San Francisco's cable cars
Cable Car No. 13 on Powell Street
|
|||
| Overview | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner | San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency | ||
| Area served | Chinatown, Financial District, Fisherman's Wharf, Nob Hill, Russian Hill, Union Square | ||
| Locale | San Francisco | ||
| Transit type | Cable car | ||
| Number of lines | 3 | ||
| Line number | 59 Powell-Mason 60 Powell-Hyde 61 California St. |
||
| Number of stations | 62 | ||
| Daily ridership | 20,100 (2014) | ||
| Annual ridership | 7,409,400 (2014) | ||
| Headquarters | San Francisco Cable Car Museum | ||
| Website | sfmta.com | ||
| Operation | |||
| Began operation |
California St. line: 1878 Powell-Mason line: 1888 Powell-Hyde line: 1957 |
||
| Operator(s) | San Francisco Municipal Railway | ||
| Reporting marks | MUNI | ||
| Character | Street running with some reserved right-of-ways | ||
| Number of vehicles |
California St. line: 12 double-ended cars Powell-Mason/Hyde lines: 28 single-ended cars |
||
| Train length | 1 grip car | ||
| Technical | |||
| System length |
California St. line: 1.4 mi (2.3 km) Powell-Mason line: 1.6 mi (2.6 km) Powell-Hyde line: 2.1 mi (3.4 km) |
||
| No. of tracks | 2 | ||
| Track gauge | 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) | ||
| Top speed | 9.5 mph (15.3 km/h) | ||
|
|||
|
San Francisco Cable Cars
|
|
Powell-Hyde line cable car crossing Lombard Street on Russian Hill
|
|
| Location | 1390 Washington Street, San Francisco |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 37°47′44″N 122°24′27″W / 37.79556°N 122.40750°WCoordinates: 37°47′44″N 122°24′27″W / 37.79556°N 122.40750°W |
| Built | 1873 |
| Architect | Andrew Smith Hallidie |
| NRHP reference # | 66000233 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | October 15, 1966 |
| Designated NHL | January 29, 1964 |
The San Francisco cable car system is the world's last manually operated cable car system. An icon of San Francisco, the cable car system forms part of the intermodal urban transport network operated by the San Francisco Municipal Railway. Of the 23 lines established between 1873 and 1890, only three remain (one of which combines parts of two earlier lines): two routes from downtown near Union Square to Fisherman's Wharf, and a third route along California Street. While the cable cars are used to a certain extent by commuters, the vast majority of their 7 million annual passengers are tourists. They are among the most significant tourist attractions in the city, along with Alcatraz Island, the Golden Gate Bridge, and Fisherman's Wharf. The cable cars are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The cable cars are not to be confused with San Francisco's heritage streetcars, which operate on Market Street and the Embarcadero.
In 1869, Andrew Smith Hallidie had the idea for a cable car system in San Francisco, reportedly after witnessing an accident where a streetcar drawn by horses over wet cobblestones slid backwards, killing the horses.
...
Wikipedia