New Haven — Starter Streetcar Proposed

Rail Transit Online, October 2010

A three-mile (4.8 km) streetcar line linking downtown with Union Station and the medical district was unveiled by consultant URS Corp. at a public meeting on Sept. 23, with most members of the 50-person audience expressing support for a rail revival; the city's original streetcar system was scrapped in 1948. Many who spoke at the meeting thought the starter line didn't go far enough and suggested extensions into other parts of the city core.

The primarily one-way loop would have 12 stops and run north from Union Station on Church and Whitney streets to Science Hill, then turn south on Temple Street with a jog through the medical district and back along Church to Union Station. City planners see an opportunity to expand the streetcar regionally to Hamden and West Haven (8-9 mi.,12.9-14.5 km). The estimated cost for the starter segment is $30 million, and Mayor John DeStefano is seeking two-thirds of that from a federal grant.

www .cityofnewhaven.com/streetcarmap