The (Not So) Old Streetcar in Kenosha

[@AverytheCubanAmerican]

The red lighthouse you saw at 4:05 is the Kenosha North Pier Light, built in 1906 as a replacement for the old Kenosha/Southport Light (which still stands today) and it is a sister of the Milwaukee Pierhead Light! It is currently an art studio as it was purchased by late local artist John Burhani and is currently owned by his wife in honor of him. In his honor, she made it a goal to make the lighthouse a work of art, and back in summer 2016, they got several artists to do murals around the bottom temporarily. While it isn't a very old line, I just love the fact it honors the systems of other cities with the different liveries and how well maintained they are! Although the line was developed as a tourist attraction, there WERE plans for a north-south crosstown line expansion which was approved back in 2014, however it was cancelled a year later due to cost overruns. It's absolutely wild to see transit advertisement for Toronto and Newark in the middle of Kenosha.The Spanish Newark advertisement at 5:20 says "Everyone likes new vehicles". The advertisement is from around 2001 since that was the last year PCCs were in use in Newark and replaced with the Kinki-Sharyo LRVs shown in the advertisement. Newark's definitely not a place you'd think would have its own subway, but I'm glad it does, even if it's not rapid transit.

[@TwitchyMovies]

I remember when I went to Carthage College in Kenosha the Mayor was campaigning to run a streetcar line extension to campus (since it was a bit far to walk to downtown) and I'm so bummed that never happened.

[@topliner9534]

I'm a charter member of the San Francisco Market Street Railway (since the '80s), the organization dedicated to promoting the acquisition and use of PCCs (and other trolleys) in San Francisco. We have 30 PCC's in different cities' liveries, plus 15 other kinds of trolleys from around the world. Definitely come here and ride the F line on Market Street. This weekend we are having our annual transit festival, which this year includes the 150th anniversary of the cable cars as well as vintage buses and trolley coaches. Also don't miss riding the open top boat tram from Blackpool, England.

[@Thom-TRA]

In about a month, I will publish my video about riding the F Market/Wharves. I can't wait to come back and ride it all over again. That's so cool you're a member! Maybe we can meet someday and I can learn more about what your organization does.

[@johnchastain5657]

We loved riding the SF street railway! There are quite a variety of cars.

[@SupremeLeaderKimJong-un]

Kenosha history: The Potawatomi originally named the area Kenozia or "place of the pike", while the Menominee referred to the place as Kenūsīw, meaning "Northern Pike". Both of these referred to the annual spawning of trout, in which thousands of fish entered the rivers from Lake Michigan to provide food for the tribes for the coming months. It was settled as Pike Creek in 1835, then renamed to Southport in 1837 to reference being the southernmost port of Wisconsin, and finally to Kenosha in 1850. Between 1902 and 1988, Kenosha produced millions of automobiles and trucks including makes and models such as Jeffery, Rambler, Nash, Hudson, LaFayette, and American Motors Corporation (AMC). In partnership with French automaker Renault, AMC manufactured several models in Kenosha in the early 1980s, including the Alliance. This ties to the history of this streetcar line, as the HarborPark redevelopment was formerly the lakeside plant of Chrysler/American Motors.

[@tommarino1056]

I love your videos. I enjoy seeing and riding anything on rails.

[@Thom-TRA]

I’m the same way!!

[@richardludwig3673]

There’s another hidden gem near(ish) by… The East Troy Railroad. You can ride the interurban streetcars on weekends.

[@Thom-TRA]

I’ve heard of that!

[@TooManyHobbiesJeremy]

Very cool!

[@daveinthewildOG]

Ever been to the Illinois railway Museum? It's over in Union Illinois. They have a lot of rolling stock including I think a same street car. They run their electrified stuff all the time. If you come on the weekends you get to see diesel and some steam possibly. In the middle of September I'm planning to go out there myself. They have a day where they run most of the rolling stock. They bring out the unusual stuff on that given day.

[@dasbooterror]

Always lovely to see the Pittsburgh Railway Co cream and red livery!

[@Thelifeofmre]

I am so exited soon you will be in my hometown, Wilmette!

