Des Moines Register
03-27-06
Trains, trolleys could make a comeback
Ames, Iowa City discuss reviving separate systems
LISA LIVERMORE
REGISTER AMES BUREAU
Ames, Ia. — The generation of 20-somethings that grew up watching Mr. Rogers
and his magical Trolley are now pushing cities to build the real thing.
Around Iowa City, some students and transportation department administrators
at the University of Iowa would like to bring back an interurban passenger train
system that once operated as the Iowa Railway & Light Co.'s "Crandic." They talk
of reviving a line to link Iowa City, Cedar Rapids and the Amana Colonies.
In Ames, a local civic group has scheduled a meeting for Wednesday to discuss
the possible revival of the "Dinkey" rail line that once circulated between
downtown Ames and the Iowa State College campus.
Iowa State University senior Tony Borich, who has completed his honors thesis
on streetcars, said transportation options similar to the Dinkey could replace an
aging fleet of buses on campus that are "are spewing pollution all over the place.
"To update all those vehicles with modern, ergonomically designed, airconditioned vehicles would be a big improvement," he said.
The University of Iowa student body president, Mark Kresowik, cited similar
reasons for bringing back the light rail. "I'm very oriented to the environment,"
Kresowik said. "I think there are a lot of students looking for alternative modes of
transportation. There are different ways to build community and bring people
together — rather than the individual lifestyles we all seem to lead."
If commitment replaces conversation in Ames and Iowa City, the communities
would follow other cities that have secured local and federal money to install
streetcars and light-rail systems.
Proponents of these transportation modes say they are easier to use than buses,
are more environmentally friendly, and promote growth in the city cores across
America that have crumbled in the wake of suburban growth.
Across the nation and in Canada, 27 cities have built heritage or vintage trolley
systems, and 55 cities are considering plans to build them, according to research
from the Seashore Trolley Museum, an organization in Maine that restores
trolleys and streetcars.
Historians in Ames have said the steam railroad known as "Dinkey" was created
in 1891 by a group of residents who wanted to connect the town and campus. In
1907, the steam Dinkey was retired in favor of electric streetcars. Those ran until
1929, when they gave way to automotive transportation.
The Crandic railway started running in 1904 as the Cedar Rapids and Iowa City
Railway and Light Co. , and it quickly became a magnet for students traveling to
athletic events in Iowa City. The service ended in 1953 after years of declining
ridership.
Members of the student government at ISU have voted to spend $15,000 this
year in hopes of hiring a consultant to study the idea of resurrecting the Dinkey.
The ISU administration has committed an additional $20,000, and federal
sources will provide $240,000, said Bob Bourne, the director of CyRide, the bus
system at Ames and ISU. A study to examine the feasibility of this idea would
cost around $300,000. The city of Ames has been asked to contribute, but
officials haven't voted on the request.
In eastern Iowa, nearly a dozen entities, including the U of I, have contributed
money to study reintroducing a passenger train system connecting Cedar
Rapids, Iowa City and the Amana Colonies, said William Hoekstra , the
transportation and parking director in Cedar Rapids. Those cities are already
connected by a regional railroad system used to ship goods.
"We are way ahead of everybody," Hoekstra said.
Jim Schantz of Boston, the board director of the Seashore Trolley Museum, said
the resurgence in trolleys, light rails and streetcars is due in part to city leaders
who want to jump-start downtown development and the access they have to
federal money for these types of projects.
He cited Memphis, Tenn., where downtown was "drained out.'' When leaders
agreed to put in streetcars, he said, the city's core bloomed with activity.
"Once private developers or individuals who consider living downtown see some
permanent investment, the next thing you know, old warehouses are converted
to condos and businesses move in," he said.
That's what advocates want to happen in Ames and eastern Iowa.
"We are constantly trying to do more events and find more ways to bring the
students, faculty and staff downtown," said Angela Moore , director of the Main
Street Cultural District in Ames, an organization that promotes downtown Ames.
"The Dinkey might be a great way to bring them downtown because they're
consumers like everybody else is."
Still, some students in Ames are skeptical about the movement. They say they
go to eat and shop where other young people hang out and where they can walk
from their homes.
Jimmy Oribiana , a junior at Iowa State University, said he thought the CyRide
bus system negated the need for transportation resembling the Dinkey. "We're
not downtown New York," he said. "It's kind of a far-fetched idea."
Miya Marth, 18, of Webster City was recently in Campustown, a commercial
district south of ISU, looking for an apartment. As she stood by the latest new
high-rise housing targeted to people her age, she explained why, even if new
transportation is built, it wouldn't change where she spends her free time. "Where
we go in Ames is here," she said.
"You walk to everything. Everyone is a student. Everyone knows you are a
student."