a day ago
2 vintage Saskatchewan streetcars now calling Edmonton home
Two streetcars are the newest additions to Edmonton's collection but represent the oldest form of public transportation in Canada's Prairie cities.
Edmonton Radial Railway Society and Fort Edmonton Park on Saturday unveiled two fully restored vintage streetcars: Regina 42, a 1928 passenger streetcar, and what railway society president Chris Ashdown calls the 'big yellow beast,' Saskatoon 200, a 1907 combination snow sweeper and line car.
'To restore these things has taken us over 23,000 volunteer hours for each of these cars … so this is the final event from years of restoration work,' Ashdown told CTV News Edmonton.
Regina 42 is one of only a few survivors of a 1947 carbarn fire that destroyed most of Regina's fleet. It was restored to its original operating condition with the aid of manufacturer photos and blueprints.
Saskatoon 200 was used in the city it's named after until 1951. It, too, was fully restored but will only be featured in static and demonstration displays.
Ashdown said, 'These streetcar systems were the very first public transportation systems in all of these cities, and operated until the late 40s or early 1950s – so really significant. It's interesting that now we're going back to electric streetcars in the form of LRT, like our Valley line.'
Edmonton now has 10 vintage streetcars.
With files from CTV News Edmonton's Galen McDougall
