Madison Avenue Line
Downtown view at Danny Thomas Station
Overview
StatusTemporarily suspended since 2014[1]
LocaleMemphis, Tennessee, United States
Termini
Stations7
Service
TypeHeritage streetcar
SystemMATA Trolley
Operator(s)Memphis Area Transit Authority
History
OpenedMarch 15, 2004 (2004-03-15)[2]
Technical
Line length2.2 mi (3.5 km)
Track length4.5 mi (7.2 km)
Number of tracks2
Track gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
ElectrificationOverhead lines
Route map
Court
Main Street Line
Riverfront Loop
 Third Street
US 51
Danny Thomas Blvd
 Danny Thomas
Orleans
 Dunlap
 Pauline
I-240.svg
I-240
Inner Beltway
 Cleveland Avenue
Bus interchange

The Madison Avenue Line is a line of the Memphis Area Transit Authority trolley system. The trolley line began operating in 2004, and cost $56 million to build. It consists of 2.2 mi (3.5 km) of double track along Madison Avenue with six stops stretching into Midtown Memphis. The line was built to connect the Main Street system to the Medical District just east of Downtown Memphis.[3] Trolley service has been suspended since April 2014, after two trolley cars caught fire within a span of six months. Buses have been serving the line since then, but MATA plans to restore trolley operation to the line eventually.[1][4]

In 2020, MATA acquired a Siemens–Duewag U2 "modern streetcar" (built in 1988) secondhand from the San Diego Trolley system, and plans to carry out test runs with it on the Madison Avenue Line in 2022, as a step toward a possible reopening of the rail line.[5][6]

Route description

Beginning at the intersection of Main Street and Madison Avenue, the line heads east. After passing Autozone Park, the trolley crosses over Danny Thomas Boulevard on two rail-specific bridges on either side of the Madison Avenue bridge. The line continues through the Medical District passing through University of Tennessee Health Science Center campus before crossing over I-240 and heading into Midtown. The line terminates just after Cleveland Street in the Crosstown neighborhood.

List of trolley stops

Main Street to Cleveland Avenue

Stop Other
trolley line(s)		 Notes
Court  Riverfront Loop
  Main Street Line		North Court (eastbound), South Court (westbound)
Court Square, Falls Building, Fire Museum, Raymond James Tower
Third StreetThird Street has been renamed BB King Boulevard
AutoZone Park, First Tennessee Building, Toyota Center
Danny Thomas
OrleansSun Studio
DunlapHealth Sciences Park, Medical Center, UTHSC
PaulineMedical Center
Cleveland AvenuePark and ride lot nearby

References

  1. 1 2 Reals, Steffen (December 1, 2022). "Memphians eagerly waiting for trolleys to return to the Madison and Riverfront lines". WATN-TV. Archived from the original on December 2, 2022. Retrieved 2023-01-31.
  2. ↑ "Systems News [regular news section]". Tramways & Urban Transit. UK: Ian Allan Publishing. May 2004. p. 187. ISSN 1460-8324.
  3. ↑ "MATA Trolley Service". Memphis Area Transit Authority. Archived from the original on 2013-01-03. Retrieved 2012-05-23.
  4. ↑ Flyer Staff (May 5, 2021). "The ?s Issue: You had questions. We found answers. – Will the trolleys ever return to the Riverfront Loop or Madison Avenue?". Memphis Flyer. Archived from the original on July 9, 2021. Retrieved 2021-07-05.
  5. ↑ Royer, David; Arthur, Shay (November 3, 2021). "MATA to test 'modern streetcar' on Madison line". WREG-TV. Archived from the original on November 10, 2021. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
  6. ↑ "Worldwide Review [regular news section]". Tramways & Urban Transit. UK: Light Rail Transit Association/Mainspring Ltd. September 2021. pp. 389–390. ISSN 1460-8324.
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