Hamilton Street Railway

Hamilton Street Railway

New Flyer C40LF #510213 on the 5C route in downtown Hamilton.
Founded	1874
Headquarters	2200 Upper James St.
Locale	Hamilton, Ontario
Service area	Hamilton, Stoney Creek, Dundas, Ancaster and Burlington.
Service type	Public Transit
Routes	34 + 2 seasonal
Fleet	190 buses[1]
Fuel type	Diesel, CNG, Diesel-electric
Operator	City of Hamilton
Website	www.hamilton.ca/HSR/

The Hamilton Street Railway Company (HSR) is the Transit Division of the City of Hamilton, Public Works Department ^[2] in Ontario, Canada. The name is a legacy of the days when the majority of public transit vehicles were streetcars; the present-day Hamilton Street Railway is in fact a bus operator. The HSR transports about 21 million passengers a year.^[1]

History

From 1873 to 1889, the HSR was owned by Lyman Moore and operated as a private business. In 1889 HSR was sold to Hamilton Cataract Interests, later known as Dominion Power and Transmission Company. The HSR was later acquired by Ontario Hydro.

Provincial ownership ended in 1946 when HSR was bought by Canada Coach Lines. CCL was purchased by the city of Hamilton in 1960. Hamilton-Wentworth Region began ownership of CCL and HSR in 1977.

Other streetcar systems

Hamilton & Dundas Street Railway	1873-1923
Hamilton, Grimsby & Beamsville Electric Railway	1891-1931
Hamilton Radial Electric Railway	1893-1925
Brantford & Hamilton Electric Railway	1896-1931
Hamilton Terminal Company	1907-1930s

Services

Bus routes

No.	Name	Inner Terminal	Outer Terminal	Notes
1	King	Hamilton GO Centre	Eastgate Square	Sunday service extends to Fiesta Mall.
1A	King	McMaster University Medical Centre	Eastgate Square	Weekday service only.
2	Barton	Hamilton GO Centre	Bell Manor Loop
3	Cannon	Hamilton GO Centre	Reid & Dunsmure
4	Bayfront	Downtown	Mt. Albion Loop
5 52	Delaware Main West-Dundas	King & Jones	Head Street Loop or Pirie & Governors	Route 5 runs eastbound, Route 52 runs westbound. Alternating trips to Head Street Loop or Pirie & Governors
5A 5C	Delaware West Hamilton	Greenhill & Cochrane	West Hamilton Loop or The Meadowlands	Route 5A runs eastbound, Route 5C runs westbound. Alternating trips to West Hamilton Loop or The Meadowlands. Full day service to The Meadowlands on weekends begins Sept. 2, 2012.[3]
5B 5E	Delaware Main West-University Plaza	Quigley & Greenhill	University Plaza	Route 5E runs eastbound, Route 5B runs westbound
6	Aberdeen	Downtown	Princess Point Loop
7	Locke	Downtown	Hillcrest Loop
8	York	Downtown	Lamoreaux & Strathcona
9	Rock Gardens	Downtown	Holy Sepulchre Cemetery	Service operates on Sundays and holidays from May through November. Travels to Burlington.
10	B-Line	Eastgate Square	University Plaza	Weekday express service.
10A	B-Line	Eastgate Square	McMaster University Medical Centre	Weekday express service.
11	Parkdale	Valley Park Loop	Burlington Bus Terminal	Only daily route that travels to Burlington. Does not serve Downtown.
12	Wentworth	Wentworth & Mars	Victoria & King	Counterclockwise loop. Route only operates on weekdays, with no midday service.
16	Ancaster	The Meadowlands	Wilson & Garner	No Sunday service. Does not serve Downtown.
18	Waterdown	Waterdown & Parkside	Aldershot GO Station	Weekday peak hour service only. Does not serve Downtown.
20	A-Line	Downtown	Hamilton International Airport	Weekday peak hour express service.
21	Upper Kenilworth	Downtown	Mountain Brow Loop
22	Upper Ottawa	Downtown	Mountain Business Park
23	Upper Gage	Downtown	Upper Gage & Rymal
24	Upper Sherman	Downtown	Upper Gage & Rymal
25	Upper Wentworth	Downtown	Lime Ridge Mall
26	Upper Wellington	Downtown	Lime Ridge Mall
27	Upper James	Downtown	Mountain Transit Centre
33	Sanatorium	Downtown	Scenic & Lavander Loop
34	Upper Paradise	Downtown	Glancaster Loop	No Sunday service.
34A	Upper Paradise	Downtown	Upper Horning Loop
35	College	Downtown	St. Elizabeth Village Loop
41	Mohawk	The Meadowlands	Gage & Industrial	Does not serve Downtown.
41A	Mohawk	Chedoke Hospital	Gage & Industrial	Does not serve Downtown.
43	Stone Church	Highland & Aubrey	The Meadowlands	Saturday evening and Sunday(from 9:30AM–6:00PM) service begins Sept. 2, 2012.[4] Does not serve Downtown.
44	Rymal	Eastgate Square	Ancaster Business Park	Weekday service from 5:40AM–9:40PM begins Sept. 4, 2012.[5] Does not serve Downtown.
51	University	Hamilton GO Centre	West Hamilton Loop	No Sunday or summer service.
52A	Dundas Local	York & Watson's Loop	Pleasant & Orchard	Weekday peak hour service only. Does not serve Downtown.
55	Stoney Creek Central	Eastgate Square	Hwy 8 & Jones	Via Queenston & Barton. Does not serve Downtown.
55A	Stoney Creek Central	Eastgate Square	Levi Loop	Does not serve Downtown.
56	Centennial	Eastgate Square	Lakeland Loop	Summer extension to Confederation Park. Does not serve Downtown.
58	Stoney Creek Local	Eastgate Square	Hwy 8 & Jones	Via Centennial & King. Does not serve Downtown.
99	Waterfront Shuttle	Downtown	Pier 8	Seven-day summer-only service.

