Pennsylvania Should Embrace Its Heritage by Restoring Railways
Streetcars were once a ubiquitous presence in Pennsylvania’s cities and towns. This mode of transport – a symbol of America’s booming industrial age – was born in Scranton, which became known as “The Electric City” when it opened the first continuously operating electric trolley system in 1886. Soon thereafter, Scranton inspired dozens of other rail projects. By World War I, Pennsylvania was crisscrossed with trolleys, light rails, and interurbans.
The old streetcars didn’t just serve Pennsylvania’s industrial cities, which were exploding with population growth and immigrant labor by the early twentieth century. The Wilkes-Barre & Hazleton Railway (the WB&H), for instance – an innovative third-rail system inspired by Thomas Edison – transported people through rugged mining “patch” towns and farming areas. Riegelsville – then an industrial settlement along the Delaware Canal in what was rural Bucks County – was part of a regional electric trolley line between Doylestown and the Lehigh Valley’s Easton. Back then, before Bucks became a suburban extension of Philadelphia, “people could ride an electric streetcar on tracks along a dirt road (today’s Route 611) that passed through Plumsteadville, Pipersville, Ottsville, Ferndale, Riegelsville and other country villages on the way to Easton,” recounted one local correspondent.
Today, the Doylestown-to-Easton line is relegated to black-and-white photos. Remnants of the old WB&H, meanwhile, can be found near southern Luzerne County’s growing industrial parks. From northeastern Pennsylvania to the Lehigh Valley, people now rely on buses for public transportation.
The disappearance of regional trolleys, and the diminished transportation options that followed their demise, may not be a problem for those accustomed to driving and the associated costs of car ownership. But as shown by fine-grained transit maps from a time before widespread automobile ownership, nearly anybody could once travel by streetcar through the countryside, midsize towns, and larger cities. This capability signaled broad freedom of movement – and the cultural and economic opportunities that accompany it – without ownership of, or even access to, a private vehicle. In some ways, then, urban and rural settlements were more connected in the past than they are now.
This still matters today. The Keystone State, with its innovations in urban transportation and well-preserved cities of all sizes, deserves transportation to match. And as a new wave of growth crests – particularly in the eastern half once crisscrossed by affordable and convenient rail – Pennsylvania will need an alternative to more cars clogging highways. The state should aim to reduce traffic congestion and enhance mobility for families and commuters.
The restoration of old streetcars remains unlikely, though examples still exist. Maryland’s Purple Line, a metro Washington, D.C.-area light rail project that will connect a number of suburban communities, represents one promising venture. For a time, there was even talk about restoring Hershey, Pennsylvania’s long-ago trolley network. But as Arlington County, Virginia’s Mobility Lab argues, what we really miss is not so much the streetcars themselves but the “frequent and reliable” service in getting from Point A to Point B. “The role that interurbans played in American life has never truly been replaced by succeeding modes,” wrote Vince Guerrieri in Bloomberg CityLab.
Never say never. But a more realistic prospect for enhancing alternatives to driving could be Amtrak expansions, two of which are currently under consideration. One proposal – considered intermittently for years – is a rail link between New York City and Scranton, with three Pennsylvania stations in between. Another proposal would link Reading with Philadelphia. Both routes once existed. Their restoration would reproduce some of the regional connectivity that Pennsylvania’s erstwhile transportation network once exemplified.
Amtrak rides are hardly an exact substitute. But with their numerous stops, they represent the possibility of restoring rail to areas that have fallen off the transportation map. And questions of inconvenience, such as ticket costs and even speed, are easier to remedy than rebuilding lost rights of way. If these new routes are opened, they could help Pennsylvania consider alternatives to cars and lay a political foundation for future options.
Public transportation should be more than just a hub-and-spoke commuter amenity or a perfunctory and unreliable welfare program. As much of Pennsylvania grows, we should reflect on those old trolley lines – and ask ourselves whether our transit future should look a little more like its electric past.
Addison Del Mastro writes on urbanism and cultural history. He writes daily at Substack. Follow him on Twitter @ad_mastro.
