7-mile Streetcar Envisioned to Connect Old North, Downtown, Midtown and Central West End

What started simply as an idea to increase connectivity of the Central Core of St. Louis has now culminated in the impending release of the first phase of a study for a seven mile streetcar line. In June of 2012, The partnership for Downtown St. Louis lined up private funding for a $200,000 streetcar study and issued a Request for Qualifications. Out of the responses to the RFQ, URS Corp was selected to carry out the feasibility study. The study was meant to take a broad look at the feasibility of a hypothetical streetcar line- determine the best location, make preliminary estimates of construction costs, estimate potential ridership, determine the ability to spur new development, and calculate the competitiveness of the proposal for Federal and local funding. All images here are from that feasibility study. The study and details of a public open house scheduled for March 7 can be found below.

Streetcars have become the next big thing in mass transportation for cities. Currently, cities such as Atlanta, Cincinnati, Milwaukee, and even Tucson, AZ are considering streetcar lines. Closer to home, Kansas City, MO has approved a two mile line, and is studying a second phase. There is much competition for Federal Funding, at both the Small Starts and New Starts level. URS and The Partnership appear to have developed a solid plan with overall numbers that look realistic, but are still competitive for funding. Let’s dig in and take a closer look at the St. Louis Streetcar Plan.