[@Thom-TRA]

I actually already have a video from Wilmette!

[@vmdpt]

2:10 Most European PCC were not exported there from the USA, but were built locally under license. Belgian PCCs were produced by local factories. But PCC had a much greater impact on European tram systems, becoming the basis for the Czech Tatra T3 trams - one of the most popular models in the world.

[@barrykrebs8180]

PCC Cars were also in my former hometown of Toronto-TTC or Toronto Transit Commission. And they still use street cars in Toronto.

[@Intotheairwaves124]

These actually are from Toronto! The TTC logo is on the outside of it.

[@t1m3f0x]

It's funny that one of them is in SEPTA livery, because SEPTA went with PTC livery for their PCC II's.

[@AntonWongVideo]

5:05 that makes sense why it looked kinda familiar. we sometimes see these around Toronto during special heritage days

[@chrisdobrowolski2783]

May the force be with you!!!

[@Knulppage]

Actually I amend my first comment. That big empty lot I realize was once a creek that ran through town. They put it underground long ago but they might have used landfill to cover it. I don't think it's ready to be built upon yet. There are a couple lots that are due to this.

[@johnchastain5657]

Back in the last millennium, DC Transit ran a similar model on the extensive, much-used DC streetcar system. The cars were made shorter (only 4 windows behind the back door) so they could turn DC's many tight and weirdly-angled corners.

[@Thom-TRA]

Next year we will lose the numbering system that was based on the streetcars in DC as part of the bus revamp

[@johnchastain5657]

​@@Thom-TRA Oh well, the streetcars ended in 1962, so there's no use getting teary-eyed!

[@IamTheHolypumpkin]

I once was let into the Cable Car Barn in San Francisco. I walked by the entrence peaked in, took some photos of the cable cars and and employee just let me in and showed me around. He must've broken a lot of rules for this. I don't know why he did it but it was cool. Even have a photo of me in front of a car inside the barn.

[@Thom-TRA]

I’m pretty sure as long as you’re guided by someone it’s okay

[@harrydonahue1657]

Great job. SEPTA in Phila will be reopening the Rt. 15 Girard Ave line this Fall with 6 rebuilt PCC II cars.

[@Thom-TRA]

Looking forward to that!

[@Jasmine-ur1sl]

Hi. Your channel just popped up in my feed, and I am so glad I found it. I live on the IL/WI border, and never knew about the Kenosha street cars! I love trains, large busses and street cars. Several years ago, I traveled on Amtrak several times including my best trip several years ago from Union Station in Chicago to San Francisco (on the California Zephyr) and then San Fran to LA and LA to Chicago. Loved every minute of it in a private bedroom coach. Also - having lived both in Chicago and its nearby suburbs and outlying communities; Metra and the CTA are always my go to means of transport to avoid the congested expressways - and this was before the renovation on the current of the Kennedy Expressway. I prefer to let someone else - a trained professional - do the driving while I enjoy the scenery. I am going to have to watch all your episodes and see where else you have been on my favorite modes of transportation: Thanks so much! You have a new subscriber.

[@Thom-TRA]

I’m so glad you found my channel too! I agree, taking the train is a much more relaxing way to get where you need to go.

[@londonwhaley8690]

I enjoyed that video👍👍

[@ck4426]

This was so awesome!!! Really enjoying watching the different stages of this trip. That’s so cool you two were able to ride unlimited!!!

[@ArtisticHH57]

This is awesome that Kenosha is getting attention. Haley Klinkhammer, one of my favorite musicians, is from Kenosha!

[@Thom-TRA]

Cool, I’ll have to give it a listen

[@MsJamiewoods]

Milwaukee never used PCC cars. The Milwaukee Electric Railway and Light Co. operated streetcars until the last line was converted to GM diesel city buses in 1958. TMER&L continued using early 1920s streetcars. When the Supreme Court ordered electrical utilities to separate transit operations, TMER&L became The Transport Company. TMER&L also operated trackless trolleys, and the Transport Co. ended this service in 1965. On July 1, 1975. Milwaukee County took over the bus system and named it Milwaukee County Transit System. The Milwaukee Streetcar, called the Hop, is operated by the City of Milwaukee. The modern streetcars operate partially by traditional overhead wire and pantograph and parts of their two routes with batteries. Currently, no fare is charged for riding the Hop.

