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East Bay Electric Lines

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73-915: The East Bay Electric Lines were a unit of the Southern Pacific Railroad that operated electric interurban -type trains in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area . Beginning in 1862, the SP and its predecessors operated local steam-drawn ferry-train passenger service in the East Bay on an expanding system of lines, but in 1902 the Key System started a competing system of electric lines and ferries. The SP then drew up plans to expand and electrify its system of lines and this new service began in 1911. The trains served

146-668: A brand new EMD SD70ACe locomotive, Union Pacific 1996 , as part of a new heritage program. It was the final unit in UP's Heritage Series of locomotives, and was painted in a color scheme inspired by the "Daylight" and "Black Widow" schemes. Thousand Oaks, Berkeley, California Thousand Oaks is a neighborhood of Berkeley in Alameda County , California . Located at the base of the Berkeley Hills , it lies at an elevation of 239 feet (73 m). The principal shopping area

219-524: A lower passenger seating limit, only 86 patrons. In 1913 it was found that they had too many streetcars for the low demand of the line, so ten cars were sent to the Pacific Electric for operation there. However, two cars were brought back in 1919 due to a need for more streetcar services. In 1926, because of declining patronage, the streetcars were sent to rival Key System for operation on the subsidiary East Bay Street Railways (EBSR). However,

292-473: A passenger train and send scores and hundreds to instant death. There are many Southern Pacific locomotives still in revenue service with railroads such as the Union Pacific Railroad , and many older and special locomotives have been donated to parks and museums, or continue operating on scenic or tourist railroads. Most of the engines now in use with Union Pacific have been "patched", where

365-655: A profit. An internal report by Southern Pacific management in 1933 recommended total abandonment of East Bay electric services. Due to the widespread adoption of the automobile, the Great Depression , and high labor costs, the IER was rapidly losing both money and patronage, so a franchise was granted to them for operation on the lower deck of the San Francisco Bay Bridge to the new Transbay Terminal , in order to entice new patrons. On November 14, 1934,

438-593: A rail connection between San Francisco and San Diego, California . The company was purchased in September 1868 by a group of businessmen known as the Big Four : Charles Crocker , Leland Stanford , Mark Hopkins, Jr. and C. P. Huntington . The Big Four had, in 1861, created the Central Pacific Railroad (CPRR) It later acquired the Central Pacific Railroad in 1885 through leasing. By 1900,

511-495: A road after abandonment, and does not exist anymore aside from a 280 foot long section. Since 2011, the Oakland Terminal Railway has no longer used the trestle for a variety of reasons, most notably being a 4% grade and weight limits. A lack of customers caused the line to cease using the trestle. Since then there is no track access on either side, leaving it isolated from the national rail network. Aside from

584-476: A separate city. The neighborhood was first subdivided in 1909 and 1917 after a failed proposal to move the state capital to Berkeley, in which the area would have become a large public park near the capitol building. Originally an unincorporated area north of Berkeley, it was built as a commuter suburb at the northern terminus of three interurban rail lines . It includes the Thousand Oaks Knoll,

657-494: A simple construction, using a center iron pole (painted black) and trolley cross-arms at either 60 or 120 feet (18 or 37 m) of length to hold the catenary wiring. There were different methods of the application of the towers to hold the catenary in certain settings on the lines. The East Bay Electric Lines had trackage over a series of estuaries and rivers, including the San Francisco Bay , which meant that due to

730-468: A telecommunications network with a state-of-the-art microwave and fiber optic backbone. This telecommunications network became part of Sprint , a company whose name came from the acronym for Southern Pacific Railroad Internal Networking Telephony. The original Southern Pacific Railroad was founded in San Francisco in 1865, by a group of businessmen led by Timothy Phelps with the aim of building

803-496: Is Solano Avenue , along the southern edge of the neighborhood. There are also two smaller clusters of shops on the northern edge of Thousand Oaks, across the county line in Kensington on Arlington Avenue and on Colusa Avenue. The neighborhood is primarily residential, mostly consisting of single-family houses built in the early 20th century, sometimes with In-law apartments , as well as a handful of apartment buildings. When

