Trolleys

This is the view I remember; southbound on Atlantic Ave. in Longport. —Who knows, that may be my grandfather coming down the street in that Buick. The picture is September 5, 1953. Beyond here, the tracks are right next to the bay. (Photo by Edward S. Miller.)

A few weeks ago a book resurfaced that I had bought a few years ago at a regular monthly meeting of the Rochester Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society.
The National Railway Historical Society is nationwide, and has chapters all over the country.
I guess the Rochester Chapter is one of the originals; it was founded in 1937. NRHS was founded in 1935.
The Rochester Chapter is an agglomeration of local railfans, many older than me — I’m almost 66.
“I was there when that Thruway was built, you pups!”
“So was I, George. I remember having to detour on Route 31.”
I don’t get to attend the meetings of the Rochester Chapter because they’re the same day and time as the regular monthly business meetings of my old bus-union at Regional Transit.
Informational presentations are given at Chapter meetings, and if interesting enough I might attend a Chapter meeting instead of my union meeting.
I attended a chapter meeting a few years ago, and they were selling books. The book I bought that recently resurfaced is “New Jersey Trolleys,” essentially a color picture-book.
By the middle ‘40s most trolleys were gone, but in Jersey they lasted a while longer.
Philadelphia still has trolley service.
Buses were much more flexible, assuming an adequate highway system was in place.
Trolleys can’t take detours, or steer around impediments.
The advantage of trolleys was their ability to operate over poor highways; often muddy and manure-sodden.
But a massive amount of infrastructure was required; mainly trackage and usually a power-source — most often overhead wiring from a power station.
Huge gangs of maintainers had to keep up a trolley system; trackage and that power supply.
With buses and a viable highway system they were no longer needed.
And buses weren’t constrained to a predetermined pathway.
Yet trolleys lasted much later in Jersey.
Late enough for me to have rode ‘em.
And trolleys were on railroad track, although lightly constructed. Attractive to a railfan.
In the late ‘40s when I was about four or five my parents used to take me to the Jersey seashore, my Aunt Lizzie’s house in Longport (“LONG-port”).
Longport is south of Atlantic City, but on the same spit of land.
I think it’s an island, but not a barrier island.
Various towns march south of Atlantic City; Margate (“MARR-gate”), Ventnor (“VENT-ner”), and farthest south Longport.
At that time trolleys were still in use, Atlantic City down to Longport, although there were return loops at Margate and Ventnor. It was called Atlantic City Transportation.
My Aunt Lizzie was a sister of my paternal grandfather; although I’m not sure of that — never was. Too young, I guess.
She lived on Atlantic Ave., the main drag, and the trolley was right in front of her house.
Two tracks too. The entire route.


A Brilliner. (Photo by Al Holtz.)

Part was private right-of-way up north; not in the street.
It was actually a railroad right-of-way, part of an endeavor to bring railroads into Atlantic City in the 1850s, which is why Atlantic City even exists.
Trolley service was built to Longport; a way of carrying Philadelphians to the beach.
The tracks were laid far enough apart to pass railroad freightcars.
And that’s what that railroad service was at first, a way to get Philadelphians to the beach in summer, when Philly was an oven of sweat.
But by the late 1940s Atlantic Ave. was paved, and people got around in automobiles.
Our way to Aunt Lizzie’s was my grandfather’s Packard, but an el-cheapo Packard. He couldn’t afford a grand Packard.
Trolley service continued to hang on to Longport; I suppose partly because of the equipment they had, mainly Brilliners (“BRILL-liner;” pictured above).
As a response to buses, which rode better and looked more attractive than trolleys, a commission of designers was set up by a conference of streetcar line presidents, to design a better trolley.

All PCC cars; the green ones ex-Philly.

Their outcome was the PCC car (“Presidents’ Conference Committee”).
The main advantage was rubber in the trolley wheels, that toned down racket and rode better.
Brill Company in Philadelphia was a longtime builder of trolley-cars, so set about designing competition.
Their competition was the Brilliner. It too had rubber in the trolley wheels to ride better.
Atlantic City Transportation also had older trolley-cars.
But I was scared of ‘em; too noisy and clunky.
I preferred the Brilliners.
It was mainly my grandparents who rode me on ‘em.
Fare was around 10¢; that’s what the sign says in one picture — but not the picture below, which says 7¢.
That’s back when a penny was worth something. —Bus-fare in Rochester is $1, and that’s dirt-cheap by intent.
Even rode it all-the-way to the Longport Loop south of my Aunt Lizzie’s.
I think my parents even rode me on it once.
Taking the trolley up to Atlantic City meant not having to park your car.


Two Brilliners pass in Atlantic City — “Inlet” is the north end. (“Fare ready please; 7¢.”) (Photo by R. Fillman.)

• “Thruway” is the New York State Thruway; Interstate 90 west of Albany, and Interstate 87 to New York City.
• For 16&1/2 years (1977-1993) I drove transit bus for Regional Transit Service, the transit-bus operator in Rochester, NY.
• I am a railfan, and have been since I was a child.
• Most south Jersey seashore resorts are on “barrier islands;” an island separated from the mainland by a wide bay. Atlantic City is not on a barrier island. It’s beach is essentially the same as a “barrier island,” but it’s connected to the mainland. There’s no bay at Atlantic City.