[@Thom-TRA]

Cool

[@JJRol.]

Missed out on a lot of videos! This one was nice, PCC's are always great to see. If only Kenosha kept the system it used to have.

[@Robbi496]

Well done!

[@Thom-TRA]

Thank you!

[@piemadd]

I know their resources are very limited, but I wish the city pushed for more development around the streetcar line. I'm planning on visiting soon and I'd definitely make it a regular destination if there were more shops and restaurants in the direct vicinity.

[@patrickuphill7133]

The trolley is just one of the nice things about downtown Kenosha. There is always a lot to do in downtown Kenosha, especially in the summer, especially on the weekends. There is plenty of good food and drink from many of the cafés and restaurants. Additionally, you can walk along the beautiful harbor or visit Simmons Island Beach, which is very popular with locals and visitors. If the weather is bad or ypu need a break from the heat, check out one of the four museums in the downtown area.

[@IndigoFei]

There's a natural history museum in downtown Kenosha with a dinosaur fossil outside, and I bought a model of one of their streetcars in the Chicago livery at the gift shop with Kenosha destination boards. It's a great souvenir for the city.

[@Thom-TRA]

That is a great souvenir!

[@jrmcdowe]

That was fun.

[@Thom-TRA]

It certainly was

[@edwardlouisbernays2469]

I use to live in Kenosha and Rode tham trains down to Chicago to Play Blues there.

[@ArtStoneUS]

The redevelopment area in Kenosha is where American Motors used to have their main Assembly plant. After Chrysler bought out American motors, they tore this factory down

[@Thom-TRA]

Interesting!

[@ArtStoneUS]

@@Thom-TRA The man behind the project was named Paul Weyrich. For a number of years, he published The New Electric Railway Journal, which advocated for federally funded electric powered transit systems.

[@Knulppage]

@@ArtStoneUS My friend grew up debating Peul Weyrich (went to school with him). He was a bad man. He is from Racine the city between Kenosha and Milwaukee. He is the father of the right-wing movement. He didn't want everybody to be able to vote and he founded this "moral majority" BS.

[@JoeyLovesTrains]

Love how there are signs that say “this operator is payed by the government of Ontario”

[@Thom-TRA]

Like, are you sure about that? Lol

[@OntarioTrafficMan]

Those are a proper piece of history. The Mike Harris (Conservative) government of Ontario eliminated transit operating subsidies in 1998, deepening a dark age for transit where companies struggled (and often failed) to do basic maintenance and operate dependable service. To this day there provincial operating subsidies have not been restored. This is the dark side of the reason GO Transit and the TTC had the highest and second-highest cost recovery rates of transit systems in North America throughout the 2000s and 2010s.

[@CameronLandels]

Thanks for the video Thom! Those PCC streetcars look interesting, full of charm and character. I liked the old adverts on the inside! Kenosha looks a nice place to explore. I'm looking forward to your next video with Metra 🙂

[@Thom-TRA]

I love it when they keep old ads and maps on board.

[@EmilePoelman]

Hi Thom, the trams in The Hague look similar, but aren't they narrower than the ones in Kenosha? I love their shape! Thanks for the ride!

[@Thom-TRA]

PCCs can be built to different standards but they are all the same design!

[@gentleman-shutterbug]

Dude, they have a great Civil War museum near the waterfront, and it has a nice mock up of an 1860s train car with mannequins in historical dress as passengers! Some of the mannequins are outfitted with speakers and voices, which is uber creepy. Also, the last time I was in Kenosha, the trolley took you past a dinosaur museum, which I never got to see because my wife enjoyed the Civil War museum that much. Thanks so much for the videos.

[@OntarioTrafficMan]

I'm surprised how much TTC stuff is still in those streetcars. They still have the TTC fareboxes, seats, stickers and ads from the 1990's. I would have thought they'd be replaced by now, perhaps in the style of the 1950's.

