Quiz...

[Teamdriver]

Hi MBTA Fan - I'm assuming that that's your answer to Question #1, and it's really not what I had in mind. I'm looking more for the reason that they stopped. It seems like the 16 and under crowd is having a little trouble, so let's open this up to 21 and under, ok ?

My Rail , you arent going to check ID's , are you ?

[Type7trolley]

It seems like the 16 and under crowd is having a little trouble, so let's open this up to 21 and under, ok ?

In that case, I'll take a shot.

What could be the problem ?

Without the other pole there's nowhere for the power to return to....you no longer have a circuit.

Would a streetcar have this same problem ?

No, the power returns through the rails.

What shock hazard does a trackless trolley have to passengers that a streetcar generally does not ?

With a streetcar there is always a good return route for the power via the nice steel rails, with trackless if you lose your second pole there's no longer anything to complete the circuit back to ground. It's not going to go through the rubber tires... but it could go through YOU.

How many volts are in trackless trolley wire and are there more or less than a streetcar ?

Not sure, but since there have been instances of trackless and streetcars running together, I'd guess that they're both 600.

[3rdrail]

My Rail , you arent going to check ID's , are you ?

I'm not checking ID's but when I check with your trucking boss and he tells me that you're old enough to have been playing with hoola-hoops, you're at the chalk-board writing "I will not drink what I'm carrying in back of my truck while I'm carrying it" 1,000 times !

Mr. Trolley - Excellent ! 80 %. That electrical shock phenomenon actually was happening on the Flyer Tracklesses at the door stanchions which had been taped to prevent it. What was happening apparently was that as the tape broke, people where touching the bare metal upon alighting and departing and getting zapped by a leaking charge. I believe that the Los Angeles area in the Hollywood Hills was the first American installation.

Normally, I would open up the last question for the win, but in this case I would open the Quiz up to all ages and that might be a little unfair to Mr. Trolley, so Mr. Trolley, you are our "go to" guy and "TRACKLESS KING" from here on. Congratulations ! You may pick up your double poles at your convenience !

[BigUglyCat]

... I believe that the Los Angeles area in the Hollywood Hills was the first American installation.

I'm thinking of Pawtucket, RI, in 1931. Did LA get there first?

[3rdrail]

... I believe that the Los Angeles area in the Hollywood Hills was the first American installation.

I'm thinking of Pawtucket, RI, in 1931. Did LA get there first?

Did you mean Providence, R I Buc ? I don't think that Pawtucket ever had them but I know that Providence did, starting in 1931 too. In fact, in Boston we bought some used ones from Providence that were painted up and ran up here.

Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be a plethora of information around covering this topic, however I believe that I have found the answer. Relying on my "Trolleybus Data Book" put out by the North America Trolleybus Association, it actually shows Boston as the first installation. They set up just outside the power station on Harrison Ave. and had a small loop of overhead to whirl around under. They called themselves the American Trackless Trolley Company and built four tracklesses from 1887 to 1909. They were demonstrators looking for a buyer. Nobody bought any. The "Data Book" lists Los Angeles in 1910 as being the first to actually run them in revenue service. I have a feeling that sometime around the 1887 period that there might have been a few entrepreneurs who were hoping to jump onto the trackless ban wagon and may have put together demos.

[3rdrail]

... I believe that the Los Angeles area in the Hollywood Hills was the first American installation.

I'm thinking of Pawtucket, RI, in 1931. Did LA get there first?

I did a little sleuthing and found that you were correct in that there were trackless trolleys running through Pawtucket. In my "Trolleybus Data Book", I was able to find a small notation under Pawtucket to "see Providence, RI". This led me to believe that it might have been Providence's system, so when I went to my BSRA publication "The Trackless Trolleys of Rhode Island", sure enough, there was a nice map showing a 1949 pictorial of TT routes in and out of Providence. There were four separate terminals in Pawtucket off Weeden St, Benefit St., Central Ave.,and Brook St., with a dual entrance/exit into Pawtucket from Providence via Main St. or Pawtucket Ave. FWIW, lines also went to Lincoln (off Dexter St.), Central Falls (John St.), Cumberland (Broad St.), North Providence (Woonasquatucket Ave. and Charles St.), and Cranston (Dyer Ave., Elwin St., Pontiac Ave., and Narraganset Blvd.) Looks like an interesting system with good mileage and frequent spurs. Providence ran TT's under United Electric Railways (1931-52) and United Transit Co.(1952-55).

A reader has requested that a new Quiz thread be started as this one is "long". How do you guys feel about that - yay or nay ?

[BigUglyCat]

Thanks for checking, Paul.

A reader has requested that a new Quiz thread be started as this one is "long". How do you guys feel about that - yay or nay ?

I don't see the point in starting another thread. This one is fine as it is.

[joshg1]

I read a book about sprawl in Southern California a few years ago and in the photo section was a short, open sided bus identical to a gasoline bus except for the trolley poles and we could see the twin wires. The caption said it was the first trolleybus line, 1910, built by a Hollywood property developer. I'm not positive, but *think* it was replaced by a LA city trolley line.

Keep this thread going. I find it easy enough to scroll back a few pages to find the question. I think the advantage to smaller threads is that they are easier to search.

[Leo Sullivan]

Paul, Keep it all in one. it is a great reference.
LS

[dieciduej]

Keep it going 3rdrail, we have to catch up to the CharlieCard / Ticket discussion thread!

Joe

[Teamdriver]

My Rail, keep it as is, alot of tidbits on this thing, it could get lost if you have a new page.

[MBTA1016]

Keep this thread going. It's full of great information we can locate without to much difficulty.

[WatertownCarBarn]

Keep it going! Love the history.

[3rdrail]

OK, thanks guys. That was my feeling also. As it's unanimous, I'm not going to change it. sery2831 had suggested it moved due to the length of the thread, but I agree with all of you that the length also gives it a convenient place to look stuff up. sery2831 take note.

[MBTA1016]

3rd rail if sery argues u can always put the jewelry on him. (sorry sery)