Please select a City:

• Montreal, Quebec
  This city has a completely underground rubber tired metro system with 4 lines, and is based on the designs of the rubber tired Metro Lines in Paris.
• Boston, MA
  The MBTA operates the "T": 3 subway lines, the green line light rail, and a commuter system for the surronding area.
• Philidelphia, PA
  This city's SEPTA system is fairly comprehensive with 8 Regional Rail lines, 2 subway lines, 2 suberban trolley lines, a high speed suberban light rail line, 5 subway-suface trolley lines, and 1 historic streetcar line.
  • PATCO a high speed rail line to Camden and Lindenwold, NJ
  • RiverLINE a new Diesel light rail line operated by New Jersey Transit from Camden, NJ to Trenton, NJ
• Cleveland, OH
  Cleveland RTA runs 3 Rapid Lines: 2 Light Rail lines, and 1 hybrid subway/heavy rail line.
• Chicago, IL
  The Chicago "L" runs 5 elevated lines, 2 subway lines, and one high-speed shuttle line. METRA operates the Chicagoland Commuter Rail system that is quite extensive.
• Minneapolis, MN
  The Hiawatha Line is the twin city's first Light Rail line with 17 stations over 12 miles connecting The Mall of America in Bloomington and Downtown Minneapolis via the Airport. It uses Bomardier Flexity Swift Low-floor LRVs.
• Denver, CO
  The Denver RTD Light Rail System is a 6 line and 36 light rail stations system that's one of three rail systems in the US Mountain Time Zone, the small, current system is just the beginnings of the major FasTracks system of a combination of light, EMU and DMU rail lines that are currently being built throughout the Denver Metro Area. Suprsingly Denver only uses SD100 and SD160 LRVs that are high level, with wheelchair ramps provided to the first door of the first car of every train at every station for accessable access.
• New Mexico Railrunner
  New Mexico Rail Runner is the Regional Rail system in New Mexico. Currently it runs one line that connects Downtown Alburquerque with Belen in the south and Bernalillo in the north with seven stations inbetween. Service continuing to Santa Fe is currently under construction. It mostly runs peak hour service, but very limited midday service is also provided. Saturday service is provided only seasonally during the summer. It uses Bombadeer Bilevels and Motive Power FD49PHI locomotives that seem to be a standard of new commuter rail systems in the US.
• Las Vegas, NV
  What other US city than Vegas would have built a 4 mile, 7 station monorail line completely with private funds (so a ride costs $5, is it mass transit or a tourist attaraction?) along the strip. It even uses the same Bombardier Mark VI monorail cars that are in use at Disney World.
• Tacoma, WA
  The Tacoma LINK, is a small, free downtown Light Rail/Streetcar Line in downtown Tacmoa with 5 stations.
• Portland, OR
  The Portland MAX Light Rail, is a fairly decent Light Rail System in the City of Roses with 3 Lines, street running in downtown and mostly private right of way elsewhere. It opened in 1986 and along with San Diego can be considered one of the pioneers of modern light rail systems in the United States. It also introduced the first low floor light rail cars into the United States with its Type 2 LRVs.
  It also encludes Washington Park the deepest station in North America.
• San Francisco Bay Area, CA
  BART operates and is a fairly new rapid transit system that connects downtown San Francisco with many cities and towns on the east bay. It operations are like those of a regular subway system, but its role is more of a commuter rail since except in downtown San Francisco, Oakland, and Berkeley almost every station has a park and ride lot.
• Los Angeles, CA
  The LACMTA operates the Metro. The City of Cars meager rail system of 1 Small Subway Line, and 3 Light Rail Lines. It also operates an extensive Bus System.
  • Metrolink is the quite extensive L.A. Metro Area commuter rail nextwork. It operates on seven lines, with most originating at Union Station. It's rolling stock is the standard Bombarder Bi-Level coaches with a variety of newly purchased and refurbished locomotives.
San Diego, CA
The San Diego Trolley is the fairly extensive rail system that connects Downtown San Diego with surrounding suburbs to the east, north and south, including the blue line whose sothern terminus is the Mexican border. The system was the first modern trolley system to be built in the United States, opening in 1981. The original cars are U2 cars also used in Calgary and Edminton, Canada (which also opened Light Rail systems around the same time period), and Frankfort, Germany. It has added SD100 and S70 LRVs over the years.
• COASTER is the commuter rail line operated by the North County Transit District from San Diego up to Oceanside with a total of eight stations. It uses Bombardier Bi-Level coaches pulled by F40PH-2C and F59PHI locomotives.
• SPRINTER is the new Diesel Light Rail line in Norther San Diego County, also operated by NCTD. It opened only in March 2008 and has an operation very similar to the RiverLINE with basically only daylight service since BNSF freight trains using the line at night. It uses Seimons VT642 Desiro DMU train cars, that also run in main line rail service in Europe but don't here do to FRA regulations. Station platforms are also quite far back from the tracks with gangways that connect to the doors and raise up at night to allow freight operation from trains that are wider.

Last Updated: 20 May, 2006
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