Denver Trolley

Heritage streetcar line in Denver, Colorado

Denver Trolley

The trolley car in its parking place in Denver

Overview
Other name(s)| Platte Valley Trolley (1989–2016)
Locale| Denver
Service
Type| Heritage streetcar
Operator(s)| Denver Tramway Heritage Society
History
Opened| July 1, 1989[1]
Technical
Line length| 1.2 miles
Track gauge| 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Electrification| None (Diesel electric)[2]

Route diagram

Legend

|  |  |

|  | Confluence Park/REI

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|  |

|  | storage siding
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|  | Speer Boulevard
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|  | Downtown Aquarium
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|  | Children's Museum of Denver
|  |

|  |  I-25
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|  | Mile High Stadium
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|  |  US 40
|  |

|  | turn around at Lower Colfax Avenue

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|  |  | all stations

accessible
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This diagram:

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The Denver Trolley, formerly known as the Platte Valley Trolley, is a heritage streetcar line in Denver, Colorado, operated by the Denver Tramway Heritage Society. It began service on July 1, 1989.[1]

## Route and operation

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The trolley line originates in Confluence Park, the historic location where the city of Denver was founded, at the confluence of the South Platte River and Cherry Creek River. The trolley is located at approximately 1400 Platte Street in Denver, behind REI's flagship store. Visitors can reach the trolley from Platte Street or from 15th Street in downtown Denver. The line lacks overhead trolley wires, and the streetcar serving it is equipped with diesel-electric power.[2]

In 2022, the trolley operated Saturdays and Sundays from May 28 through August 14, with the first run leaving Confluence Park at 10:00 AM and the last run of the day leaving at 1:30 PM.[3] Tickets were priced at $7 for adults and $3 for children for a round trip with on/off privileges, available for purchase from the trolley operating crew at any of the trolley's stops (REI/Confluence Park, Downtown Aquarium, or Children's Museum of Denver).[4]

The trolley also operates a football fans' shuttle between Confluence Park and Empower Field at Mile High for Denver Broncos home games. Fare is $10 round trip, or $7 one way.

The line runs south (upriver) on the west side of the Platte River to Lakewood Gulch. Prior to 2007, the line continued west along Lakewood Gulch (approximately West 13th Avenue) and ran on the old interurban shortline tracks of the Denver and Intermountain Railroad to Sheridan Boulevard. The line currently stops near where RTD built their new west corridor of the FasTracks light rail project, which opened on April 26, 2013.

The line passes a number of historic and tourist attractions, including the Children's Museum,[5] the Downtown Aquarium,[6][not verified in body] Empower Field at Mile High (home of the Denver Broncos) and Elitch Gardens. Views of the Denver skyline are visible all through the 25-minute narrated historical tour.[7]

The Denver Trolley recalls the open car streetcars of an earlier era in Denver, which at one point in the history of Denver was the primary means of transportation throughout the city. In circa 1920, there were a group of six "Seeing Denver" streetcars that traversed the rails. A number of buildings in Denver, though currently re-purposed, were once key structures in the trolley system, and many retain their original signage. Today, in addition to regular operations, the Denver Trolley is available for charters and special tours. More information can be found at the Denver Trolley website.[8]

## Rolling stock

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The Denver Trolley operates a 1986 replica of a 1903 Brill open streetcar. The frame and steel components of the car used in the construction are from a 1924 Melbourne, Australia streetcar. Numbered 1977, the car was made by the Gomaco Trolley Company in Ida Grove, Iowa.[2] An on-board Cummins 6BT diesel electric generator provides the 600 volts d.c. for the four Metropolitan-Vickers traction motors and other accessories.