Route histories

In the early 1990s the HSR eliminated many routes by expanding current routes. The following is a list of replaced and withdrawn routes:

HSR replaced and withdrawn routes
1 King	This route had two previous ends of line during this time: 1B King-Reid and 1 King (to Donn Avenue in Stoney Creek). The 1B was replaced by extended service to Eastgate Square and it was changed to 1A King and the 1 King to Donn Avenue was moved to a new terminal at the Fiesta Mall. The 1A operated Monday to Saturday between Eastgate Square and downtown Hamilton and the 1 King operated Sundays only from Fiesta Mall and downtown.
2 Barton	Trips alternated between Melvin & Osborne (2C Barton-Talbot) and the Bell Manor Loop near Grays Road (near the Hamilton/Stoney Creek border). All trips were extended to the Bell Manor Loop.
15 Sherman/Ottawa	Replaced (on Ottawa Street only) first by 4 Bayfront, then 53 Burlington, and eventually 41 Mohawk.
17 Ancaster Local	Withdrawn due to low ridership.
18 Waterdown	Eliminated to Aldershot GO Station due to low ridership and not replaced; reinstated September 2008.
31 Fennell	Replaced by 21 Upper Kenilworth (service moved from Concession Street to Fennell Avenue) and 41 Mohawk (now serving Kenilworth Avenue and Ottawa Street).
32 Garth	Replaced by 35 College (which was extended south of Mohawk College).
45 Limeridge	Eliminated without replacement because Limeridge Road was closed as a through street.
53 Burlington	Replaced by 41 Mohawk (now serving Ottawa Street) and 11 Parkdale (which was extended into Burlington).
57 Nash	Replaced by 4 Bayfront (now serving Nash Road and Quigley Road to Mount Albion Loop).
59 Frances Ave	Four month trial route from October 2, 1989 - February 4, 1990.

