Birney
Encyclopedia
A Birney or Birney Safety Car is a type of streetcar that was manufactured in the United States
in the 1910s and 1920s. The design was small and light and was intended to be an economical means of providing frequent service at a lower infrastructure
and labor cost than conventional streetcars. Production of Birney cars lasted from 1915 until 1930, and more than 6,000 of the original, single-truck
version were built.
with the firm of Stone & Webster
, an operator of a number of trolley
systems in the United States
in the early part of the 20th century. The designed was named the "Safety Car", but came to be known as the Birney Safety Car and ultimately simply as the Birney car.
The vehicle was a return to single-truck (single-bogie
) streetcars. Birneys were small and light, about a third the weight of conventional cars of the period; were of rugged, standardized construction; mass-produced and inexpensively built. Twin motors gave them nimble acceleration. Birney cars averaged about 28 feet (8.5 m) in length and typically had seating for about 32 passengers.
The largest producer of Birney Safety Cars was the American Car Company, a subsidiary of J. G. Brill, but several other companies also manufactured Birneys.
The Birney was designed to operate with only a motorman
, saving the cost of the conductor
. The advent of World War I
made single-person operation additionally attractive as it addressed the wartime labor shortage. When labor was available, Birneys could be operated at more frequent intervals, prompting the slogan
"A Car in Sight at all Times". This latter attraction was one of the street railway industry's first attempts to deal directly with automobile
competition.
Birney cars began to fall from favor in part because of the features that had originally made them attractive. Their light weight could be a problem in snow that a heavier car could easily plow through. Their short length made their ride quality comparatively poor, and on poorly maintained track they derailed easily. The public began to deride them as flimsy. Their limited passenger capacity rendered them unsuitable for busy routes and rush hour
service, causing them to be relegated to minor lines or to be sold mostly to small-town streetcar systems.
The streetcar companies also found that the safety features of the Birney, such as the use of interlocked doors to prevent the car from starting if a door was open or a passenger was stuck, could be incorporated in larger cars and that the public was not as disturbed by the absence of the conductor as the companies had feared.
A longer, double-truck
version of the Birney car was developed in the 1920s, incorporating its most successful features, and was sold to a number of systems, including that of Tampa, Florida
.
, Nova Scotia
, Canada
, bought up Birneys secondhand from other systems across North America
to build an "all-Birney fleet" and keep its streetcar system going in the difficult years of the Great Depression
and World War II
, finally retiring its last car in 1949.
Although the vast majority of the cars built were sold to streetcar operators in North America (including in Mexico and Cuba), a small number went to much more distant places, such as Australia
and New Zealand
. In the latter, Birney cars were imported for use by the provincial centres of New Plymouth
in the North Island and Invercargill
in the South Island, reputedly the world's most southerly tramway system. Cities in South America
whose streetcar companies purchased Birney cars included Concordia
and Paraná
, in Argentina
, while Guayaquil
in Ecuador
obtained Birneys secondhand from Trenton, New Jersey
. The Colombia
n cities of Medellín
and Pereira
both were served by Birney streetcars, the former's fleet being made up entirely of Birney cars – 61 of them – of both single- and double-truck configuration.
A number of Birney cars remain in use today in North America at trolley museums and heritage streetcar
operations. Single examples of original Birney cars are in service on heritage streetcar lines in Tampa, FL, Fort Collins, Colorado
and Fort Smith, Arkansas
, as well as on the McKinney Avenue Transit Authority
line in Dallas, Texas
. In Canada, the Nelson Electric Tramway
(in Nelson, B.C.
) has one fully restored Birney car. Additionally, replica Birney cars built by Gomaco
are in service in at least four U.S. cities (see below).
In Australia
, seven of the eight Birney cars imported there have survived in operating condition: five are at Bendigo Tramways, one at the Australian Electric Transport Museum in St. Kilda, South Australia
, and one at the Hawthorn Tram Depot in Melbourne
. Thus, Australia has a high proportion of the world's surviving, operable Birney cars. In New Zealand
, a New Plymouth
Birney is preserved by the Wanganui Tramways Trust, in Wanganui
, and an Invercargill Birney is preserved by the Tramway Historical Society at the Ferrymead Heritage Park
, located at Ferrymead
in Christchurch
.
has built at least 18 replica Birney cars, in the style of the less-common double-truck Birney car design, since 1999. Gomaco fitted these with truck
s from ex-Milan
, Italy
Peter Witt streetcar
s. These have been supplied to Tampa, Florida
; Charlotte, North Carolina
; Little Rock, Arkansas
and Memphis, Tennessee
. Gomaco also restored an original single-truck Birney car body in 2002–3 for the Fresno Metropolitan Flood Control District in Fresno, California
; this was intended for static display in a local park.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in the 1910s and 1920s. The design was small and light and was intended to be an economical means of providing frequent service at a lower infrastructure
Infrastructure
Infrastructure is basic physical and organizational structures needed for the operation of a society or enterprise, or the services and facilities necessary for an economy to function...
