F (Los Angeles Railway)

F was a streetcar line in Los Angeles, California. It was operated by the Los Angeles Railway from 1911 to 1955.

F
Overview
OwnerLos Angeles Railway
LocaleLos Angeles
Termini
  • Union Station
  • Vermont and Manchester Avenues, Vermont and 116th St
Stations28
Service
TypeStreetcar
SystemLos Angeles Railway
Daily ridership12,851 (1940)[1]
History
OpenedMay 9, 1920
ClosedMay 22, 1955 (1955-05-22)
Technical
Track gauge3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm)
ElectrificationOverhead line600 V DC
Route map

1949–1955
Union Station
US Passenger rail transport
Macy and Alameda
Main and Macy
Main and Sunset
Main and Temple
Main and 1st
 P 
Main and 2nd
 8 
Main and 3rd
 9 
Main and 4th
Main and 5th
Main and 6th
Pacific Electric
Main and 7th
 J   R   S   7 
Main and 8th
Main and 9th
 7   8 
Broadway Place
 5 
Main and 11th
Main and 12th
Main and Pico
 9 
Main and Venice
Main and Washington
Main and 23rd
Main and Adams
Main and 30th
Main and Jefferson
Jefferson and Broadway
Jefferson and Hill
Jefferson and Grand
 9   J 
Grand and 37th
Grand and 39th
Santa Barbara and Figueroa
Santa Barbara and Hoover
Santa Barbara and Vermont
 5   V 
Vermont and 42nd
Vermont and Vernon
 V 
Vermont and 46th
Vermont and 48th
 9 
Vermont and 51st
Vermont and 54th
 8 
Vermont and 56th
Vermont and Slauson
Vermont and 59th
Vermont and Gage
Vermont and 68th
Vermont and Florence
Vermont and 74th
Vermont and 76th
Vermont and 79th
Vermont and 81st
Vermont and 83rd
Vermont and Manchester
Vermont and 88th
Vermont and 94th
Vermont and 98th
Vermont and Century
Vermont and 104th
Vermont and 108th
Delta
Pacific Electric

History

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Fourth Street Line (1898–1911)

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The Fourth Street Line was originally built by the Los Angeles Traction Company. The first car operated over the line on November 30, 1898 (barely meeting the franchise's terms for operating date),[2] with regular service starting on January 4, 1899.[3] This route ran from a Downtown terminus at 3rd Street and Stephenson Avenue (present-day Traction Avenue) to 1st Street by way of Boyle Heights in the roadways of Stephenson, Merrick Street, 4th Street, and Fresno Street.[4]

In 1910, the LAIU was taken over by the Pacific Electric Railway who ran it as a local line for one year, extending the route to 4th and Hill by way of 3rd and Hill Streets.[4]

Sunnyside Division (1888–1911)

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Los Angeles and Redondo Railway freight train, 1884

The Sunnyside Division was the second division to be built by the Los Angeles and Redondo Railway. From the LA&R terminus at 2nd and Spring Streets, the Sunnyside Line ran to Redondo Beach by way of 2nd Street, Broadway, 7th Street, Grand Avenue, Santa Barbara Avenue, Sunnyside Avenue (present-day South Hoover), a private right of way between 69th Street and Florence Avenue, Vermont Avenue, 166th Street, Redondo Beach Boulevard, Ripley Avenue, and Anita Street.[4]

During the Great Merger of 1911 the southern portion of the LA&R was incorporated into the Pacific Electric Railway, while the northern portion became local routes of the Los Angeles Railway.[5] At this point, the Fourth Street and Sunnyside Lines were merged into a single route.[4]

F Line (1911–1955)