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876-655: The American Car & Foundry Company (AC&FC). The first group of cars arrived in 1911 from the AC&;FC and consisted of 40 powered passenger coaches (motors), 25 powered combination baggage-passenger cars (combos), and 50 unpowered passenger coaches (trailers), some with train controls and some without. They had large rectangular end windows, which proved to be a liability for train crews in accidents. Eventually, these rectangular end windows would be replaced with circular windows, reminiscent of portholes and similar to

949-831: The Constitution of the United States . The Southern Pacific Railroad was replaced by the Southern Pacific Company and assumed the railroad operations of the Southern Pacific Railroad. In 1929, Southern Pacific/Texas and New Orleans operated 13,848 route-miles not including Cotton Belt, whose purchase of the Golden State Route circa 1980 nearly doubled its size to 3,085 miles (4,965 km), bringing total SP/SSW mileage to around 13,508 miles (21,739 km). The T&NO

1022-625: The Key System Mole . So, the Interurban Electric Railway began construction of a trestle over the Southern Pacific and Atchison, Topeka, & Santa Fe Railroad tracks in order to access this new area. Additionally, it was agreed that the IER and Key System should share a maintenance facility in the new Bridge Yard, so work began on a new facility and yard storage area for the two lines. When completed,

1095-484: The Peninsular Railway ), which never materialized. The company invested $ 10   million between 1909 and 1912 ($ 316 million in 2023 adjusted for inflation) upgrading the East Bay lines, though the increase in passengers failed to offset the expenditure. In addition to interurban service, streetcar service began in 1912 through various sections of the cities it served. A series of smaller streetcars by

1168-511: The Pennsylvania Railroad 's MP54 electric suburbans. The circular windows however would not be applied to trailers, or trains that lacked train controls. The first steel cars were 73 feet (22 m) long, and were moderately heavy as they weighed 1562 pounds per running foot (2324.5 kilograms per running meter). However, they were light when measuring weight per passenger due to their high capacity of seating. The large seating of

1241-665: The Pullman Car Company also served these lines until 1930. Between 1912 and 1930 there was little change to the services of the East Bay Electric Lines. Southern Pacific's efforts in the 1920s to relax work rules and increase fares failed. As a result, the company sought to merge East Bay Electric Lines with the rival Key System. Employee backlash halted these plans. In 1930, all streetcar services ceased in Oakland and Berkeley as they had failed to turn

1314-658: The Richmond Shipyard Railway . Tracks on 7th Street west of Broadway were additionally reactivated under Key System cars to serve the ship yards in Oakland. SP freight service continued over parts of the 9th Street, Shattuck Avenue, 7th Street and Lincoln Avenue Lines. An excursion train pulled by a steam locomotive was operated over this track in April 1954, by the Bay Area Electric Railroad Association. By 1960, all except

1387-474: The Southern Pacific Railroad and predecessor Central Pacific Railroad were run entirely by steam traction . The first railroad to operate suburban services in the East Bay was the San Francisco & Alameda Railroad , which was formed on March 25, 1863. Through a series of mergers with the San Francisco, Alameda, & Stockton Railroad Company and the prior San Francisco & Alameda Railroad,

1460-535: The St. Louis Southwestern Railway (Cotton Belt, reporting marks SSW), El Paso and Southwestern Railroad , the Northwestern Pacific Railroad at 328 miles (528 km), the 1,331-mile (2,142 km) Southern Pacific Railroad of Mexico , and a variety of 3 ft ( 914 mm ) narrow-gauge routes. The SP was known for its mammoth back shops at Sacramento, California , which was one of

1533-776: The United States Maritime Commission for use in transporting workers to World War II shipyards: 20 trailers to a line in the Portland, Oregon , area and 61 cars to the PE in Southern California where some of them were in use until that system ceased operations in 1961. A few of the cars have been preserved: [REDACTED] Media related to East Bay Electric Lines at Wikimedia Commons Southern Pacific Transportation Company The Southern Pacific ( reporting mark SP ) (or Espee from

