Little Rock — Car Barn to Expand

Rail Transit Online, March 2009

The Central Arkansas Transit Authority has awarded a $736,500 contract to CWR Construction of North Little Rock to build a 4,860-sq.-ft. (451.5 sq. meter) addition to the River Rail streetcar barn.

The extension will provide indoor storage for all five of CATA's Birney replica cars, manufactured by Gomaco; the existing 9,200-sq.-ft. (854.7 sq. meter) building has space for only four trolleys. In addition, there will be room to expand the fleet by three cars.

A design was approved in June 2007 along with a budget of $500,000 but changes were made so the building would blend with the Argenta Historic District. Higher costs for construction materials and inflation boosted the price tag by nearly
50 percent.