Edmonton Radial Railway Society

Edmonton Radial Railway Society

Edmonton Radial Railway Streetcar #42 in Fort Edmonton Park
Established	1980
Location	Strathcona Streetcar Barn & Museum 53°31′12″N 113°29′45″W / 53.52000°N 113.49583°W and Fort Edmonton Park Streetcar Barn53°30′7″N 113°34′30″W / 53.50194°N 113.57500°WCoordinates: 53°30′7″N 113°34′30″W / 53.50194°N 113.57500°W, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Type	Streetcar preservation society
President	Chris Ashdown
Website	www.edmonton-radial-railway.ab.ca

High Level Bridge Streetcar
Legend
former CN Rail former CN Rail yard km former Edmonton CPR Station 0.0 Jasper Plaza Terminal 0.5 Grandin stop 0.6 97 Avenue 1.1 North Saskatchewan River 1.6 Garneau stop 1.9 109 Street & Saskatchewan Drive 2.2 107 Street stop 2.6 1891 Railway Station Streetcar Barn & Museum 3.0 Strathcona Terminal former Strathcona CPR Station CP Rail yard Calgary and Edmonton Railway

The Edmonton Radial Railway Society (ERRS) operates historic streetcars in Fort Edmonton Park and across the High Level Bridge.

History

The Edmonton Radial Railway, later known as Edmonton Transit, operated electric streetcars Edmonton from 1908 to 1951. After the abandonment of streetcar service, only Streetcar #1 was retained. In 1964 it was partially restored and later was part of the 1967 Centennial Parade. During Thanksgiving weekend 1979, Streetcar #1 gave trips across the High Level bridge to celebrate Edmonton's 75th anniversary. Following this successful operation, the Edmonton Radial Railway Society was founded in 1980.

Fort Edmonton Park streetcar
Legend
Terminusnear pond 1905 Streetstop #1 1905 Streetstop #2 1920 Streetstop #1 1920 Streetstop #2 Steam train route Terminusnear entrance/exit Streetcar barn

During the development of Fort Edmonton Park an agreement was reached to build streetcar tracks there. In 1981 the streetcar began running in the park. By 1984 the members of the ERRS had established regular service in the park.^[1]

Edmonton Radial Railway Streetcar #1, which started service in 1908 was the first to be restored by Edmonton Radial Railway Society volunteers. Later, Edmonton streetcars #42 and #33 were also restored.^[1] During the 100th anniversary of public transportation in Edmonton ceremonies in 2008, Edmonton Streetcar #1 was the centre piece of Churchill Square.

High Level Bridge Streetcar

Nankai Electric Railway (Osaka, Japan) tram 247 on High Level Bridge line

The High Level Bridge Streetcar is a historic streetcar ride over the High Level Bridge in Edmonton, Alberta. It travels from the Strathcona Streetcar Barn & Museum, just north of the Strathcona Farmers Market along Gateway Boulevard to Jasper Plaza (south of Jasper Avenue, between 109 Street and 110 Street) in downtown, with three intermediate stops. It operates between the Victoria Day weekend in May, and Thanksgiving weekend in October.^[2] It is operated by the Edmonton Radial Railway Society.

Starting from the Strathcona Streetcar Barn & Museum it travels on the former CP Rail line in a north west direction. It first passes the Calgary & Edmonton Railway Station Museum at present-day 105 Street; this is a replica of the station that was the northern anchor of the Calgary and Edmonton Railway from 1891 to 1908. After a level crossing stop at 107 Street, the streetcar goes under the Saskatchewan Drive, 109 Street, and Walterdale Hill intersection. While turning north, the middle stop is in the neighbourhood of Garneau at 90 Avenue, before getting on the High Level Bridge. After travelling high over the surface of the North Saskatchewan River, it continues over River Valley Road, and 97 Avenue, entering the Ribbon of Steel multi-use corridor. The Ribbon of Steel is a corridor designated by Alberta Infrastructure and the City of Edmonton for the preservation of streetcar rail in Edmonton, and to provide a running/cycling path between 109 Street and 110 Street, from 97 Avenue to Jasper Avenue. The first stop on the Ribbon of Steel is the Grandin stop, with walking access to the Grandin LRT station, and the Legislature grounds. The northern terminus of the High Level Bridge Streetcar ride is at Jasper Plaza, just south of Jasper Avenue. The streetcar system that existed in Edmonton until 1951 ran though the downtown core, including down Jasper Avenue. The former rail line continued north, where 110 Street is now, to the Old CN Rail yard (north of 104 Avenue).