[@Thom-TRA]

Sounds like you might need to take a trip to Kenosha someday :)

[@OntarioTrafficMan]

@@Thom-TRA That's exactly what I was thinking!

[@Wawa111_Mainline]

I rode on them of the 4th of July they were doing free rides and the street cars were way past capacity

[@stanross]

Great Video ! In the Netherlands this type PCC were used on line number 16 even the lamps were the same .

[@OntarioTrafficMan]

I rode a PCC tram in Vienna last year, it wasn't on a heritage line or anything, just running regular service on a busy route

[@jacobdockter3436]

Been in Kenosha all my life and i never knew we had different colors of street cars

[@Thom-TRA]

You should try to see how long it takes you to see all of them

[@L4teSh1ft]

They originally wanted to extend the line and triple the length, but that plan was cut by, I think, the city council and mayor. We just rode the Cincinati(#4616) today during the Kenosha car show with the SF(#4617) bunching up right behind us :-) Awesome fun. They even had the summer trolley bus running its route.

[@Cydonius1701]

Lovely to see vintage trams running "in the wild", not just inside a museum. Quick question though, is it universal to say "car barn" in the US? It's "tram depot" (don't pronounce the final t, because French) in the UK, I'm just curious 😊. Cheers, Chris

[@Thom-TRA]

Car barn is the American term for a tram depot yes

[@johnalder6028]

Very good. Our cities never should have abandoned street cars.

[@Thom-TRA]

Agreed

[@michaelb9629]

I love this streetcar and how there’s one by a Metra stop. There’s been other times I traveled to Kenosha and would ride it at least once when I was visiting for the day.

[@JoeyLovesTrains]

I’ve got a video of the inside of the streetcar barn and what it’s like shutting off the system at the end of the day. There’s a great ice cream shop near the line as well

[@tazareal]

You missed Franks 1926 diner, the original part of which looks like it's inside a trolley car. Also, you're supposed to pick up a kringle when you're in Kenosha, they're really tasty!

[@Thom-TRA]

Ooh, what’s a Kringle?

[@Knulppage]

@@Thom-TRA A kringle is really Racine but Kenosha makes them too. It's a flaky layered pastry with a filling.

[@anthonywarrener1881]

Thank you both for this wonderful video ! The PCC cars are truly superb, and the City of Kenosha have restored the one you rode on to a very high standard. Looking forward to your ride back to Chicago !

[@samlbrown6665]

Is Kenosha using the original tracks ? How extensive was the system back in 1903 ?

[@Thom-TRA]

No, like I said in the video, these tracks were built in the late 1990s and opened in the year 2000.

[@jacobdockter3436]

Fun fact the Kenosha City buses are recyled buses from Chicago

[@Thom-TRA]

I didn’t know that! Thanks for sharing

[@chicagolandrailroader]

Looks like you had a good time. When I went, the operator offered to give us a tour of the shops when his shift was done! It was pretty cool. Thanks!

[@Thom-TRA]

I wish we could have done that!

[@alfredindy8058]

The trolleys are nice. You can see that the trolley's draw the tourists in what seems to be a dead town. It reminds me of Saginaw, Michigan, which has an empty downtown.

[@kevanhubbard9673]

A Lisbon tram would be nice in Kenosha! Speaking of out of place tram cars there use to be a San Francisco MUNI tram in Derby , England and i believe that it was used by British Rail for electrical testing and wasn't available for the public to ride.

[@Thom-TRA]

I love the Lisbon trams!

[@SeanLamb-I-Am]

The last time I visited Kenosha to see the streetcars, they were not operating because one had derailed at the switch to the carbarn and hit the pole there. They were repairing the damaged car and pole that week. We got a little lucky though, when we walked up to the carbarn, we were invited in to see the cars and were allowed to photograph anything and almost anywhere within the carbarn for about an hour or so. Now if only this system could be extended to the wider Milwaukee-Chicago corridor to truly serve the area....

[@Thom-TRA]

Bring back the North Shore Line!

