Streetcars in Washington, D.C.

Streetcars in Washington, D.C.
A Washington, D.C. street car, circa 1890
Overview
Transit type	Streetcar
Number of lines	in 1946: 17 in 1958: 15
Operation
Began operation	July 29, 1862 (horsecars) October 17, 1888 (electric)
Ended operation	? (horsecars) January 28, 1962 (electric)
Operator(s)	Capital Transit Company
Technical
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Electrification	600 volt DC conduit/overhead current collection

Streetcars in Washington, D.C. transported people across the city and region from 1862 until 1962.

The first streetcars in Washington, D.C., were horse-drawn and carried people short distances on flat terrain; but the introduction of cleaner and faster electric streetcars, capable of climbing steeper inclines, opened up development of the hilly terrain north of the old city and in Anacostia into streetcar suburbs. Several of the district's streetcar lines were extended into Maryland, and two Virginia lines crossed into the district, effectively expanding the urban population from a dense downtown core into today's Washington metropolitan area.

The city experimented briefly with cable cars, but by the beginning of the 20th century, the streetcar system was fully electrified. By 1901, a series of mergers dubbed the "Great Streetcar Consolidation" had gathered most local transit firms into two major companies: Capital Traction Company and Washington Railway and Electric Company. In 1933, a second consolidation brought all streetcars under one company, Capital Transit.

Over the next decades, the streetcar system shrank amid the growing usage of the automobile and pressure to switch to buses. After a strike in 1955, the company changed ownership and became DC Transit, with explicit instructions to switch to buses. The system was dismantled in the early 1960s; the last streetcar ran on January 28, 1962.

Today, some streetcars, car barns, trackage, stations, and rights-of-way exist in various states of usage. Visible remnants of tracks and conduit remain intact in the centers of O and P Streets NW between 33rd and 35th Streets NW in Georgetown. Remnants of tracks and conduit also remain visible near at an M Street door of the Georgetown Car Barn.