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LARy streamlined the Fourth Street and Sunnyside Lines, avoiding Stephenson Avenue entirely and running the Downtown segment through Main Street. The new route followed Fresno Street, 4th Street, Main Street, Jefferson Boulevard, Grand Avenue, Hoover Avenue, a private right of way, and Vermont Avenue, terminating at Manchester Avenue, where a less frequent shuttle could be taken to the Pacific Electric's Delta station.[4] In 1920, the shuttle was eliminated; the main line ran all the way to Delta.[6] The route was given the letter designation "F" the following year.[7][8] Rebuilding of the Fourth Street Viaduct over the Los Angeles River between 1930 and 1931 required substantial rerouting and shuttle services to facilitate continued service. In 1947 the Hoover section was eliminated, and the F car ran straight from Santa Barbara to Vermont Avenues.[4]

Reroute to Union Station

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In 1949, ten years after the opening of Union Station, F cars were rerouted to terminate at a loop segment on the steam railway terminal's north side. The 4th street track was eliminated, and the new loop connected to the remainder of the route by way of Macy Street and Main Street.[4]

Discontinuation of the line was considered as early as 1947, when residents along the route collected 5,000 signatures in a petition to maintain operations.[9] Streetcar service ceased on May 22, 1955[10] and the line was converted to bus operations.

Partial restoration

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Vermont Avenue continued its growth, seeded by the robust public transportation provided by the streetcar. By 2020, the bus lines operating on the street had grown to ridership of 45,000 weekday boardings, making it the second busiest corridor in the network.[11][12] As a result, Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority intends to rehabilitate the road for to allow for rapid transit. The corridor extends further south than the old V streetcar and may initially operate as bus rapid transit with more limited service than its progenitor. The Vermont Transit Corridor covers the southern portion of the Los Angeles Railway F line streetcar to Vermont Av. & 116th St, Delta terminus, now at I-105 freeway at the Vermont/Athens station on the Metro C line.

References

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  1. ^ Breivogel, Milton; Bate, Stuart (1942). "Mass Transit Facilities and Master Plan of Parkways" (PDF). Los Angeles City Planning Commission. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  2. ^ "Fourth-Street Line Open". Los Angeles Evening Post-Record. December 1, 1898. p. 5. Retrieved December 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.  
  3. ^ "New Traction Line". The Los Angeles Times. January 1, 1899. p. 19. Retrieved December 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.  
  4. ^ a b c d e f g "'F'". Electric Railway Historical Association of Southern California. Retrieved September 19, 2020.
  5. ^ Veysey, Laurence R. (June 1958). A History Of The Rail Passenger Service Operated By The Pacific Electric Railway Company Since 1911 And By Its Successors Since 1953 (PDF). LACMTA (Report). Los Angeles, California: Interurbans. pp. 56, 73. ASIN B0007F8D84. OCLC 6565577.
  6. ^ H.P. Noordwal (1938). "Route Map Los Angeles Railway Electric Car and Bus Routes" (Map). Barry Lawrence Ruderman Antique Maps Inc. Los Angeles Railway. "Alternate link" (Map). via Google.
  7. ^ "May 1: This Date in Los Angeles Transportation History". Metro Dorothy Peyton Gray Transportation Library and Archive. Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved February 16, 2022. 1921: Large letter signs indicating the routes of different lines are placed on top of Los Angeles Railway streetcars.
  8. ^ "Cars To Have Letter Signs" (PDF). Two Bells. Vol. 1, no. 48. Los Angeles Railway. May 2, 1921. p. 1. Retrieved February 16, 2022.
  9. ^ Reft, Ryan (February 26, 2015). "A Clear Blue Vision: L.A. Light Rail Transit and Twenty Five Years of the Blue Line". KCET. Retrieved February 8, 2021.
  10. ^ "May 22: This Date in Los Angeles Transportation History". Metro Primary Resources. Dorothy Peyton Gray Transportation Museum and Archive. Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  11. ^ Tinoco, Matt (May 7, 2018). "A subway on Vermont? Metro is considering it". Curbed LA. Retrieved August 19, 2020.
  12. ^ Next stop: a new kind of bus ride on Vermont (PDF). Amazon Naws (Report). Metro. Retrieved August 19, 2020.
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