In the near future, the Edmonton Radial Railway Society hopes to extend the line south towards Whyte Avenue for a new terminus.^[3] To do this, the rail crossing on Gateway Boulevard will have to be reconstructed; it was removed to separate the streetcar line from the active CP lines. During summer festivals, such as the Fringe, service is extended to accommodate the increase in crowds.

Collection

The collection is made up of heritage streetcars that have been fully restored or are in various stages of restoration.^[4]

Date	Builder	Type	Operator	Number	Withdrawn	Status
1907	OCC	combination sweeper / overhead line car	Saskatoon Municipal Railway	200	1951	being restored
1908	OCC	streetcar	Edmonton Radial Railway	1	1951	Fort Edmonton Park line
1912	StL	streetcar	Edmonton Radial Railway	33	1951	High Level Bridge line
1912	StL	streetcar	Edmonton Radial Railway	42	1951	Fort Edmonton Park line
1914	Preston	streetcar	Toronto Suburban Railway	24, (later CNR 15702)	1960s	Fort Edmonton Park line
1921	U/S	tram	Nankai Electric Railway (Osaka, Japan)	247	1990	High Level Bridge line (currently under maintenance)
ca. 1920s	CC&F	streetcar	Regina Municipal Railway	42	1950	being restored
1930	OCC	streetcar	Edmonton Radial Railway	80	1951	Fort Edmonton Park line
1947	PTC	W6 Class tram	Melbourne and Metropolitan Tramways Board	930	1997	High Level Bridge line
1951	CC&F	PCC streetcar	Toronto Transit Commission	4612	1995	Fort Edmonton Park line
1970	Düwag	tram	ÜSTRA (Hannover, Germany)	601	1975	High Level Bridge line
1895	unknown	streetcar	Saskatoon Municipal Railway	35	1951	awaiting restoration
1913	NCMC	Streetcar	Brandon municipal railway	6	1932	awaiting restoration
1913	OCC	streetcar	Calgary Municipal Railway	60	1952	awaiting restoration
1911	OCC	streetcar	Edmonton Radial Railway (ERR)	13	1948	Awaiting restoration
1911	Preston	streetcar	ERR	31	1948	awaiting restoration
1913	Preston	streetcar	ERR	53	1951	awaiting restoration
1913	Preston	streetcar	ERR	65	1951	awaiting restoration
1913	Preston	streetcar	ERR	73	1951	awaiting restoration
1912	Preston	streetcar	Regina municipal railway	8	1947	awaiting restoration
1929	OCC	streetcar	Saskatoon Municipal Railway	62	1951	awaiting restoration
1928	OCC	streetcar	Saskatoon Municipal Railway	54	1951	awaiting restoration
1918	CCC	streetcar	Saskatoon Municipal Railway	202	1951	awaiting restoration
1948	StL	PCC streetcar	Toronto Transit Commission	4349	1982	awaiting re-gauging
1947	StL	PCC streetcar	Toronto Transit Commission	4367	1989	awaiting re-gauging

Builders
CC&F	Canadian Car & Foundry Co.
Düwag	Düwag
OCC	Ottawa Car Company
Preston	Preston Car Company
PTC	Public Transport Corporation
StL	St. Louis Car Company
U/S	Umebachi/Sharyo
NCMC	Nile car and Manufacturing company
CCC	Cincinnati car company

References

1. "History". ERRS. Retrieved 2010-03-03.
2. "High Level Bridge Streetcar Service". The City of Edmonton. Retrieved 2011-07-25.
3. "High Level Bridge Streetcar". ERRS. Retrieved 2010-03-03.
4. "Streetcar Collection". ERRS. Retrieved 2010-03-03.

External links

• Edmonton Radial Railway Society