Rolling stock on Market Street rolls back the clock - streetcars in San Francisco, California

Sunset, Feb, 1996 by Peter Fish

What is it about the clatter of wheel on rail that inspires giddiness? You've got your Streetcar Named Desire. You've got Meet Me in St. Louis, where the moment Judy Garland steps on board, she's singing "Zing, zing, zing went my heartstrings" in "The Trolley Song." Whatever the cause, your heartstrings will probably be zinging, too, when one of San Francisco's new-old streetcars glides your way. Step up, pay your fare (it's a buck), and take a ride from Market Street to Memory Lane.

Seventeen of the streetcars ply the San Francisco Municipal Railway's F Line, which runs a little more than 6 miles between the Castro and the Financial District. Dating mainly from the 1940s, the cars have been restored by Muni, the engineering firm Morrison-Knudsen, and volunteers from the nonprofit Market Street Railway Company. They've been painted to represent the fleets of a dozen American cities, from Brooklyn's blue-green and silver to the zippy orange and red of L.A.'s fabled old Pacific Electric Railway. And according to Jim Tomes of Muni, drivers are vying for the opportunity to captain these blasts from the past - in large part, he says, because "passengers are happy when they get on them." Muni estimates that the vintage vehicles will draw 10,000 to 12,000 riders a day - comparable to the numbers who ride the legendary cable cars.

The F Line streetcars - which are interspersed with Muni buses - run along Market between Castro and First streets, with a jog south to Mission Street and the Transbay Terminal. Hours are approximately 6:30 A.M. to 12:30 A.M. daily. (Though not all cars are in service at all times, as many as eight run during weekday rush hours.) Fare is $1. For Muni information, call (415) 673-6864.