Quote:
Originally Posted by esirhgih
Thanks for sharing.
I honestly never knew that Pittsburgh had a rail system at all.
Where have I been?
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Pittsburgh never got rid of its rail (well not all of it anyway), the LRT system was constructed as an upgraded version of replaced streetcar lines; however, the subway tunnels were planned and constructed in the late 70's, early 80's when the modern T system opened in 1984.
But again, the streetcar system that ran along similar tracks has operated since the 1800's, so Pittsburgh has some unique attributes like some other cities in the northeast/upper midwest region.
They just got finished digging a nearly 2 mile extension of the T under the Allegheny River over to the North Shore.
http://www.theboretotheshore.com/FAQs.html
They are projecting that 14,300 riders, 4.2 million annually, will be riding the 3 new subway stations north of the river.
And for comparisons with the old rail and new rail systems, here is the Martin Villa stop in 1972 and 1999:
Martin Villa 1972 using old PCC streetcars:
Martin Villa in 1999 using the old paint style LRT cars for the new T system:
Cities like Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Chicago, Boston, and New York all share some of the oldest continually running rail systems in the country. Pittsburgh is one of the few American cities that has had rail services continuously running since the 1800's when electric streetcars began.
When the T subway extensions are complete, there will be 6 stations underground in the downtown area that are approximately 4 miles in length totally underground, the next 3 stations will open early 2011.