Disneyfied Pacific Electric

[WhoozOn1st]

Red Car Trolley to ply Disney California Adventure streets in 2012

"Power poles will extend from the tops of the battery-powered trolleys to decorative overhead wires, which will be powerless in part out of concern for the balloons sold to park visitors and the parade floats that travel the route. Pendulum-like wigwag signals will swing at several key crossings."

The ride will also twist the Pacific Electric logo (my avatar). The artist depictions in the item show P.E. "Hollywood" cars, actual examples of which - recently and beautifully restored - may be seen in operation at the Orange Empire Railway Museum in Perris, California. No battery operation, no fake poles, standard gauge, a real wig-wag, an operating birdcage signal, and no $76 (adult minimum, not including parking) to get in and ride 'em.

Pacific Electric "Hollywood" cars 717 and 655 at Orange Empire Railway Museum, Perris, CA, 2010. Photo by John Smatlak, who does the museum's weekly e-newsletter.

EDIT: Replaced photo.

 

[alanh]

It's also an obvious shout-out to Roger Rabbit, but if they don't mention it they don't have to pay Amblin (Spielberg) anything.

I'm surprised they went with the fake overhead cable. Seems a bit unnecessary to be that authentic if they aren't actually using it for power.

 

[rrdude]

. No battery operation, no fake poles, standard gauge, a real wig-wag, an operating birdcage signal, and no $76 (adult minimum, not including parking) to get in and ride 'em.

AND, no where NEAR the volume of people who will be exposed to the PE/rail/train/interrurban/ you name it, as will be who visit Disney.

As much as I dislike Thomas The Tank Engine, it's done more to interest the youngest generation in trains than anything since Lionel was a major factor in the toy market.

 

[GG-1]

. No battery operation, no fake poles, standard gauge, a real wig-wag, an operating birdcage signal, and no $76 (adult minimum, not including parking) to get in and ride 'em.

AND, no where NEAR the volume of people who will be exposed to the PE/rail/train/interrurban/ you name it, as will be who visit Disney.

As much as I dislike Thomas The Tank Engine, it's done more to interest the youngest generation in trains than anything since Lionel was a major factor in the toy market.

Aloha

While I understand Whooz's love and Appreciation for the real PE cars recognizing the number of people that never saw the real ones will learn about them from this exposure.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

Hmm. I have no idea if exposing Americans to more and more fake trains actually helps our cause any. I mean, the Disney monorail has been around for ages but I've yet to see anyone clamoring for more installations. Maybe the benefit of Thomas and company is more theoretical than actual.

 

[GG-1]

Hmm. I have no idea if exposing Americans to more and more fake trains actually helps our cause any. I mean, the Disney monorail has been around for ages but I've yet to see anyone clamoring for more installations. Maybe the benefit of Thomas and company is more theoretical than actual.

Aloha

I think you are missing the point of California Adventure at Disneyland. It is recreation, the celebration of what was California, what is California, and what may be California. The Disney Alweg Monorail design is having major success moving people safely. The world's other countries are building and operating many systems. What does this say about America. I have first hand knowledge of a child, that started with Thomas, and loves riding trains. At 8 last month she was part of a group of Adults, that road almost all of the trains in the Pacific Northwest and the Coast Starlight to and from there. She is talking about her next chance to ride a train. I hope you agree that

this is the future of American Rail travel and our generation better get it's act together so that she can.

Mahalo, And Aloha

 

[WhoozOn1st]

It's also an obvious shout-out to Roger Rabbit

In fact P.E. 717, seen in the replaced photo above, was the design basis for the streetcar replica seen in the movie. IIRC, though, the movie car was painted like 655, also seen above.

 

[Green Maned Lion]

Hmm. I have no idea if exposing Americans to more and more fake trains actually helps our cause any. I mean, the Disney monorail has been around for ages but I've yet to see anyone clamoring for more installations. Maybe the benefit of Thomas and company is more theoretical than actual.

Dude, the "monorail fallacy" has killed more intraurban rail startups than I can even think of off the top of my head. People clamor for them, wanting the "modern monorail" over the "old fashioned" train. And then the cost of implementation and so on kills the whole bloody project. Much like people wanting mass transit vehicles to be "green" (as in alternative fuel powered).

A while back I was trying to lobby for a bus from Red Bank station to Sandy Hook during the summer. Numerous Monmouth County school districts have school buses sitting idle doing absolutely nothing over the course of the summer. Nominal lease usage agreements could be established with the help of the Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeloader.. er, Freeholders, and start up summer transit using pre-existing equipment and operators interesting making some extra money to operate them. Limited cost of operation, and no capital investment (Red Bank station is already set up to handle several Monmouth Local NJTransit buses, and Sandy Hook has an internal bus system- and the bus stops to go with them- already in operation.). Bunch of fools killed the thing because they wanted the buses to be "green."

Never mind that the buses are much greener than the hundreds of cars it would replace waiting in line to get into Sandy Hook. Allright, jerks, temp paint the things green for the summer, but get it into operation!

Once they priced out the cost of hybrid buses for operating this summer-only service, plus the lost money of the things sitting around, and on and on like this, it went from being a low-cost nobrainer to being a mega expensive folly. And that killed it forevermore.