Streetcar routes

The HSR operated horsecars from 1874 to 1892 and electric streetcars from 1892 to 1951. Trolleybuses replaced streetcars in Hamilton in 1951.

Streetcar routes in Hamilton prior to 1951
Belt Line 1913-1946 (Red Line) James St 1874 King St 1874 Bartonville shuttle 1907 Burlington-Westdale 1941-1946 (Green Line) James Street North 1874 - later as Westdale-James North Burlington Street 1896 - opened by Hamilton Radial Electric Railway; later as Burlington-James South (Yellow Line) King Street West & Westdale 1874 - later as Westdale-James North 1930 Aberdeen-King West 1874-1947 (Yellow Line) York Street 1874 Herkimer Street between James and Queen 1883 - renamed King West-York 1892 (Green Line) Aberdeen late 1870s by Hamilton & Dundas Street Railway; later acquired by HSR and mergered by West Hamilton 1923; renamed Aberdeen-Stuart York & Aberdeen 1930 - replaced Aberdeen-Stuart line; sections closed 1939 and ceased operations along entire route 1947 Crosstown (Sanford) Shuttle 1924-1948 Firestone shuttle 1927-1939 Wentworth 1874-1913 - renamed Wentworth-Stuart and used until 1942

Trolleybus routes

Trolleybuses were used by the HSR from 1951 to 1992 along the following routes:

Trolleybus routes of the HSR from 1951 to 1992
King-Barton later as 1 King - until 1987 later as 2 Barton - until 1992 Cannon 1951-1989 later 3 Cannon

Trans-Cab

Introduced in 1998 as a two-year pilot project, Trans-Cab is a shared-ride taxi service between HSR and specific local taxi providers, currently offered in portions of Glanbrook and Stoney Creek.

Accessible transportation

Accessible Transportation Services (ATS) is the section that administers a variety of accessible services on behalf of the City

• Accessible low-floor (ALF) buses provide level entry and exit to accommodate wheelchairs and walkers. It is anticipated that the entire HSR fleet will be accessible by 2009.
• Disabled and Aged Regional Transportation System (DARTS) is a non profit charitable organization that is the paratransit service provider.
• Taxi Scrip program provides discounted taxi coupons for ATS registered persons who are unable to access regular transit buses.

Rapid Transit

Hamilton is considering the use of LRT in the city,^[6] and is working with Metrolinx on a plan to get an LRT with 15 years after plans are approved.

The planned BLAST network routes may include:^[7]

• B-Line – Main/King corridor from McMaster University to Eastgate Square
• L-Line – Downtown to Waterdown
• A-Line – James/Upper James corridor from Downtown to John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport
• S-Line – Centennial to Ancaster Business Park
• T-Line – Mohawk to Meadowlands

No vehicles have been chosen, but it may be similar to the Flexity Outlook under the proposed Transit City.

Plans to use the UTDC ICTS technology were scrapped in the 1980s, and no lines were created for the HSR.

Facilities

Barns/garages

• 1875 first horsebarn opens
• 1887 second horsebarn opens
• 1889 Sanford Avenue carhouse opens
• 1927 - 1990 Wentworth Street North carbarn/garage opens (machine shops, etc.)
• 1984-1996;1998 to present Mountain Regional Transit Centre on Upper James Street
• 1990 - 1998 Wentworth Street Transit Centre

Loops

Location	Type	Notes
Barton & Bell Manor Loop	bus
CNIB/Main West Loop	bus
Dundurn Loop	bus	Locke Route; technically terminus for three-point-turn
Glancaster Road Loop	bus
Guise Loop	streetcar
Kenilworth & Barton	trolleybus	short turn loop
Kenilworth & Cannon	trolleybus	short turn loop
King & James turntable	streetcar
Lakeland Loop	bus
Levi Loop	bus
Main & London	trolleybus	King route short turn loop
Princess Point Loop	bus
Queenston Loop	bus	no longer used; replaced with Fiesta Mall)
Scenic & Lavender Loop	bus
Strathearne Loop	trolleybus	Strathearne & Roxborough Ave; no longer used
Titan Loop	bus
Valley Park Loop	bus
West Hamilton Loop	bus
Westdale Loop	streetcar

Terminals and connections

HSR routes from downtown to the Mountain (20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 33, and 35) currently use MacNab Transit Terminal, while several lower city routes (4, 6, 7, 8 and 9) have an on-street terminal layover at the intersection of Main and James Streets. 34 has a layover location on King at James.

