Meet Tim Borchers: the Man at the Controls of the Loop Trolley Project

A couple years from now when you're watching the eclectic shops of St. Louis' Loop glide by from the seat of a streetcar, you'll have one man to thank. Yes, unofficial Loop Mayor Joe Edwards of Blueberry Hill and The Pageant fame, had the vision for what he calls the trolley more than a decade ago and many others will have helped guide (and fund) the project by the time you're sitting in your air-conditioned seat, but the person who will make this streetcar work is Tim Borchers.

Tim is a streetcar builder and operator. When steel wheels hit the rails, he's in charge. So who is Tim Borchers? A self-ascribed "Streetcar, Trolley & Tramway Specialist", he has spent 32 years in the industry, working first with the Bendigo Tramways in his native Australia. In fact, he still owns a home just steps from the tram in Bendigo, a town of nearly 100,000 sitting 150km north of Melbourne. Beginning as a tram mechanic, Tim became superintendent of the tramway in 1999. He's also worked in London, Berlin and elsewhere around the world as a build consultant and troubleshooter.