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1606-661: The 7th St Line as far as Havenscourt or Seminary Avenue. When plans for longer routes were not implemented, 21 of the ACF combos were changed to motors at the time they received their round end windows in the 1920s. Due to the heavy grades on the Bay Bridge, 10 trailers were changed to motors in 1938 when all the passenger-carrying cars were modified with automatic train control and other safety equipment for bridge operation. The California Toll Bridge Authority (TBA) funded these changes and received title to 58 cars in return. All cars carried

1679-489: The Bay Bridge. Routes now terminated at the Transbay Terminal, but with a central stop at the 26th Street Station for transferring, instead of the usual Oakland and Alameda Moles. With the new addition of interurban service to San Francisco, patrons from Berkeley, Oakland, Alameda, and upper San Leandro could now ride into San Francisco. The IER saw a brief increase of patronage, but due to automobile competition and

1752-634: The Bridge Yard to the new Transbay Terminal, the three interurban lines would share two tracks. This required an extensive signaling system, so all trains were retrofitted with special signaling devices that warned of speed limit and the automatic block signaling . Electrification on the bridge would be at 1200 volts for the Sacramento Northern and Interurban Electric Railway, so all trains were also retrofitted to run on this voltage. Beginning January of 1938, IER trains could now run across

1825-630: The Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad to the Southern Pacific Transportation Company, allowing the combined Rio Grande Industries railroad system to use the Southern Pacific name due to its brand recognition in the railroad industry and with customers of both the Southern Pacific Transportation Company and the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad. A long time Southern Pacific subsidiary, the St. Louis Southwestern Railway

1898-533: The EBSR was converting to one-man operation, which means that the motorman acts as the conductor too, and the streetcars were built for the traditional two man operation (meaning there would have been a motorman and a conductor). This led to their downfall, and in 1933 all were scrapped. The usual operating practice was that the number of powered cars in a train was at least one more than the number of trailers. Trailers, with or without train controls, were always placed in

1971-563: The East Bay Electric Lines and later Interurban Electric Railway had two shops, the Alameda Shops and the Bridge Yard. The Alameda Shops were located at West Alameda, on the Oakland Estuary , and the Bridge Yard was the general maintenance yard for the Interurban Electric Railway and Key System just before the Bay Bridge. To provide faster transportation on its commuter lines, Southern Pacific purchased steel interurbans from

2044-489: The East Bay Electric Lines reorganized as the Interurban Electric Railway (IER). From the reorganization of the East Bay Electric Lines into the Interurban Electric Railway in 1934, the new IER had already begun plans to reroute service and maintenance facilities well before the Bay Bridge had been completed. The location of the approach to the Bay Bridge was located directly next to the Key System 's trackage that led to

2117-659: The East Bay, most of the interurban cars went to the Pacific Electric, though some were deeded by the California Toll Booth Authority and used in Utah and Nevada during World War 2 . Most were retired when Pacific Electric ceased service in 1961, though some remain preserved in museums such as the Western Railway Museum , Southern California Railway Museum , and Travel Town Museum . Beginning in 1913, East Bay Electric commissioned

2190-577: The Northbrae Tunnel, 16th Street Station, and trestle, nothing else too visible remains. The Emeryville Greenway between 9th Street and Stanford Avenue is a section of former IER right of way that serviced the interurban line to Thousand Oaks. After the SP streetcar line was abandoned in 1926, all 12 cars were sold to the Key System. After IER service ended, the TBA separated its 58 cars from

2263-456: The SP logo on the front is replaced by a Union Pacific shield, and new numbers are applied over the old numbers with a Union Pacific sticker, however some engines remain in Southern Pacific "bloody nose" paint. Over the past couple years, most of the patched units were repainted into the full Union Pacific scheme and as of January 2019, less than ten units remain in their old paint. Among the more notable equipment is: On August 19, 2006, UP unveiled