HSR connects with GO Transit at Hamilton GO Centre, which serves as the terminus for four HSR routes (1, 2, 3, and 51). The station, located at 36 Hunter Street East, a few blocks south of King and James, is the terminus of the GO's Lakeshore West railway line and Express Highway 407 and Queen Elizabeth Way GO Buses. It is also the main Greyhound Lines bus stop (mainly serving London, Ontario and those connections) in Hamilton. Canada Coach Lines, once owned by HSR, is now served by Coach Canada, formerly Trentway-Wagar, and operates routes between Kitchener-Waterloo, Guelph, and Niagara. It is also the former Toronto, Hamilton and Buffalo Railway (TH&B) passenger station, and there is a small museum above the public concourse. HSR routes 2 and 4 also connect with GO at Barton Street & Nash Road in East Hamilton, where a GO bus travels between there and the Burlington GO Station.

At the Mountain Transit Centre transfer point (served by route 27) and a contract with Blue Line Taxi, the HSR also connects with other areas in the northwest portion of the former Glanbrook Township.

In addition, the HSR is connected with Burlington Transit, as one route (11 Parkdale) travels into Burlington via Burlington Beach, 18 Waterdown connects with BT at Aldershot GO Station, and BT Route 1 enters downtown Hamilton from Plains Road West. Also '9 Rock Gardens' travels into Burlington going into the Royal Botanical Gardens during the summer months.

Other terminals and loops

Location	Routes
Bell Manor Loop	2, 55A
Eastgate Transit Terminal	1, 10, 44, 55/55A, 56, 58
Glancaster Loop	34, Redeemer University College Shuttle (limited service)
Limeridge Transit Terminal	25, 26, 41/41A, 43, Mohawk East Extra Shuttle
McMaster University	1A, 10A, 5A/5C, 51 run through or terminate at the University 5B/5E, 10, 52 pass nearby on Main Street GO Transit bus service to & from Burlington GO Station
Meadowlands	5A/5C, 16, 41, 43, Redeemer University College Shuttle (limited service)
Upper Horning Loop	34A
West Hamilton Loop	5C, 51

Fares

Fare Class	Single fare			Monthly pass		Annual pass
(Age group)	Cash	Ticket	PRESTO	Paper	PRESTO	Paper
Adult	$2.55	$2.00	$2.00	$87.00	$87.00	n/a
Student (13 to 19)	$2.55	$1.65	$1.65	$71.00	$71.00	n/a
Senior (65 to 79)	$2.55	n/a	$1.65	n/a	$20.55	$205.00
Golden Age (80+)	$2.55	n/a	$1.65	n/a	Senior	Free
Appropriate identification must be provided. Fares as of January, 2013[8]

Metrolinx and HSR have partnered to operate the Presto electronic fare card. The project aims to standardize fare collection systems across transit agencies in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area. The system is currently operational.^[9]

Gallery

• 

  Two of the Hamilton Street Railway’s former Flyer E800 trolleybuses are preserved at the Halton County Radial Railway museum.

• 

  Hamilton Street Railway Orion V 8907 on the 34A route at the intersection of King and James Streets in downtown Hamilton.

• 

  New Flyer D40LFs like this one seen at McMaster University form much of the HSR’s recent bus fleet.

• 

  In 2007, the HSR introduced articulated hybrid buses for the route 10 Beeline Express.

• 

  Route 99 - Waterfront Shuttle (2008).

