E Embarcadero facts for kids

Quick facts for kids E Embarcadero
Streetcar 1010 at Brannan station in 2017
Overview
Owner	San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA)
Locale	San Francisco, California
Termini	Jones and Beach station Fort Mason (planned) 4th and King station
Stations	18
Service
Type	Heritage streetcar
System	San Francisco Municipal Railway
Operator(s)	San Francisco Municipal Railway
Rolling stock	Double-ended historic Muni streetcars
History
Opened	August 31, 2008 (trial service) August 1, 2015 (weekend service) April 23, 2016 (weeklong service)
Technical
Character	Mostly in dedicated median; some shared lanes
Track gauge	4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Electrification	Overhead lines, 600 V DC

The E Embarcadero is a historic streetcar line that is the San Francisco Municipal Railway's second heritage streetcar line in San Francisco, California. Trial service first ran during the Sunday Streets events on The Embarcadero in 2008. The line initially ran on weekends only, but expanded to weeklong service in late April 2016.

Route

The initial routing of the line is nearly identical to the 32 Embarcadero bus line, which was discontinued after the F Market & Wharves line began operating along the Embarcadero in 2000. It runs the length of the Embarcadero and San Francisco's segment of the Bay Trail, along pre-existing track used by the F Market & Wharves historic streetcar as well as the N Judah and T Third Street Muni Metro lines and previously unused track bypassing Market Street subway's Embarcadero portal. Service runs from Jones Street and Jefferson Street in Fisherman's Wharf to near the N Judah's platform at Caltrain's King Street and 4th Street Station in the Mission Bay neighborhood – the last trains of the day run to near the adjacent T Third platform at 4th and Berry. Since there is no loop at the Caltrain station, only double-ended streetcars are able to operate on the line until a loop track is built.

Proposed extension

The disused Fort Mason Tunnel in 2017

An extension of the E Embarcadero to Aquatic Park is planned but is currently not fully funded. The extension would relocate the terminus from Jones and Beach station to a new station on Beach street adjacent to Aquatic Park.

The line could be extended past Aquatic Park in the future by the National Park Service's proposal to extend the route through the existing Fort Mason Tunnel and into Fort Mason Center. The SFMTA is currently attempting to secure funding for engineering studies in order to advance the project. The extension would serve Fort Mason Center and the Marina district, identified by the NPS as areas with "inadequate regional transit access" and "limited transportation options for transit-dependent residents," and providing those areas with a rail connection to regional transportation networks via the Market Street subway and 4th and King Caltrain Station.

Stations

Though the right-of-way is shared with the two Muni Metro lines on the South of Market segment, the stations themselves are not shared with Muni Metro because historic cars cannot access elevated median boarding platforms. For this reason, existing sidewalk-level stops adjacent to each raised light-rail stop are utilized for the E line. For stops north of Market, the line uses those of the existing F Market & Wharves line.

History

Muni's original E streetcar line was the E Union line, running north from the Ferry Building via The Embarcadero to Washington/Jackson streets, where it turned west to eventually reach the Presidio. This line was discontinued in 1947.

Car 578 across from Pier 39 during the 1987 demonstration streetcar service along the Embarcadero

Proposals for historic streetcar service along The Embarcadero were first put forward in 1974, and the first mention of separate E Embarcadero and F Market lines was in 1981. In 1987, a temporary, demonstration streetcar service was operated along part of the Embarcadero as part of the 1987 San Francisco Historic Trolley Festival, to gauge public interest in, and the practicality of, a regular streetcar service. It ran along then-existing, but disused, San Francisco Belt Railroad tracks and operated two days a week for a little over five weeks, using two streetcars powered by electricity from portable diesel generators.

Light rail service on the section of The Embarcadero south of Folsom Street and on King Street to the Caltrain Depot began on January 10, 1998, using a Muni Metro shuttle line between Embarcadero Station and the Caltrain station. This temporary line was designated E Embarcadero, and it was discontinued when it was replaced in August 1998 by an extension of the N Judah line. In 2007 the new T Third Street line also began operating on this extension.

Historic streetcar service on The Embarcadero north of Don Chee Way began in March 2000 when the F Market & Wharves line was extended to Fisherman's Wharf. That extension and the 1998 light rail extension to the Caltrain Depot make up almost the entirety of the E line route; they were connected by unused tracks on The Embarcadero between Don Chee Way and Folsom Street. The new E Embarcadero line operated on a temporary basis during the 2013 America's Cup racing. On March 28, 2014, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) officially approved plans for weekend-only service of the E Embarcadero heritage streetcar line starting in summer 2015, with weeklong service starting the next year. Weekend operation officially began on August 1, 2015, and weeklong service began on April 23, 2016.

Stops

Stop	Neighborhood	Connections and Notes
Jones and Beach	Fisherman's Wharf	Inbound terminus
Jefferson and Taylor		Inbound to Jones and Beach only
Beach and Mason		Outbound to 4th and King only Muni: 47, Powell-Mason line
Jefferson and Powell		Inbound to Jones and Beach only At Pier 41: ⛴ Blue and Gold Fleet, San Francisco Bay Ferry Muni: 39
Beach and Stockton		Outbound to 4th and King only Golden Gate Transit
The Embarcadero and Stockton		Inbound to Jones and Beach only Muni: 39 Serves Pier 39
Inbound splits from The Embarcadero towards Jefferson Street; outbound joins The Embarcadero from Beach Street
The Embarcadero and Bay		Golden Gate Transit
The Embarcadero and Sansome
The Embarcadero and Greenwich		Muni: 82X
The Embarcadero and Green
The Embarcadero and Broadway
The Embarcadero and Washington
Ferry Building	Financial District	⛴ Golden Gate Ferry, San Francisco Bay Ferry Muni: 6, 7X, 9, 14, 14X, 21, 31 SolTrans: 82
The Embarcadero and Folsom	Financial District	Muni: N Owl
The Embarcadero and Brannan	South Beach	Muni: N Owl
2nd and King	Mission Bay	Muni: N Owl Serves Oracle Park
4th and King Outbound terminus	Mission Bay	Muni: 10, 30, 45, 47, 81X, 82X, 83X, N Owl Caltrain