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2336-577: The SP shops there, new shops and yards were built six miles south of the city at Bayshore. The Alhambra Shops in Los Angeles consisted of 10 buildings and employed 1,500 but declined in importance when the Taylor Yard was built in 1930. The SP was the defendant in the landmark 1886 United States Supreme Court case Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad , which is often interpreted as having established certain corporate rights under

2409-743: The SP's 89 cars. In 1942, the TBA sold 6 motors for scrap in January and the remaining 52 cars to the Houston Shop Corp., which shipped them via the SP to Houston. One of the TBA trailers was wrecked in transit, so the SP replaced it with one of its trailers. The SP sent the 2 box motors to the PE, in March and April used 5 trailers for buildings in West Oakland, and stored their remaining 81 cars until they were requisitioned in July and September by

2482-699: The San Francisco, Oakland, & Alameda Railroad (SFO&A) was formed in June of 1871. The SFO&A would be absorbed by the Central Pacific Railroad in August. With the merger with the Central Pacific, trains would terminate at the Oakland Mole (a long ferry pier into the San Francisco Bay), starting in January of 1882. Suburban commuter services by the Central Pacific would be operated in

2555-641: The Southern Pacific Transportation Company to be taken over by the Union Pacific Corporation ; the parent Southern Pacific Rail Corporation (formerly Rio Grande Industries), the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad, the St. Louis Southwestern Railway and the SPCSL Corporation were also taken over by the Union Pacific Corporation. The Union Pacific Corporation merged the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad,

2628-588: The Southern Pacific system was a major railroad system incorporating many smaller companies, such as the Texas and New Orleans Railroad and Morgan's Louisiana and Texas Railroad . It extended from New Orleans through Texas to El Paso , across New Mexico and through Tucson , to Los Angeles , through most of California , including San Francisco and Sacramento . Central Pacific lines extended east across Nevada to Ogden, Utah , and reached north through Oregon to Portland . Other subsidiaries eventually included

2701-454: The Southern Pacific's steam operations, which paled in comparison. Between 1902 and 1911, the appeal of the SFO&;SJ, and later companies San Francisco, Oakland, & San Jose Consolidated Railway and Key System, would rival the Southern Pacific's steam operated commuter operations. After management changed hands in the Southern Pacific between Collis P. Huntington and Edward H. Harriman ,

2774-409: The Southern Pacific, the Southern Pacific Transportation Company, was founded in 1969 and assumed control of the Southern Pacific system. The Southern Pacific Transportation Company was acquired in 1996 by the Union Pacific Corporation and merged with their Union Pacific Railroad . The Southern Pacific legacy founded hospitals in San Francisco , Tucson , and Houston . In the 1970s, it also founded

2847-490: The St. Louis Southwestern Railway and the SPCSL Corporation into their Union Pacific Railroad but did not merge the Southern Pacific Transportation Company into the Union Pacific Railroad. Instead, the Union Pacific Corporation merged the Union Pacific Railroad into the Southern Pacific Transportation Company on February 1, 1998; the Southern Pacific Transportation Company became the surviving railroad and at

2920-465: The Sunset Limited. Well known were the Southern Pacific's unique " cab-forward " steam locomotives. These were 4-8-8-2 , 2-8-8-2 , and 4-6-6-2 (rebuilt from 2-6-6-2 ) locomotives set up to run in reverse, with the tender attached to the smokebox end of the locomotive. Southern Pacific had a number of snow sheds in mountain terrain, and locomotive crews nearly asphyxiated from smoke in

2993-586: The approximately 52 miles (84 km) of trackage began in early 1911, using No. 0000 grooved copper trolley wire, 7 ⁄ 16 -inch (11 mm) messenger wires, and hanging loop catenary. Electrification was at 1200 volts direct current , which allowed for higher speeds, faster acceleration, and less power loss. Substations located at the Tidal Canal (along Fruitvale Avenue), Thousand Oaks , and West Oakland converted 1320 volt alternating current into 1200 volts direct current. Catenary cross-arms were of

