Premiere of ‘trackless trolleys’ wasn’t particularly electrifying
Muni’s big conversion to electric trolley buses in 1949 wasn’t a total disaster.
There were no bus-related fatalities on the day Market Street went electric — at least none that was covered by The Chronicle — and a few people reportedly did reach their destinations. But the level of comedy was high, and so was the resulting skepticism.
“The 7 was losing its wires so often at the corner of Shrader and Waller,” The Chronicle reported on July 4, 1949, the day after the system debuted, “that 16-year-old Ronald Rivio of 709 Shrader hung around the intersection nearly all day helping coach drivers restore the lines.”
The electric bus system, then known as “trackless trolleys,” had a lot at stake, and were not an instant hit. Before the end of the year, at least one city supervisor was calling for San Francisco Utilities Manager James H. Turner to be fired. But the risky move turned out to be one of the most prescient investments in the city’s transit history. More than 68 years later, the electric bus system remains a centerpiece of Muni’s
past, present and future.
The investment was proposed by Turner after voters granted the Municipal Railway a $20 million bond for a huge overhaul. A small number of trolley buses had existed in San Francisco since the 1930s, but the Turner plan included ripping out the tracks on Market and Mission streets, expanding the spiderweb of electric lines above city streets and purchasing hundreds of electric buses at $19,500 apiece.
The first two routes to be replaced were the Hayes and McAllister lines, which both had existed in San Francisco since the horse-drawn 1860s. The rails on the outer lanes of Market Street were torn out in both directions, as streetcars were replaced with the electric buses. After a month of tests, the system debuted to the public on July 3, 1949.
“The Municipal Railway today undergoes the most extensive change in its history and Muni officials won’t be at ease until the darned thing is over with,” The Chronicle reported. “As every San Franciscan must know by now, trackless trolley coaches will begin running up and down Market Street early this morning.”
Chronicle photos taken by Bob Campbell, home after photographing World War II, show a parade of older white men in suits and hats climbing aboard the first charter buses. The initial fleet of 50 forest green coaches lined the curbs of Market Street for blocks along the then-thriving movie theater row.
Not surprisingly, in an era when most new automobiles got less than 15 miles per gallon, nobody was talking about the environmental benefits of an electric bus system. Turner used lower maintenance and operational costs, and the superior hill-climbing power of the electric vehicles, to sell the changes. In a dozen Chronicle articles about the planning and implementation of the system, the only reference to elimination of emissions was a brief mention that the inside of the vehicles might smell better.
While the problems with the buses themselves were mostly limited to the wires, departments outside the Municipal Railway seemed woefully unprepared. No one in the Department of Public Works applied paint or signs at the bus stops, and confused passengers reportedly wandered the streets unsure where the vehicles might stop.
“Patrons were uncertain at just which corners they were supposed to board the coaches, and in some cases even the drivers themselves weren’t sure,” The Chronicle reported.
Turner and Municipal Railway Manager William H. Scott received criticism from local Carmen’s union members who operated the streetcars and had strongly resisted the electric bus conversion. (Each streetcar used two union operators, while buses only needed one.) The electric bus system initially had a lower-than-expected passenger count, and the $20 million ran out before some plans were completed.
“I can’t see any reason for pouring more money down the transit rathole,” Supervisor Don Fazackerley said in August 1949.
But by mid-1950, the trolley bus system was reportedly thriving, and Turner’s legacy was solidified. The manager also fought for lower fares throughout his 13 years supervising Muni, publicly disagreeing when fares doubled to 10 cents in 1948 and staving off efforts to raise them even higher.
But his greatest achievement was a commitment to the city’s transit future. San Francisco remains as one of a handful of big cities still using its trolley system. And while there’s talk of removing the overhead wires and relying solely on battery power, San Francisco’s electric bus future has no end in sight.