The Prague Post Online: News: Czech trams head for Washington

November 23rd, 2008

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Prague Property

Czech trams head for Washington

After success in Oregon, Škoda trams to debut in U.S. capital

June 11th, 2008 issue

By James Tressler

COURTESY PHOTO

Streetcars that Washington, D.C., purchased for $10 million are still in Ostrava while Washington awaits bids for the construction of suitable tracks.

For the Post

Talk to many Americans who’ve lived in Prague — or anywhere in Europe, for that matter — and sooner or later they’ll comment on how nice the trams are.

Take Reuben Berger, an American who has lived in the Czech capital for three years and takes trams to his various English-teaching jobs. “They’re great,” he said during a cell phone conversation from a tram. “And it’s not just the convenience. I also feel better about not creating as much pollution.”

When choosing the next place he’ll live, Berger will look for a city with good public transportation — and now he may be able to find some new options back in the United States.

Washington, D.C., has set its sights on a streetcar line — and has gone so far as to invest nearly $10 million (160 million Kč) for three trams from the Czech Republic. But there’s a hitch. Although the trams, or streetcars, were bought three years ago, the track on which the trams will run has yet to be built in the U.S. capital.

Manufactured through a now-defunct joint venture between Škoda and Inekon, the trams are still in the Czech Republic, stored at the Ostrava Transport Company. Fortunately the trams are under warranty and, like cars, are taken out regularly (without passengers) to keep them in good condition and tested. They are expected to be moved to Washington later this year.

While Milan Haloun, sales director of Inekon Group, says Washington invited bids to build a new rail line in April, D.C. Department of Transportation Director Emeka Moneme has told news media that no timetable has been set for the tracks’ installation, but he hopes the city will focus on the project this summer.

Czech exports

Until the triumph of the automobile, trams were a staple of many U.S. cities. These days, although some like San Francisco and New Orleans (locale of Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire) still operate lines, most cities are light years behind their European counterparts in terms of public transportation.

There are signs that America is catching up, however. About a dozen other U.S. cities, including Baltimore, San Diego, Los Angeles and Minneapolis, have light-rail systems, and at least 80 cities are studying the idea of streetcars.

Portland, Oregon, for one, has a tram program up and running — and it uses cars made in the Czech Republic. Covering 7.2 miles, the rail system is a loop that includes a hospital, several waterfront neighborhoods and a university. The first streetcars were purchased from Škoda-Inekon in 2001, and more were added last year. A similar system, also using Škoda-Inekon cars, currently operates in Tacoma, Washington.

And now, Washington, D.C., is joining the list.

“The district purchased the streetcars from the Czech Republic because it had an opportunity to participate in a procurement that was under way with the city of Portland,” said Freddie Fuller, a spokesman for the D.C. Department of Transportation. “By participating in Portland’s procurement, it helped expedite the process for the district.”

Fuller added that, while he personally is not familiar with Prague’s tram system, he has used trams in other European cities, such as Bordeaux, France.

“We’re really intrigued with their wireless propulsion system,” he said.

Limited opportunity

Overall, the trend toward a streetcar revival in U.S. cities — or at least the effort to modernize public transportation — would seem to indicate that Czech manufacturers like Škoda are poised to benefit.

“By winning a tender in the United States, Škoda is tapping into a potentially lucrative market that remained elusive to this point,” Škoda spokeswoman Radka Pistoriusová told The Prague Post last year following the Portland deal. “[Trams] currently account for some 50 percent to 60 percent of our production.”

Because of a strict federal “Buy America” law, though, the majority of trams in the United States must be made, meaning opportunities for companies like Škoda to crack the market have limits.

Meanwhile, Berger says a U.S. streetcar revival sounds interesting, but, for now, he’s still weighing his options.

“Actually I’m thinking about going to Moscow first,” he said.

James Tressler can be reached at news@praguepost.com

Reader's comments:

add your comment

[13:41 16/06/2008] : You forgot New Orleans.
New Orleans has always had a streetcar system operating in and around the center.
Since right before Hurricane Katrina, more lines were added and the undercarriage and the mechanics were built here, while the car itself (seats, etc.) are produced in New Orleans.
I remember being there one Christmas and seeing a streetcar wiz by with Ceska Republika blazing across the side.
I went to the streetcar garage and asked about it and was told that it was a test car.

John Breaux
Prague

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