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3066-793: The basis of which company first served each area. The Oakland 7th Street Line carried the most passengers, with the Berkeley Shattuck Avenue Line being second. Patronage was at a maximum about 1920 and had declined by about half by the time of Bay Bridge operation. The SP seemed to prefer to have groups of their lines terminate at the same place. Three lines originally terminated at Thousand Oaks in Berkeley, two at 14th and Franklin in Oakland, and two at High Street South in Alameda. The IER had two lines terminate at Thousand Oaks and two lines at West Alameda. Electrification of

3139-556: The cab. After a number of engineers began running their engines in reverse (pushing the tender), Southern Pacific asked Baldwin Locomotive Works to produce cab-forward designs. No other North American railroad ordered cab-forward locomotives. Narrow Gauge Locomotives Until May 1, 1971 (when Amtrak took over long-distance passenger operations in the United States), the Southern Pacific at various times operated

3212-628: The cities of Berkeley , Albany , Emeryville , Oakland , Alameda , and San Leandro transporting commuters to and from the large Oakland Pier (the "mole") and SP Alameda Pier . A fleet of ferry boats ran between these piers and the docks of the Ferry Building on the San Francisco Embarcadero . The East Bay Electric Lines became the Interurban Electric Railway ( IER ) in anticipation of

3285-419: The decline of revenue by the rivalry would force the Southern Pacific to electrify their lines in competition in 1911. In 1911 Southern Pacific embarked on a task to double track and electrify its commuter lines. When the construction of catenary over the new lines was complete, Southern Pacific received a new fleet of 72-foot-long (22 m) steel interurbans from the American Car & Foundry Company in

3358-537: The elevated platforms of the IER still exist at Southern Pacific's 16th Street Station in Oakland . Although interurban service ceased to the elevated platforms in 1941, the platforms were never torn down and still remain today as a visible reminder of former IER service. However, both approach trestles to the elevated platform were demolished during abandonment. The trestle that crosses the Southern Pacific mainline however still exists, partially. The northbound portion of

3431-519: The fact that cars had been allowed to use the Bay Bridge since 1936, the IER could not compete. Between 1938 and 1940 the IER reduced services drastically in order to try and stay afloat, but could not. On February 26, 1940, the IER applied to the Public Utilities Commission to abandon services. Interurban commuter services were no longer making money. On July 26, 1941, the Interurban Electric Railway ran its last interurban, and

3504-408: The famous Pullman Car Company to produce a series of interurbans, similar to that of the American Car & Foundry Company 's style construction. The style consisted of 10 motors, 4 combination cars, and 2 powered express-baggage cars (commonly known as box motors). These differed from the AC&FC's style because these new interurbans all featured the safer rounded windows in the front and backs in

3577-483: The few in the country equipped to design and build locomotives on a large scale. Sacramento was among the top ten largest shops in the US, occupying 200 acres of land with dozens of buildings and an average employment of 3,000, peaking at 7,000 during World War II. Other major shop sites were located at Ogden, Utah ; Houston, Texas ; and Algiers, New Orleans . After the 1906 earthquake destroyed much of San Francisco, including

3650-429: The following named passenger trains . Trains with names in italicized bold text still operate under Amtrak: The man or men who committed this horrible deed near Glendale may not be anarchists, technically speaking. But if they are sane men, moved by motive, they are such stuff as anarchists are made of. If the typical anarchist conceived that a railroad corporation should be terrorized, he would not scruple to wreck

3723-447: The interurbans (which sat 2 to 3 people per seat) allowed for a general capacity of 116 patrons. When first acquired by the AC&FC, the interurbans were painted an olive green, which was standard among most passenger cars of the time. Eventually the interurbans were repainted a bright red, which led to many patrons calling the interurbans the "Big Red Cars". The color remained until abandonment. After abandonment of electric service in

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3796-776: The later months of 1911. Electric service commenced on June 1, 1911 along the length of the Encinal Avenue Line to the Alameda Mole. For the first weeks, electric trains were relegated to midday service with steam trains taking over during rush-hours. When the electrification of the lines was completed, a passenger could board an East Bay Electric Lines interurban from either the Oakland or Alameda Moles, and travel to Dutton Avenue, Thousand Oaks , Albany , Berkeley , and Downtown Oakland . Long term plans called for extensions to Richmond and San Jose (to presumably link up with Southern Pacific's other interurban subsidiary,

