[PRCo] Re: Fw: A streetcar named Oscar will make tracks to museum

[Edward H. Lybarger]

It's a done deal...I have the title (bill of sale) on hand to go into the
safe deposit box.  The car will arrive at PTM June 3 if all goes on
schedule.  It is expected that the car will enter sevice next spring after
the trucks are regauged.

-----Original Message-----
From: pittsburgh-railways-bounce at lists.dementia.org
[mailto:pittsburgh-railways-bounce at lists.dementia.org]On Behalf Of John
Swindler
Sent: Wednesday, May 24, 2006 8:27 PM
To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
Subject: [PRCo] Re: Fw: A streetcar named Oscar will make tracks to
museum



Maybe there was no reason to --  'advertise' --  until this was a done deal.

john


>From: "Mark McGuire" <macmarka at netzero.net>
>Reply-To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
>To: Pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
>Subject: [PRCo] Fw: A streetcar named Oscar will make tracks to museum
>Date: Wed, 24 May 2006 23:23:18 GMT
>
>   Jerry sent this to me. Heard anything about this Ed?
>
>---------- Forwarded Message ----------
>This story was sent to you by: Jerry Matsick
>
>--------------------
>A streetcar named Oscar will make tracks to museum
>--------------------
>
>Mark Schlueb
>Sentinel Staff Writer
>
>May 24, 2006
>
>The streetcar no one desired is leaving town.
>
>After years languishing in a warehouse, Orlando's first and only electric
>trolley -- dubbed Oscar for "Orlando Streetcar" -- has found a buyer.
>
>The sale to a Pennsylvania museum closes a chapter of Orlando history
>plenty of folks at City Hall would like to forget. Many taxpayers
>considered the streetcar a prime example of government waste -- Orlando's
>own version of the $600 toilet seat.
>
>It's not a perfect comparison, though. Oscar got less use.
>
>The story started in 1990, when former Mayor Bill Frederick talked the City
>Council into buying it from a Sarasota toy store.
>
>Frederick's vision of a bustling streetcar system in the City Beautiful was
>so enticing the City Council overlooked a few small details: there were no
>rails for the streetcar to ride on; an open-air streetcar probably wasn't
>the best choice for commuters in a state prone to oppressive heat and
>afternoon thunderstorms; and it was the 1990s, not the 1890s.
>
>The city bought the trolley for $125,000, then spent $80,000 to restore it
>and $2.5 million on a plan for a streetcar system. But when federal
>transportation dollars failed to materialize, Oscar turned out to be the
>little engine that couldn't.
>
>Oscar has been mothballed ever since, costing Orlando taxpayers more than
>$40,000 in storage costs over the years.
>
>"There aren't crowds of potential trolley buyers out there," said Frank
>Billingsley, head of the city's Downtown Development Board.
>
>But there is at least one: the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum, which is paying
>$187,800 to add Oscar to its collection of 46 other streetcars. At the
>museum about 30 minutes south of Pittsburgh, Oscar will find something he
>never had in Orlando -- passengers. He'll carry visitors around the
>museum's two-mile rail line.
>
>Built about 1907, the trolley spent most of its working life on the streets
>of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In 1966, it was sold to another museum in
>Pennsylvania. The museum closed a few years later after suffering damage
>from Hurricane Agnes. From there, the streetcar made its way to Florida.
>
>After its journey back to Pennsylvania, who knows what the future holds?
>Someday maybe Oscar will end up back in Orlando.
>
>After all, museum director Scott Becker points out, streetcars are
>experiencing something of a resurgence.
>
>"A lot of places call them light-rail systems," he said.
>
>Mark Schlueb can be reached at mschlueb at orlandosentinel.com or
>407-420-5417.
>
>
>
>
>
>Copyright (c) 2006, Orlando Sentinel | Get home delivery - up to 50% off
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