Picture This!
What's
new this week in transportation
New life
for an old streetcar
 
Body Shop Mechanic Fred Witham (left) shows some of his handiwork. Waterfront Streetcar No. 482 (right) is
scheduled to be back in service before the end of the
year.
Along with
the Space Needle and the Pike Place Market, Metro's
Waterfront Streetcar has become a Seattle
icon. But the 1927-vintage streetcars first imported from
Australia in 1982 require special care to keep them rolling for the
thousands of passengers who hop aboard at stops in the International
District and Pioneer Square, and along the Seattle waterfront.
Each day, from morning
until midnight, the rolling antiques travel 1.8 miles of track
along Alaskan Way and South Main Street (see schedule). At any given
time, four of five streetcars are in service while
the fifth undergoes a year-long restoration process. Carpenters, sheet metal workers, upholsterers, painters and mechanics in Metro Transit's Component Supply Center in Tukwila all work together to bring new life to these daily workhorses.
The process
begins when the streetcar is lifted on jacks at the
trolley barn near Myrtle Edwards Park and its wheels--or
trucks--are removed. Rubber tires are attached to the
vehicle on specially modified axles before it is hauled
to the Component Supply Center late at night.
During the rehab, the entire vehicle is stripped down to its wood frame. All the exterior sheet metal panels
are replaced by body mechanics Bill Holman and Fred Witham because or four years' worth of metal fatigue. New wood panels, trim and benches are milled and
re-fitted by Carpenter Jim Clark, and the electrical and mechanical components
are rebuilt. Because there are no spare parts available, everything that goes on the streetcar
must be formed from scratch at the Component Supply Center.
"The most difficult aspect
of the rehab is finding the materials, such as brass and quality woods
to make the streetcar look as original as possible," said
Heather Kilborn, vehicle maintenance chief with the Body Rebuild and
Upholstery Group. "We try to find better and stronger products to
rebuild it with. The level of detail that goes into maintaining
the vehicle's historic accuracy is another real challenge."
After the
streetcar is painted and the rehab is complete, the
vehicle is sent back to the trolley barn where new trucks
are attached along with the whistle and a few other
parts. Then the year-long process begins for another
streetcar.
Thanks to the enthusiasm
and artistic skills of Metro employees, these antique streetcars will be
enjoyed by residents and visitors for many years to come.
Related
link
Metro's Waterfront
Streetcar
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