3869-547: The limitations of the infrastructure over these bodies of water the usual method of center-pole and cross-arm located in between the double-track was given up, in favor of 65-foot-tall (20 m) tall iron poles in a lattice-formation that held up the catenary. Additionally, this style of catenary construction was applied on the four track segment of track that paralleled the Southern Pacific 's mainline via Oakland. In order to maintain its fleet of electric locomotives,

3942-577: The locomotive's smokebox silver (almost white in appearance), with graphite colored sides, for visibility. Some passenger steam locomotives bore the Daylight scheme, named after the trains they hauled, most of which had the word Daylight in the train name. The most famous "Daylight" locomotives were the GS-4 steam locomotives . The most famous Daylight-hauled trains were the Coast Daylight and

4015-415: The middle of trains; train controls on trailers were mainly used in assembling or disassembling trains. As ridership declined and trains became shorter, trailers were primarily used only during rush hour. Combos were used to carry checked baggage to and from main-line trains at Oakland Pier and to deliver bundled newspapers. They were usually put on the end of the train toward Oakland Pier, and most commonly on

4088-407: The name "Southern Pacific Lines" until Bay Bridge service began, when the IER-owned cars were repainted with "Interurban Electric Railway Company". Unlike most street railways, work rules dictating operations for employees were of a more restrictive type usually applied to mainline steam railroads, a situation which endured even with electric service. The rival Key System assumed rights to some of

4161-401: The neighboring city of Albany was incorporated in 1908, its borders were drawn to exclude the area north of Solano Avenue and east of Curtis Street that would become the Thousand Oaks area, then the site of a refugee camp that had formed after the 1906 earthquake . Its residents were employed in the construction of the surrounding subdivisions and were likely to vote against incorporation as

4234-458: The new Bridge Yard would replace existing Key System tracks with a joint Sacramento Northern , Interurban Electric Railway, and Key System maintenance yard. Extra trains for Bay Bridge usage could also be stored here, but this practice was not used by the Sacramento Northern Railroad who preferred to utilize an existing yard. The Interurban Electric Railway's new route also featured a fly-over bridge over Key System / Sacramento Northern tracks. From

4307-421: The opening of the Bay Bridge Railway in January of 1939. This railway consisted of two tracks on the southern side of the lower deck of the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge , running from the East Bay to the San Francisco Transbay Terminal . SP IER transbay commuter train service ended in July 1941. Prior to the formation of the East Bay Electric Lines (and later Interurban Electric Railway), commuter services by

4380-463: The original construction, and seated only 111 passengers. After the abandonment of the East Bay Electric, all of these interurbans were sent to the Pacific Electric for conversion into the famous "Blimps" or "Red Cars". All were retired by 1953. In addition to the AC&FC and Pullman built interurbans, the Southern Pacific commissioned the St. Louis Car Company to produce more interurbans. These cars were identical to their predecessors, bearing

4453-454: The part from the 9th Street Line had been abandoned. Few pieces of infrastructure of the old electric service remain. The Northbrae Tunnel , which runs between Sutter Street and Solano Avenue underneath the Fountain Roundabout, is one of the most physical remains of the SP/IER. The tunnel once was a main artery for the SP interurbans into Thousand Oaks , and was used by Key System well after abandonment of SP electric service. Additionally,

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4526-477: The pruning of branch lines. On October 13, 1988, the Southern Pacific Transportation Company (including its subsidiary, St. Louis Southwestern Railway) was taken over by Rio Grande Industries , the parent company that controlled the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad (reporting marks D&RGW). Rio Grande Industries did not merge the Southern Pacific Transportation Company and the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad together, but transferred direct ownership of

4599-412: The railroad initials) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States . The system was operated by various companies under the names Southern Pacific Railroad , Southern Pacific Company and Southern Pacific Transportation Company . The original Southern Pacific began in 1865 as a land holding company. The last incarnation of