[@yaroslavyatsyk6475]

Very good video. In Eastern Europe, there are PCC-based streetcars called Tatra T3

[@Thom-TRA]

I’ve been on the Tatra in Prague!

[@tolykozin]

Awesome, wish they would extend these lines to deeper parts of the city! Thanks for sharing

[@Thom-TRA]

I wish so too! Kenosha is small enough a streetcar could be super meaningful

[@ninthwardchicago]

If only you had caught up to the Green Hornet PCC car which represents Chicago

[@djpetesake]

Streetcar playing Earth, Wind and Fire = instant 10/10

[@jenniferjohnson708]

Glad you enjoyed the streetcars.Usually in early September there is a Streetcar Day, the barn is open and you get to see the shop and all the cars are on display.Kenosha also has 5 excellent museums, 3 of which are on the streetcar route, the others are just across the harbor.

[@amfm889]

The old Kenosha North Shore Line station is preserved as an early learning center on the west side of town. If you've seen the Dempster St. Station in Skokie, it looks similar.

[@trainglen22]

Nice to see the old TTC rebuilt PCC cars running.

[@ianweniger6620]

Lindsay is such a trooper! I wonder if she has a channel called THOMS R AWESOME...❤

[@eugeneking1462]

I have visited Kenosha at least twice to ride the cars. Once when Streetcar Brad was the chief mechanic he let take some pics of the cars in the barn.

[@Knulppage]

My brother is the head mechanic now, but I don't talk to him because I don't like him hahaha

[@themotuman2663]

P.S. You have to come when Franks Diner is open! It's one of the oldest train turned diner in America! Something crazy like that. Lol. Amazing French toast.

[@DanTheCaptain]

It’s amazing that this small city has preserved such amazing heritage units. I rode the ones in San Francisco and they’re an amazing experience! I’d love to go over to Kenosha to ride these around some day!

[@Thom-TRA]

These were shipped from different places and it’s good to see that they are being taken care of in their new home

[@markmanz8897]

@@Thom-TRA I believe they are all former Toronto streetcars.

[@Thom-TRA]

@@markmanz8897 no, one of them was a former SEPTA trolley. The two newer cars were donated by a private heritage railroad, not the TTC.

[@ambroiseimbert]

Brussels still has many PCC trams

[@cscotz]

bloop?

[@bigaspidistra]

How many people were on it apart from yourselves? Seemed very empty.

[@Thom-TRA]

It was just us but it was the middle of the day on a weekday

[@markmanz8897]

You should have gone to “Franks Diner” as it is as old diner and they have really good food.

[@Thom-TRA]

Next time!

[@jasonreimer6093]

Rode those streetcars back in 2008.

[@TimLindsay]

Steetcar is an old Toronto Transit Commision (TTC) PCC a lot of the Toronto ones were sent to Egypt... Really enjoy your videos my friend Tim in Toronto

[@Thom-TRA]

A great place to see some Toronto history

[@FameyFamous]

Have you ridden the Qline Detroit streetcar? It’s too bad our regional transit system is so underdeveloped. I’m sure most Qline and Detroit People Mover users start their journeys by driving in from the suburbs.

[@Thom-TRA]

I have not been on the QLine but I have been on the People Mover.

[@oddityscrash]

This is so cool! Great video. The median ROW reminds me of the ex-Cleveland Interurban Railroad (Now green and blue line) I have to get up there ASAP to see the Cincinnati Street Railwayl Co car!

[@oddityscrash]

Rewatching this in preparation for my impromptu trip to Kenosha this week 😊 I’m so excited!!

[@Knulppage]

Also!! The train barn itself is ALSO built on landfill. There was a creek that ran through town and the train barn is built on top of it. They had to drive huge pylons down to the bedrock to build it. That's why it's so difficult to build on that giant lot. We also have parks along where the creek ran, which was also where landfill was used.

[@jorggastel1312]

Hi Thom, thanks for the nice trip reports from Chicago to Wisconsin and back! Liked it a lot. You showed us, that the operator let you off the tram on the grass when you gave the stop signal. But did you know, that is not so uncommon for us in Germany. More and more public transit companies require their bus drivers to let passengers off at the door of their houses after dark, when the house is along the regular route.

