Toronto Transit Streetcars on the Queensway in 1980 | CLRV , PCC and Peter Witt | NRHS Convention

#toronto #ttc #streetcars
Welcome to Transit Rewind. In this edition the films of David Williams take us back to July of 1980 and the NRHS National Railroad Historical Society’s convention in Toronto.
In the video we see a variety of streetcars operated by the TTC Toronto Transit Commission. Including CLRVs , PCCs and Peter Witt. A variety of PCC cars are seen, including some that were purchased second hand from Birmingham, Alabama and Louisville Kentucky.
A rare treat in the video is the multiple unit operation of the CLRV streetcar, which was demonstrated by the TTC for the NRHS convention attendees.
These rare TTC Toronto Transit films are a look into the past and I am truly grateful to David Williams for capturing these amazing moments.
Please consider subscribing to our channel if you enjoy vintage transit films and videos. We have more Toronto TTC streetcar films coming in the future!

[@TakeTimeToTravel]

Love all this old footage!

[@fares-please]

Thanks guys!

[@JohnDoe12515]

Very cool!

[@fares-please]

Thank you!

[@argopunk]

I sure recall riding the revenue PCCs from the 70s to '95. I was 12 going on 13 that summer and it was pretty cool to see those Witts. Of course, all my friends thought I was a geek, which I am. A streetcar geek at least.

[@Trainsbigandsmall]

nice footage , I wish the museum would run their ALRV

[@Hawker5796]

Good times! And when the C/ALRVs were brand new!

[@fares-please]

Absolutely now most of them are memories, sadly.

[@TheDMacxExpress]

Note the C's windows before they were retrofitted..

[@fares-please]

Good eye! For sure!

[@TheTrolleyPole]

At [1:29], the Louisville streetcars were actually 3rd-hand streetcars. As the streetcars were being delivered to Louisville, that city decided to terminate streetcar service and sell the 25 PCCs it had ordered to Cleveland. Later Cleveland would sell all 75 of its PCCs (including the 25 Louisille cars) to Toronto. The TTC added couplers to the 75 ex-Cleveland cars for MU operation and disabled their air-conditioning stored in the roof monitor. At [3:20], the partly Canadian-built streetcar was one of 100 built for the TTC with couplers.

[@fares-please]

Thank you for sharing this bit of information! 😊

[@rolandjong9126]

Wow some of those streetcars are like the ones in San Francisco! Would some of the older PCC ones still be good for tourists if they are compatible with the tracks? Love the 80s soundtrack 🕺

[@TPSUnit5122]

True

[@fares-please]

Absolutely, unfortunately TTC only has two PCC cars left and they are mostly kept inside the Carhouse. Hopefully they’ll bring them out more this summer. Thanks for watching Roland

[@DGExplorers]

That was cool seeing the contrast in design styles from the older to the newer vehicles. Loved seeing the older footage.

[@fares-please]

Thanks guys! These old films are such treasures and happy we are able to restore them for people to enjoy.

[@chrispnw2547]

Amazing.... The streetcars look like a more modern version of many of the SF Street cars. Look at all the lovely General Motors and Ford cars along the road. I think there is an error in the video editing. Brad edited out all the trucks and SUVs .

[@fares-please]

LOL yes, much much less traffic back then. In San Francisco they still use the PCC and Peter Witt model streetcars on their Market street line. Glad you enjoyed this!

[@lvalledor3440]

Appreciate the footage, especailly the multi-unit CLRV. This probably could be the only footage of a multi-unit CLRV on KZbin. TTC could've had a couple of lines with CLRV trainsets both in Scarborough & Etobicoke if it weren't for the government wanting to use the UTDC Mk1s instead. If TTC made Line 3 remain as a streetcar subway, Line 3 would've still remained active after 2022 & we would've had the Etobicoke RT.

[@fares-please]

This is very true. How different things would have looked today. Im happy you enjoyed this vintage footage!

[@goalie1guy]

Either this charter cost a fortune or a lot of favours were used up.

[@fares-please]

It was definitely much cheaper to charter cars back then. Also the National Railway Historical Society was involved and they are a huge organization, this event alone brought in upwards of 800 people from what I understand. They also ran a few steam train excursions as part of this convention.

[@jonathongilbar3716]

🙈 *Promosm*

[@markdingess4692]

I don’t believe either one of you were alive in 1980. 😂

[@fares-please]

Not quite yet 😀