The High Level Bridge Streetcar is a historic streetcar ride over the High Level Bridge in

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city an ...

, Alberta. It travels from the Strathcona Streetcar Barn & Museum, just north of the Strathcona Farmers Market, in Old Strathcona, to Jasper Plaza south of

Jasper Avenue Jasper Avenue is an arterial road in central Edmonton, Alberta, and is the city's main street. Jasper Avenue has no official street number but is aligned with 101 Avenue with the majority of its length. Jasper Avenue is a major public tran ...

, between 109 Street and 110 Street, in downtown, with three intermediate stops. It operates between the

Victoria Day Victoria Day (french: Fête de la Reine, lit=Celebration of the Queen) is a federal Canadian public holiday celebrated on the last Monday preceding May 25. Initially in honour of Queen Victoria's birthday, it has since been celebrated as the off ...

weekend in May, and

Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in the United States, Canada, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Philippines. It is also observed in the Netherlander town of Leiden ...

weekend in October. It is operated by the Edmonton Radial Railway Society, which operates five more streetcars on a second line in the river valley at Fort Edmonton Park. Starting from a new terminus at Whyte Ave, the streetcar continues to the Strathcona Streetcar Barn & Museum, but only stop there when traveling north. From there, it travels on the former

Canadian Pacific The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

(CP) Rail line in a north west direction. It first passes the Calgary & Edmonton Railway Station Museum at present-day 105 Street; this is a replica of the station that was the northern anchor of the Calgary and Edmonton Railway from 1891 to 1908. After a level crossing stop at 107 Street, the streetcar goes under the Saskatchewan Drive, 109 Street, and Walterdale Hill intersection. While turning north, the middle stop is in the neighbourhood of Garneau at 90 Avenue, before getting on the High Level Bridge. After travelling high over the surface of the North Saskatchewan River, it continues over River Valley Road, and 97 Avenue, entering the Ribbon of Steel multi-use corridor. The Ribbon of Steel is a corridor designated by Alberta Infrastructure and the City of Edmonton for the preservation of streetcar rail in Edmonton, and to provide a running/cycling path between 109 Street and 110 Street, from 97 Avenue to

. The first stop on the Ribbon of Steel is the Government Centre stop, with walking access to the Government Centre station, and the

Legislature A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government. Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known ...

grounds. The northern terminus of the High Level Bridge Streetcar ride is at Jasper Plaza, just south of Jasper Avenue. The streetcar system that existed in Edmonton until 1951 ran through the downtown core, including down Jasper Avenue. The former rail line continued north, where 110 Street is now, to the Old Canadian National rail yard (north of 104 Avenue). The new Whyte Ave terminus opened on May 19, 2022, after the ERRS spent more than ten years working with other stakeholders to plan and construct the 800-metre extension. To do this, the rail crossing on Gateway Boulevard was reconstructed, after originally being removed in order to keep freight trains away from the streetcars when CP stopped running trains north of Whyte Ave. During summer festivals, such as the

Fringe Fringe may refer to: Arts * Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the world's largest arts festival, known as "the Fringe" * Adelaide Fringe, the world's second-largest annual arts festival * Fringe theatre, a name for alternative theatre * The Fringe, the ...

, service is extended to accommodate the increase in crowds.

Fleet

Three restored streetcars make up the fleet of Edmonton Radial Railway Society cars currently based at the High Level Bridge Streetcar line. *1912

St Louis Car Company The St. Louis Car Company was a major United States manufacturer of railroad passenger cars, streetcars, interurbans, trolleybuses and locomotives that existed from 1887 to 1974, based in St. Louis, Missouri. History The St. Louis Car Company ...

- Edmonton Radial Railway car 33 *1921 Umebachi/Sharyo -

Nankai Electric Railway is a private railway in Japan, founded in 1884. The name ''Nankai'' (which means "South Sea") comes from the company's routes along the Nankaidō, the old highway that ran south from the old capital, Kyoto, along the sea coast. Nankai predates a ...

(Osaka, Japan) tram #247 (pictured) (returned to service in 2018) *1947

Melbourne & Metropolitan Tramways Board The Melbourne & Metropolitan Tramways Board (MMTB) was a government-owned authority that was responsible for the tram network in Melbourne, Australia between 1919 and 1983, when it was merged into the Metropolitan Transit Authority. It had b ...

W6-class tram -

Public Transport Corporation The Public Transport Corporation (PTC) was a Victoria State Government owned statutory authority formed under the Transport Act 1983 which operated passenger and freight trains, trams and bus services. The PTC was also responsible for directly ...

(Melbourne, Australia) tram #930

References

External links

* {{Heritage Streetcars Transport in Edmonton Heritage railways in Alberta Streetcars in Canada Electric railways in Canada Street railways in Alberta