August 4, 2021,
Cable Cars and magical memories are synonymous.
They can elevate your San Francisco experience from standard tourist enjoyment to once in a lifetime theme park fun.
We grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and absolutely loved our Cable Car experience. It made us feel like a tourist, hearing the bells clang and having people on the streets look at us with a smile.
It has such a rich history.
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 seven million annual passengers are tourists, and as a result, the wait to get on can often reach two hours or more.
No problem. It’s worth it. Ride the Cable Cars when you are ready to smell the flowers and have a relaxing day.
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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.
One version of history has it, in 1869, Andrew Smith Hallidie had the idea for a cable car system in San Francisco, reportedly after witnessing an accident in which a streetcar drawn by horses over wet cobblestones slid backwards, killing the horses.
The first successful cable-operated street running train was the Clay Street Hill Railroad, which opened on August 2, 1873. The promoter of the line was Hallidie, and the engineer was William Eppelsheimer. The line involved the use of grip cars, which carried the grip that engaged with the cable, towing trailer cars; the design was the first to use grips. The term "grip" became synonymous with the operator.
The line started regular service on September 1, 1873, and its success led it to become the template for other cable car transit systems. It was a financial success, and Hallidie's patents were enforced on other cable car promoters, making him wealthy.
The cable cars are separate from San Francisco's heritage streetcars, which operate on Market Street and the Embarcadero, as well as from the more modern Muni Metro light rail system.
Let’s visit their home at sfmta.com where they are happy to ring the bell, “No experience is more uniquely San Francisco than a ride on a cable car. Cable cars have come to symbolize our great city (along with another world-renowned transportation icon. Hint: it's a suspension bridge painted an International Orange color.) After all, we're the city that first launched cars pulled along by cables running beneath the street.
Invented here nearly 150 years ago and named a National Historic Landmark in 1964, today's San Francisco cable cars are kept in tip-top shape by our agency.
Please join us to celebrate the Cable Car return with our professional and experienced operators, mechanics and carpenters. Facemask are still required to enjoy your experience on the cable car.”
That’s right, in case you were away, the Cable Cars stopped operating for a time due to the pandemic but they are back.
With a ring-a-ding, ding.
Mayor London Breed and SFMTA Welcome Cable Cars Back to San Francisco
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Monday, August 02, 2021,
The SFMTA will run mock service and will solicit the public’s help and feedback ahead of the official return to revenue service
San Francisco, CA — Mayor London N. Breed and the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) today welcomed back cable car service to San Francisco streets. Following the successful completion of operator training and mechanical inspections, the public is invited onboard to provide feedback on vehicle headways and customer experience during the month of August. Cable car revenue service will resume in September.
“I am so excited to announce that cable car service is starting back up today,” said Mayor Breed. “Our cable cars are part of what makes San Francisco a world-class destination, and their return is just the latest sign that our city is bouncing back. I want to thank everyone at the SFMTA for their work during the pandemic to keep our transit system running and for everything they’ve done to bring back service in the City.”
Last March, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the SFMTA temporarily halted cable car service as part of the City’s emergency response. This decision was made to best protect operators and the public. Muni resources were then shifted to a core network to serve essential workers and accommodate physical distancing on San Francisco’s most utilized lines. The result was the longest cable car shutdown in the system since the full system reconstruction in the 1980s, requiring significant work to reboot the system and bring it back better. Now, as the City shifts its focus to supporting economic recovery, locals, regional visitors, and tourists will see the triumphant homecoming of the cable cars and hear the iconic bells chiming from Union Square to Fisherman’s Wharf—and all of the backdrops in between.
Starting today, SFMTA will ask the public to help the agency roll out a soft launch of the system by riding the lines when cable car conductors are making stops and inviting passengers aboard for the duration of “mock service.” This mock service will be irregular, not following a particular schedule as the SFMTA works out the official rollout of the system. The SFMTA will not be collecting fares for cable car rides during the month of August in exchange for the public’s help riding the system.
“Our cable cars are a symbol of San Francisco and central to the city’s economic recovery,” said Jeffrey Tumlin, SFMTA Director of Transportation. “It’s a treat to work with the public during our mock service as we gear up to officially welcome back cable cars this fall.”
By early September, all three cable cars will resume revenue service: the Powell-Hyde, the Powell-Mason and the California lines. Service is planned to run from 7:00 a.m. until about
10:00 p.m., though cars returning to the cable car barn after 10:00 p.m. will continue to take riders to Chinatown.
Anyone interested in cable car service updates is encouraged to subscribe to text or e-mail updates for more information.
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OPENING PHOTO fciwomenswrestling.com femcompetitor.com, fcielitecompetitor.com fciwomenswrestling2.com Aude-Own-work-wikipedia-photo-credit
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Francisco_cable_car_system
https://www.sfmta.com/getting-around/muni/cable-cars