and labor cost than conventional streetcars. Production of Birney cars lasted from 1915 until 1930, and more than 6,000 of the original, single-truck
Bogie
A bogie is a wheeled wagon or trolley. In mechanics terms, a bogie is a chassis or framework carrying wheels, attached to a vehicle. It can be fixed in place, as on a cargo truck, mounted on a swivel, as on a railway carriage/car or locomotive, or sprung as in the suspension of a caterpillar...
version were built.
Invention
The Birney car was the joint 1915 invention of Charles O. Birney and Joseph M. Bosenbury (who was issued the patents in 1917 and 1919, and assigned half to Birney; see Brill page 140). Birney was an engineerEngineer
An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...
with the firm of Stone & Webster
Stone & Webster
Stone & Webster is an American engineering services company based in Stoughton, Massachusetts. Stone & Webster was founded as an electrical testing lab and consulting firm by electrical engineers Charles Stone and Edwin Webster in 1889. It was acquired by The Shaw Group in 2000. The company...
, an operator of a number of trolley
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
systems in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in the early part of the 20th century. The designed was named the "Safety Car", but came to be known as the Birney Safety Car and ultimately simply as the Birney car.
The vehicle was a return to single-truck (single-bogie
Bogie
A bogie is a wheeled wagon or trolley. In mechanics terms, a bogie is a chassis or framework carrying wheels, attached to a vehicle. It can be fixed in place, as on a cargo truck, mounted on a swivel, as on a railway carriage/car or locomotive, or sprung as in the suspension of a caterpillar...
) streetcars. Birneys were small and light, about a third the weight of conventional cars of the period; were of rugged, standardized construction; mass-produced and inexpensively built. Twin motors gave them nimble acceleration. Birney cars averaged about 28 feet (8.5 m) in length and typically had seating for about 32 passengers.
The largest producer of Birney Safety Cars was the American Car Company, a subsidiary of J. G. Brill, but several other companies also manufactured Birneys.
Benefits
Motorman
A motorman is the person who operates an electrified trolley car, tram, light rail, or rapid transit train.The term refers to the person who is in charge of the motor in the same sense as a railroad engineer is in charge of the engine. The term was gender-neutral...
, saving the cost of the conductor
Conductor (transportation)
A conductor is a member of a railway train's crew that is responsible for operational and safety duties that do not involve the actual operation of the train. The title of conductor is most associated with railway operations in North America, but the role of conductor is common to railways...
. The advent of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
made single-person operation additionally attractive as it addressed the wartime labor shortage. When labor was available, Birneys could be operated at more frequent intervals, prompting the slogan
Slogan
A slogan is a memorable motto or phrase used in a political, commercial, religious and other context as a repetitive expression of an idea or purpose. The word slogan is derived from slogorn which was an Anglicisation of the Scottish Gaelic sluagh-ghairm . Slogans vary from the written and the...
"A Car in Sight at all Times". This latter attraction was one of the street railway industry's first attempts to deal directly with automobile
Automobile
An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
competition.
Decline
Thousands of the cars were purchased from their inception to a few years after the end of the war. Production peaked in 1920, with 1,699 cars built in that year alone, but then declined rapidly and ended in 1930.Birney cars began to fall from favor in part because of the features that had originally made them attractive. Their light weight could be a problem in snow that a heavier car could easily plow through. Their short length made their ride quality comparatively poor, and on poorly maintained track they derailed easily. The public began to deride them as flimsy. Their limited passenger capacity rendered them unsuitable for busy routes and rush hour
Rush hour
A rush hour or peak hour is a part of the day during which traffic congestion on roads and crowding on public transport is at its highest. Normally, this happens twice a day—once in the morning and once in the evening, the times during when the most people commute...
service, causing them to be relegated to minor lines or to be sold mostly to small-town streetcar systems.
The streetcar companies also found that the safety features of the Birney, such as the use of interlocked doors to prevent the car from starting if a door was open or a passenger was stuck, could be incorporated in larger cars and that the public was not as disturbed by the absence of the conductor as the companies had feared.
A longer, double-truck
Bogie
A bogie is a wheeled wagon or trolley. In mechanics terms, a bogie is a chassis or framework carrying wheels, attached to a vehicle. It can be fixed in place, as on a cargo truck, mounted on a swivel, as on a railway carriage/car or locomotive, or sprung as in the suspension of a caterpillar...
version of the Birney car was developed in the 1920s, incorporating its most successful features, and was sold to a number of systems, including that of Tampa, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
.
