpark  • Seawolf Park  • Strand National Historic Landmark District  • 1861 United States Customs and Federal Court House  • USS Cavalla (SS-244)  • USS Stewart (DE-238) Companies American National Insurance Company  • Galveston Railroad  • Island Transit  • Moody Foundation  • Moody National Bank  • Port of Galveston  • Texas First Bank  • Scholes International Airport at Galveston History First Battle of Galveston  • Second Battle of Galveston  • Battle of Galveston Harbor  • The Beach Hotel  • Fort Point Light  • Galveston Railroad  • Galveston Hurricane of 1900  • Galveston Movement  • History of Galveston  • History of the Jews in Galveston, Texas  • Karankawa Indians  • Free State of Galveston • Strand National Historic Landmark District  • 1861 United States Customs and Federal Court House Geography Galveston Bay  • Galveston Island  • Gulf of Mexico  • San Luis Pass Education Galveston College  • Galveston Independent School District  • O'Connell College Preparatory School  • Texas A&M University at Galveston  • University of Texas Medical Branch Healthcare John Sealy Hospital  • Shriners Burns Hospital at Galveston  • Transitional Learning Center  • University of Texas Medical Branch Media Newspapers The Galveston County Daily News Television KLTJ (Daystar) • KTMD (Telemundo) AM Radio KGBC • KHCB • KLNT FM Radio KOVE • KPTI VHF Radio KHB40