Vehicles

HSR also once operated horsecar (1873–1892) and streetcar (1892–1951) lines (hence the name). Trolleybuses were also run on a routes 1 King, 2 Barton and 3 Cannon from 1951 to 1988 - the trolleys lasted on route 2 Barton until 1993. Today HSR is exclusively a transit bus operator and plans to make the entire fleet accessible by 2009.

Rail

Horsecars Stevenson & Co. closed horsecar 6 - June 1874 4 - December 1874 J. G. Brill and Company closed horsecar 1876 Jones's Sons Company closed horsecar 1879, 1890 (5) Jones's Sons Company open horsecar 1889, 1890 (6) J. G. Brill and Company open horsecar 1886 unknown builders of open and closed horsecars 1884 unknown builder, 4 closed and 1 open 1887 unknown builder, 3 closed and 4 open 1888 Allen horsecar sleigh 1881 and 1884 Jones sleigh 1877 (3) Jones sleigh 1879 (4)

Streetcars Paterson & Corbin Line car 1908 Line car /896 Preston Car Company closed car Preston car 1912 DEST closed 1912 28 DEDT closed 1912 DEST Paye G.C. Kuhlman Car Company ST closed sweeper 1908 18 ex-Cleveland cars 1902 Laconia Car Company closed car 1 DT/DEcar 1907 - ex Boston 16 Ottawa Car Company DT/DE closed car 1910 sweeper McGuire-Cummings Manufacturing Company sweeper 1916 Jones SE closed car 5 Jones ST open closed car open car DT closed 10 DT open cars 1900 24 National Steel Car SEDT closed 1927 11 NSC DT/SE 1928 11 NSC DT/SE 1929 Laconia Car Company DEDT 15 ex-open horse cars 10 ex-closed ST horsecars 1 ST sand car 5 ex-Brooklyn Rapid Transit Co 10 bench cars 1904 10 ex-BRT Co cars 1905 1 DT closed car from Boston 1906 1 ex Boston car 1906 1 work motor car (Koppel) 1900 4 ex Boston cars 1908 1 DT closed - ex Boston

Rubber Tire

Buses Canadian Car and Foundry C-36 C-36A CD-36A CD-44A Dupon Trolley Industries Champlain 1608 shuttle bus (Thomas HDX chassis) ElDorado National Hawk PM Ford 29B 72B 99T E-450 Flyer Industries D900-10240 General Motors Diesel Division Buses TGH-3102 TDH-4512 TDH-4517 TDH-4519 T6H-4521 T6H-5307N TC40-102N TA60-102N Mack Trucks RB Motor Coach Industries TC40-102N New Flyer Industries C40LF CNG D40LF DE40LF DE60LFR NovaBus LFS Orion Bus Industries Orion V Orion V CNG Orion VI CNG Rek-Vek Industries Club Car Twin Coach 44-S White Motor Company 788 798 Yellow Coach X TG-2101 TG-2401

Trolleybuses Canadian Car & Foundry/J. G. Brill and Company T-48 T-48A Flyer Industries E700A E800A-10240

Denotes wheelchair-accessible

Staff

Most staff at HSR are members (bus operators, mechanics and other transit workers) of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 107. The local was formed in 1899 and also represents transit workers at Mississauga Transit. The local does not represent those working on city's paratransit service, Disabled and Aged Regional Transportation System (DARTS).^{[citation needed]}

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Hamilton Street Railway.

• Mills, John M. (1971). Cataract Traction:The Railways of Hamilton. Canadian Traction Series. Volume 2. Toronto: Upper Canada Railway Society & Ontario Electric Railway Historical Association. p. 116. 

External links

• HSR website
• Hamilton Transit History
• HSR history
• HSR Bus Roster
• HSR streetcar roster
• HSR horsecar roster
• HSR Incline
• HSR General Info
• DEWIRED (Re: 1992 close-down of Trolleybus service)
• JN's Hamilton Transit Photos
• Tom's Trolleybus Pix Hamilton ON
• Drawings and photos of Hamilton Street Railways buses

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