Philadelphia Suburban Transportation Company
Red Arrow Lines
Car #73

Trolley Display Building, 2005 (John Smatlak photo)

At Drexeline, as the Media Mall Shuttle under SEPTA, 1973 (Richard L. Allman photo)

 

Car Number 73 Car Builder J.G. Brill Company
Year Built 1926 Year Acquired 1990
Type DE Center Door Suburban Seats 62
Length 47'10" Width 8'7"
Height 12'5" Weight 59,280 lbs (29 tons)
Max Speed XX mph Status Stored inoperable, Trolley Display Building

Philadelphia Suburban Transportation Company (Red Arrow Lines) car 73 is a sister to regularly operated car 66.  It is important to the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum's collection because it will enable the operation of two-car trains, just as Red Arrow did at times of heavy traffic.

Several of these cars were retained by the company into the late 1960s specifically for school trips and inclement weather operations, but by 1970 most had been sold off or scrapped.  Car 73 was refurbished in 1972 by the transit authority (SEPTA) and the local business association as the centerpiece of a "Media Mall" promotion in that suburban community - the regular streetcar would turn back at the edge of town, and riders would transfer to 73 for the trip down the main street.

After the novelty wore off and regular trolley service was resumed in Media, car 73 was retained for charter and work service for another decade.  It came to the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum in 1990.

Click on the thumbnails below for larger photos (will open in new window):

 

 
  Car 73 approaching  Llanerch car barn January 1961
(David H. Cope photo)		 Car 73, on West Chester Pike at Darby Road
(Miller Library, PTM)		  

 

Last updated October 17, 2005
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