[@nscalestation]

The vintage advertising on the inside above the window also add to the atmosphere. I am just old enough to remember riding the last of Los Angeles's PCC cars and remember seeing advertising like that.

[@Thom-TRA]

The advertising really is the cherry on top!

[@theconceptualist8626]

Mans really dragging out this little day trip, isn’t he?

[@Thom-TRA]

Is there a problem with that?

[@OntarioTrafficMan]

Each video has a clearly distinct topic. Makes sense to me

[@Thom-TRA]

@@OntarioTrafficMan appreciate it

[@RobbinEdgar]

​@@Thom-TRAWay to "drag" out the day in a 10 minute video. I enjoy every second of all your videos.

[@theconceptualist8626]

@@Thom-TRA absolutely not, I love it! More content the better! The fact that each video has its own separate topic is great, and it splits things up so we can appreciate each thing individually. Love to see more of it!

[@jedendwatrzy4189]

These remind me of the New Orleans streetcars, especially the St Charles line. Very cool!

[@flenomusic]

0:40 😃👌

[@ztl2505]

Looking forward to the MUNI video. The whole time I was thinking this felt like a miniature F Market line. PCCs are awesome, I cannot imagine how futuristic these felt when they were new in comparison to the older stuff they replaced.

[@ianreatherford6124]

doin this today

[@Thom-TRA]

Have fun!

[@ianreatherford6124]

@@Thom-TRA thanks man

[@ozgirl45]

This was fun, especially for tram/streetcar fans.

[@Thom-TRA]

Which I certainly consider myself to be

[@eottoe2001]

And no smell of diesel.

[@Thom-TRA]

None except for at the Metra station

[@deaventuraconkikomas4281]

Cool...very retro!

[@stevencipriano3962]

Have you ever been to the Illinois Railway Museum in Union Il?

[@officialmcdeath]

one for every day of the week - neat \m/

[@StLouis-yu9iz]

Great episode as usual! I hope to get up there to ride them someday soon. I think more North American cities should start rebuilding their trolley systems.

[@noide1837]

I grew up in Kenosha. My favorite part was when you said "we found out there really isn't that much to do in Kenosha" because it's exactly why I moved out lol

[@rikkichunn8856]

Hi Thom and Lindsey! I've been watching all your posts I could see, and love them! Partly that's because your main interests in railfanning (passenger, electric, trams, interurbans, and suburban trains) are the same as mine. Partly it's because I love your sense of humor. The rest of this post, I want to give you some background about the Union Pacific suburban lines in Chicago (I grew up along the Northwest line). You may know all or some of this--if so, please only read the parts that are new. These three lines were built by the Chicago and Northwestern Railway (and its predecessors). In those days, the north line was called the Milwaukee Division (because that's where it went, and further up the shore line to Green Bay. The northwest line was called the Wisconsin Division (more for the Wisconsin River that it ran along beyond Madison than for the state, because after all, Milwaukee and Green Bay are very much in Wisconsin too). The west line was called the Galena Division for the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad which built it, as you know. Each division had a color that was used for schedules and tickets on that division. You guessed it, the Milwaukee Division was green, the Wisconsin Division was yellow, and the Galena Division was Kate Shelley Rose. After her heroic save, Kate Shelley became not only the heroine of the North Western, but also achieved her life goal of becoming the first woman railroad station agent in the United States. The railroad owed her at least that much, a lot more than a bouquet of pink roses given to her by the president of the railroad. So I have a question for Lindsey: Do you enjoy railfanning with Thom, or is it boring? From your facial expressions I can't tell! And I'd love to know! Your sincere fan, Rikki

[@Thom-TRA]

She loves coming along with me!

[@fredbeamish5795]

Wish you had showed the Operator. I was one 2009-2011 and wondered if it was someone I knew!

[@BirbarianHomeGuard]

Take a moment of silence for the brave anti-fascists who lost life and limb in Kenosha.

[@guyfaux3978]

Play deadly games, win deadly prizes.