## See also

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* Railways portal

* List of Colorado historic railroads

## References

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1. ^ a b Price, J. H. (August 1990). "Heritage Column". Modern Tramway. Ian Allan Publishing/Light Rail Transit Association. pp. 262–265\. ISSN 0964-9255.
2. ^ a b c Thoms, William E. (Autumn 1990). "Return of the Mile-High Trolleys". The New Electric Railway Journal. p. 20\. ISSN 1048-3845.
3. ^ "Schedule & Fares". Denver Trolley. Retrieved 2022-11-14.
4. ^ "Denver Trolley FAQs". Denver Trolley. Retrieved 2022-11-14.
5. ^ "Home". mychildsmuseum.org.
6. ^ "Trolley Tours Show Denver's Past and Present". CBD4 Denver. KCNC-TV. November 28, 2010. Retrieved March 4, 2024.
7. ^ "Things to See & Do". Denver Trolley. Retrieved 2022-11-14.
8. ^ "Denver Trolley". Denver Trolley. Retrieved 2022-11-14.

## External links

[edit]

* Denver Trolley official site

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Currently operating light rail and streetcar systems in the United States

| Arizona|

* Phoenix Valley Metro Rail
* A Line
* B Line
* S Line
* Tucson Sun Link

|

Arkansas|

* Little Rock Metro Streetcar
* Fort Smith Trolley

California|

* Los Angeles Metro Rail
* A, C, E, and K Lines
* Sprinter
* Sacramento RT
* San Diego Trolley
* San Francisco Muni
* Cable Cars
* E Embarcadero
* F Market & Wharves
* Muni Metro
* Santa Clara VTA

Colorado|

* Denver
* RTD light rail
* Denver Trolley
* Fort Collins Municipal Railway

District of Columbia|

* DC Streetcar

Florida|

* Tampa TECO Line Streetcar

Georgia|

* Atlanta Streetcar

Illinois|

* MetroLink (shared with Missouri)

Louisiana|

* New Orleans streetcars

Maryland|

* Baltimore Light RailLink

Massachusetts|

* Boston
* MBTA Green Line
* Mattapan Line
* Lowell Park Trolley

Michigan|

* Detroit QLine

Minnesota|

* Minneapolis-St. Paul Metro
* Blue Line
* Green Line
* Como-Harriet Streetcar
* Excelsior Streetcar
* Lake Superior Railroad Museum

| Missouri|

* KC Streetcar
* St. Louis
* Loop Trolley
* MetroLink

|

New Jersey|

* Hudson–Bergen Light Rail
* Newark Light Rail
* River Line

New York|

* Buffalo Metro Rail

North Carolina|

* Charlotte
* Lynx Blue Line
* CityLynx Gold Line

Ohio|

* Connector (Cincinnati)
* Cleveland
* RTA Blue, Green, and Waterfront Lines

Oklahoma|

* Oklahoma City Streetcar
* El Reno Heritage Express

Oregon|

* Portland
* MAX Light Rail
* Portland Streetcar
* Willamette Shore Trolley
* Astoria Riverfront Trolley

Pennsylvania|

* Philadelphia SEPTA Metro
* T, G, and D
* Pittsburgh Light Rail

Tennessee|

* Memphis MATA Trolley

Texas|

* Dallas
* DART light rail
* Dallas Streetcar
* M-Line Trolley
* El Paso Streetcar
* Houston METRORail
* Galveston Island Trolley

Utah|

* Salt Lake City
* TRAX
* S Line

Virginia|

* Norfolk The Tide

Washington|

* Seattle
* 1 Line
* 2 Line
* Seattle Streetcar
* T Line

Wisconsin|

* Milwaukee The Hop
* Kenosha Transit

Italics denote non-transit streetcar lines, operating only on limited dates and usually not year-round, for tourism or educational purposes.

Other transit in the United States:

* Rapid transit
* People mover & monorail
* Trolleybus
* Commuter rail

* v
* t
* e

Heritage streetcar systems in North America

Regular service|

* Dallas (1989)
* Memphis (1993)
* Tampa (2002)
* Little Rock (2004)
* El Paso (2018)

Rebuilt lines|

* Philadelphia
* San Francisco (E & F lines)

Tourism|

* Astoria, OR
* Denver, CO
* Edmonton, AB
* El Reno, OK
* Fort Collins, CO
* Fort Smith, AR
* Kenosha, WI
* Lowell, MA
* Minneapolis, MN
* Nelson, BC
* Portland, OR
* St. Louis, MO
* San Diego, CA
* Surrey, BC
* Whitehorse, YT
* Yakima, WA

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