International use
Its initial rise and fall notwithstanding, the Birney car was useful and durable, and many were shipped to streetcar systems in other countries, especially ones located in smaller cities and towns, where they served for additional decades. For example, the city of HalifaxCity of Halifax
Halifax is a city in Canada, which was the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County. It was the largest city in Atlantic Canada until it was amalgamated into Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996...
, Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, bought up Birneys secondhand from other systems across North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
to build an "all-Birney fleet" and keep its streetcar system going in the difficult years of the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
and World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, finally retiring its last car in 1949.
Although the vast majority of the cars built were sold to streetcar operators in North America (including in Mexico and Cuba), a small number went to much more distant places, such as Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. In the latter, Birney cars were imported for use by the provincial centres of New Plymouth
New Plymouth
New Plymouth is the major city of the Taranaki Region on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is named after Plymouth, Devon, England, from where the first English settlers migrated....
in the North Island and Invercargill
Invercargill
Invercargill is the southernmost and westernmost city in New Zealand, and one of the southernmost cities in the world. It is the commercial centre of the Southland region. It lies in the heart of the wide expanse of the Southland Plains on the Oreti or New River some 18 km north of Bluff,...
in the South Island, reputedly the world's most southerly tramway system. Cities in South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
whose streetcar companies purchased Birney cars included Concordia
Concordia, Entre Ríos
San Antonio de Padua de la Concordia is a city in the north-east of the province of Entre Ríos in the Argentine Mesopotamia. It has about 142,000 inhabitants as of the , and is the head town of the department of the same name.Concordia lies on the right-hand shore of the Uruguay River, opposite...
and Paraná
Paraná, Entre Ríos
Paraná is the capital city of the Argentine province of Entre Ríos, located on the eastern shore of the Paraná River, opposite the city of Santa Fe, capital of the neighbouring Santa Fe Province...
, in Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, while Guayaquil
Guayaquil
Guayaquil , officially Santiago de Guayaquil , is the largest and the most populous city in Ecuador,with about 2.3 million inhabitants in the city and nearly 3.1 million in the metropolitan area, as well as that nation's main port...
in Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
obtained Birneys secondhand from Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton is the capital of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Trenton had a population of 84,913...
. The Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
n cities of Medellín
Medellín
Medellín , officially the Municipio de Medellín or Municipality of Medellín, is the second largest city in Colombia. It is in the Aburrá Valley, one of the more northerly of the Andes in South America. It has a population of 2.3 million...
and Pereira
Pereira, Colombia
Pereira is the capital city of the Colombian department of Risaralda. It stands in the center of the western region of the country, located in a small valley that descends from a part of the western Andes mountain chain. Its strategic location in the coffee producing area makes the city an urban...
both were served by Birney streetcars, the former's fleet being made up entirely of Birney cars – 61 of them – of both single- and double-truck configuration.
Preservation and continued use
Heritage streetcar
Heritage streetcars or heritage trams are a development of the heritage railways that are becoming popular across the world. As with modern streetcar systems, the vehicles are referred to as trams or tramcars in the United Kingdom, Australasia and certain other places , but as streetcars or...
operations. Single examples of original Birney cars are in service on heritage streetcar lines in Tampa, FL, Fort Collins, Colorado
Fort Collins Municipal Railway
The Fort Collins Municipal Railway operated streetcars in Fort Collins, Colorado, from 1919 until 1951. Since 1984, a section of one of the former routes has been in operation as a seasonal heritage streetcar service, under the same name, running mainly on spring and summer weekends...
and Fort Smith, Arkansas
Fort Smith Trolley Museum
The Fort Smith Trolley Museum is a railroad museum in Fort Smith, Arkansas.Located at 100 South 4th Street, the museum collection includes four streetcars which operated in municipal service in Fort Smith, an open streetcar, as well as a Frisco steam locomotive.The museum also operates a heritage...
, as well as on the McKinney Avenue Transit Authority
McKinney Avenue Transit Authority
The McKinney Avenue Transit Authority , a non-profit organization, operates the M-line Streetcar line in Dallas, Texas . The offices and car barn are located at 3153 Oak Grove, Dallas, TX 75204. It is an example of a heritage streetcar running historic cars...
line in Dallas, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. In Canada, the Nelson Electric Tramway
Nelson Electric Tramway
The Nelson Electric Tramway is a heritage railway in Nelson, British Columbia, Canada. It uses two restored vintage streetcars which carry tourists along Nelson's waterfront and was the first operating heritage streetcar line in British Columbia. The service is seasonal, starting on the Easter...
