Life in New Orleans is not the same without the sights and sounds of the streetcars. The storm that changed this city took away something that so many people enjoyed and relied on for their transportation.
Out of the120-140,000 people using the public transportation system in New Orleans everyday, 28 percent of those people were on streetcars, according to an Regional Transit Authority spokesperson. Now that the streetcar line along St. Charles Avenue is not running, people have to take buses and cabs as alternate forms of transportation. Although Canal Street lines are up and running, there are only 700-800 people riding it every day.
There are many factors involved in the refurbishing of the streetcars. One is the cost of the project. The cost to fix the streetcar line between Howard and Claiborne avenues is $12 million.
According to RTA employee Roy Montague, it is not the actual track that needs to be repaired; it is the electrical system that supplies the energy. The only reason the streetcars are not running, he said, is because of the overhead lines. The power supply stations are not up and running, but the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Administration has donated one portable substation. This donation will help supply the area with enough power to run the lines.
The next step in rebuilding is making contracts with FEMA, Federal Transit Authority, RTA and Brookville Mining Company. Brookville will repair the electrical system and undercarriage of the cars that were damaged by the storm. FEMA has given $47 million for the transportation needs of the community, which has to be fairly dispersed throughout the RTA system. The money used to run the transportation system prior to the storm came from state taxes, hotel taxes, tourist tax and the fare box.
Trying to run a successful operation is difficult to do without enough employees. RTA had 1,350 employees before the storm hit; it now employs 600 of those workers needed to run the transportation system.
RTA has considered where its employees will live once they have a job to come back to. It has set up a living site with travel trailers at the Algiers Park and Ride for its employees and their families.
The big question is when the streetcar lines will be up and running. The projected timeline is different for each of the three car lines. The St. Charles line will not begin work until the end of 2006, and should be completed by the end of 2007 due to the massive amount of damage done to the overhead electrical lines during the storm.
The Times-Picayune reported that service will resume from downtown to City Park and along the Canal Street line to Mid-City by mid-March.
The actual cars that transport people are another important issue. There were 24 cars that ran along the Canal Street line, and during the storm the water reached 4-5 feet on each car. At this time, the cars that are running along Canal Street are from the Carrollton station, which held 35 cars and all were spared by the hurricane. The cost to fix the cars will cost about $1 million per car.
Kathy Hirsch, the director of photo shoots for the Peter Mayer Advertising Company, said the company is working on a national operation called “Rebirth Campaign: Come fall in love with Louisiana all over again.” Hirsch said the campaign is aimed at thanking the American people for all their generosity and support and asking them to come back. The campaign includes many celebrities, such as John Goodman, Emeril Lagasse and Patricia Clarkson, who are connected with the Gulf Coast.
Amanda Wittenberg can be reached at [email protected].