4672-579: The rounded windows at the front and backs. Only six motors were produced. These cars seated only 108 patrons. All were scrapped. The East Bay Electric Lines also operated a series of more suburban local services, which were served by a series of streetcars , smaller and slower than the interurbans. The only company to manufacture streetcars for the East Bay Electric Lines was the Pullman car company. Twenty were manufactured, all featuring center-bay doors for boarding on low-platforms. The streetcars were meant for more local service, which also means they had

4745-435: The same manner after Southern Pacific took over. In 1902 the San Francisco, Oakland, & San Jose Railway (SFO&SJ) would build a three-and-a-quarter-mile-long (5.2 km) pier from Emeryville into the San Francisco Bay. The "Key Mole" as referred to by patrons would rival the Southern Pacific's Oakland Mole for speed and general service. The SFO&SJ interurban line was faster, quicker, cleaner, and quieter than

4818-402: The same time the Union Pacific Corporation renamed the Southern Pacific Transportation Company to Union Pacific Railroad. Thus, the Southern Pacific Transportation Company became, and is still operating as, the current incarnation of the Union Pacific Railroad. Like most railroads, the SP painted most of its steam locomotives black during the 20th century, but after 1945 SP painted the front of

4891-479: The trackage and overhead wires of abandoned IER/SP routes. This had first occurred due to the 1933 consolidation. In March 1933, the abandoned California Street line in Berkeley from about Ada and California Streets, up Monterey Avenue to Colusa Avenue, was used for the Key's Sacramento Street Line (H line) until abandonment in July 1941. In April 1941, a portion of the abandoned 7th Street, Dutton Avenue Line in East Oakland, from East 14th Street to Havenscourt Boulevard,

4964-408: The trestle was formerly in use by the Oakland Terminal Railway , a Key System subsidiary meant to handle freight. Sections of the trestle have been cut down, such as large sections of the former double-tracked bridge, which was downgraded to single-track during the sixties and seventies, after switching motions were no longer required on the bridge. The southbound portion of the trestle was converted to

5037-418: Was abandoned in April 1958. Key System streetcars also used the IER Shattuck Avenue tracks from Parker Street to University Avenue until abandonment in November 1948. During World War II the Key System used a portion of the 7th Street, Dutton Avenue Line tracks in Oakland on 7th Street, from Broadway to Pine Street, for streetcar service to a shipyard and most of the 9th Street track of the 9th Street Line for

5110-546: Was also marketed under the Southern Pacific name. Along with the addition of the SPCSL Corporation route from Chicago to St. Louis, the former mainline of the Chicago, Missouri and Western Railroad that once belonged to the Alton Railroad , the total length of the D&RGW/SP/SSW system was 15,959 miles (25,684 km). Rio Grande Industries was later renamed Southern Pacific Rail Corporation . By 1996, years of financial problems had dropped Southern Pacific's mileage to 13,715 miles (22,072 km). The financial problems caused

5183-428: Was fully merged into the SP in 1961. In 1969, the Southern Pacific Transportation Company was established and took over the Southern Pacific Company; this Southern Pacific railroad is the last incarnation and was at times called "Southern Pacific Industries", though "Southern Pacific Industries" is not the official name of the company. By the 1980s, route mileage had dropped to 10,423 miles (16,774 km), mainly due to

5256-569: Was shut down the following day. The East Bay Electric Lines were originally designated mainly by the names of their principal streets. They received numbers for Bay Bridge service. The most significant changes occurred as the result of the removal of the Harrison Street bridge between Oakland and Alameda in December 1923, and the agreement with the Key System in March 1933, with the Bay Bridge plans in view, to abandon duplicating lines, on

5329-556: Was used to extend the Key's 12th Street Line (A Line) until October 1950, when this line was cut back to 12th and Oak Streets. In August 1941, a portion of the Shattuck Avenue line in Berkeley, from about Dwight Way to the south end of the Northbrae Tunnel was used to extend the Key's Shattuck Ave Line ( F Line ). In December 1942, the F Line was extended through the tunnel to the intersection of Solano Avenue and The Alameda. The F Line

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