(in Nelson, B.C.
Nelson, British Columbia
Nelson is a city located in the Selkirk Mountains on the extreme West Arm of Kootenay Lake in the Southern Interior of British Columbia, Canada. Known as "The Queen City", and acknowledged for its impressive collection of restored heritage buildings from its glory days in a regional silver rush,...
) has one fully restored Birney car. Additionally, replica Birney cars built by Gomaco
Gomaco Trolley Company
The Gomaco Trolley Company is a manufacturer of vintage-style streetcars , located in Ida Grove, Iowa, United States...
are in service in at least four U.S. cities (see below).
In Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, seven of the eight Birney cars imported there have survived in operating condition: five are at Bendigo Tramways, one at the Australian Electric Transport Museum in St. Kilda, South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
, and one at the Hawthorn Tram Depot in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
. Thus, Australia has a high proportion of the world's surviving, operable Birney cars. In New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, a New Plymouth
New Plymouth
New Plymouth is the major city of the Taranaki Region on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is named after Plymouth, Devon, England, from where the first English settlers migrated....
Birney is preserved by the Wanganui Tramways Trust, in Wanganui
Wanganui
Whanganui , also spelled Wanganui, is an urban area and district on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is part of the Manawatu-Wanganui region....
, and an Invercargill Birney is preserved by the Tramway Historical Society at the Ferrymead Heritage Park
Ferrymead Heritage Park
Ferrymead Heritage Park is a museum in Christchurch, New Zealand, housing a number of groups with historical themes, the most frequent of which is transport. Formerly known as Ferrymead Historic Park, it was founded in the mid-1960s by a number of groups, local government bodies and other...
, located at Ferrymead
Ferrymead
-Geography:Ferrymead is located on the Avon Heathcote Estuary, close to the point where the Heathcote River drains into the estuary, and three km west of the eventual outflow into Pegasus Bay. To the north lie the oxidation ponds from Christchurch's main sewage treatment works, which are within a...
in Christchurch
Christchurch
Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...
.
Replica Birney cars
In the United States, the Gomaco Trolley CompanyGomaco Trolley Company
The Gomaco Trolley Company is a manufacturer of vintage-style streetcars , located in Ida Grove, Iowa, United States...
has built at least 18 replica Birney cars, in the style of the less-common double-truck Birney car design, since 1999. Gomaco fitted these with truck
Bogie
A bogie is a wheeled wagon or trolley. In mechanics terms, a bogie is a chassis or framework carrying wheels, attached to a vehicle. It can be fixed in place, as on a cargo truck, mounted on a swivel, as on a railway carriage/car or locomotive, or sprung as in the suspension of a caterpillar...
s from ex-Milan
Trams in Milan
The Milan tramway network is an important part of the public transport network of the city and comune of Milan, in the region of Lombardy, northern Italy.In operation since 1876, the network is presently about long...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
Peter Witt streetcar
Peter Witt streetcar
Peter Witt was a Cleveland Railway commissioner, who designed a model of streetcar known by his name, and used in many North American cities, most notably in Toronto and Cleveland.-Features:...
s. These have been supplied to Tampa, Florida
TECO Line Streetcar System
The TECO Line Streetcar System is a streetcar line in Tampa, Florida, run by the Hillsborough Area Regional Transportation Authority and managed by Tampa Historic Streetcar, Inc.. It connects Downtown and Channelside to the historic Ybor City district. There is also an "In-Town" trolley-replica bus...
; Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte Trolley
The Charlotte Trolley is a heritage streetcar which operates in Charlotte in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The line runs along the former Norfolk Southern right of way between Tremont Avenue in the Historic South End in a northerly direction to its terminus at 9th Street Uptown...
; Little Rock, Arkansas
River Rail Streetcar
The River Rail Streetcar is a heritage streetcar system operating in Little Rock and North Little Rock in the U.S. state of Arkansas. It has operated since November 1, 2004. As of February 17, 2007, the system is long after its first extension was put into service...
and Memphis, Tennessee
MATA Trolley
The MATA Trolley is a heritage streetcar system operating in Memphis in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It has operated since April 29, 1993.As of 2008, the system consists of three lines: the Main Street Trolley, the Madison Avenue Loop and the Riverfront Loop...
. Gomaco also restored an original single-truck Birney car body in 2002–3 for the Fresno Metropolitan Flood Control District in Fresno, California
Fresno, California
Fresno is a city in central California, United States, the county seat of Fresno County. As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 510,365, making it the fifth largest city in California, the largest inland city in California, and the 34th largest in the nation...
; this was intended for static display in a local park.