Detroit Streetcar Resumes Sept. 27

The Detroit streetcar line will resume service after being idle for more than a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Known as the QLine streetcar, the 6.6-mile line shut down in March 2020.

When it resumes service it will operate every 15 minutes from 6 a.m. to midnight Monday-Friday and 8 a.m. to midnight on Saturday and Sunday.

Through the end of this year rides on the streetcar line, which is operated by M-1 Rail, will be free.

The streetcar route serves locations on Woodward Avenue from downtown Detroit through Midtown, New Center, and the North End.

It began operations in May 2017 and has carried 3.3 million people since then.

Detroit Streetcar to Resume Late Summer

The QLine streetcar in Detroit will resume operations in late summer.

Operations of the 3.3-mile streetcar line have been suspended since March 29 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

M-1 Rail, which operates the service, said the resumption of service will hinge on such factors as COVID-19 virus containment, return to office work for major employers along the route, stores and restaurants reopening without restrictions, and the resumption of attendance at sporting and entertainment events.

Amtrak Offering $5 Tickets to Detroit

Amtrak is offering $5 tickets for travel to Detroit through Sept. 4. The fares are good for travel originating on the Wolverine Service route at Dearborn, Ann Arbor, Pontiac, Royal Oak and Troy.

Once in Detroit, passengers can ride the new QLine, a streetcar route that is offering free rides through Labor Day.

The 3.3-mile route on Woodward Avenue features 12 stops, including Comerica Park, the Fox Theatre and Midtown.

QLine streetcars operate Monday through Saturday between 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Q-LINE to be Free Through June 30

Free rides on Detroit’s QLINE streetcar system are being extended through June 30.

The 3.3-mile line opened on May 12 and ridership has averaged 8,300 on Friday through Sunday and 5,120 on Monday through Thursday.

The system has also had some teething problems, including long waits.

Thus far only four of the system’s Brookville articulated streetcars have been operating, leading to waiting times as long as 45 minutes. The average wait time is scheduled to be 20 minutes.

M-1 Rail Chief Executive Officer Matt Cullen said delaying collecting fares “will help integrate the streetcar into daily commutes and provide the necessary time for educating the riding public about riding the system.”

M-1 Rail, which operates the streetcar network, also said extending the introductory period will allow a refinement of operations to accommodate demand.

Street teams will be assigned to station stops to assist riders in navigating the system and connecting to their destinations.

The QLine runs down Woodward Avenue between downtown Detroit and the New Center business district.

Detroit QLINE Begins Regular Service

The Detroit QLINE began revenue service last week over a 3.3-mile route that cost $180 million to develop.

It was the first streetcar service in Detroit since April 8, 1956.

To celebrate the opening of the streetcar service, Amtrak and the Michigan Department of Transportation are offering $5 one-way fares ($2.50 for children ages 2 to 12) from Ann Arbor, Dearborn, Royal Oak, Troy, and Pontiac to the Detroit station, a half block from the Baltimore Street Q Line stop near the Penske Tech Center maintenance facility in New Center.

The offer is available through May 21.

Merchants along the streetcar line offered special discounts this past weekend. Passengers were able to ride the streetcars for free.

The QLINE uses cars built by Pennsylvania-based Brookville Equipment Corporation that run on batteries at the ends of the routes and draw power from overhead wires in the middle of the system.

The streetcars run between Detroit’s New Center business area and the downtown riverfront district.

Detroit QLINE to Open on May 12

Revenue service on Detroit’s streetcar system will begin on May 12, QLINE officials said last week.

To mark the opening, there will be a special event at the Penske Technical Center and an inaugural ride down Woodward Avenue. Public service begins that evening.

“We are going to be running simulated operations in April,” said M-1 Rail spokesman Dan Lijana. “We want to make sure that the drivers have as much time on the road (as possible) before we start taking passengers.”

M-1 Rail is the operator of the streetcar system. Construction of the $142 streetcar line began in July 2014 and test runs over the 3.3-mile system began in December.

The 66-foot long streetcars can carry 125 passengers on average and will reach maximum speeds of 35 mph.

They will stop for traffic lights and M-1 Rail has begun a public education campaign with the first step being a series of safety videos to help Detroit residents become accustomed to coexisting with streetcars.

The QLINE will operate between 6 a.m. and 11 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 6 a.m. to midnight on Friday, 8 a.m. to midnight on Saturday, and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Sunday.

M-1 Rail estimates that the QLINE will carry 5,000 to 8,000 passengers per day.

“QLINE’s grand opening will be a historic day in Detroit,” said M-1 Rail CEO Matt Cullen. “We’re bringing rail transit back to the heart of the city and connecting the Woodward Corridor in a way that’s already begun to transform the entire district.”

Vandals Hit Detroit Streetcars

Vandals recently struck Detroit’s new streetcar system, finding their way through a gated area and spray painting graffiti on one of the QLine streetcars.

Police are investigating the incident involving the 3.3-mile system that is slated to open this spring. The streetcar that was vandalized were built by Brookville Equipment Corporation.

Detroit M-1 Rail Decides on Station Design

Detroit M-1 Rail has decided on a design for the 20 stations that will dot its 3.3-mile QLINE route in downtown Detroit.

The stations will be glass and concrete and feature Wi-Fi connection, heating, security cameras, emergency phones and next vehicle alert screens.

In a news release, M-1 said the stations will recognize corporate and philanthropic partners whose support served as the foundation for the public-private partnership behind the streetcar line.

The stations will recognize the sponsor with an individual custom tile, along with a plaque commemorating contributions to the project. Sponsorships required a $3 million pledge.
The stations were designed by the Detroit-based architecture firm Rosetti.

Earlier this week, M-1 began streetcar testing on its route on Woodward Avenue. Testing of the tracks with a speeder began last August.

Detroit QLINE Receives 1st Streetcar

The first streetcar arrived in Detroit on Wednesday.

“Receiving the first QLINE streetcar at this time will provide M-1 RAIL a greater opportunity to help Detroiters acclimate to the idea of sharing the road with a streetcar, and give us additional time for driver training,” said M-1 Rail Chief of Operations Paul Childs in a statement.

The car was built by Pennsylvania-based Brookville Equipment Corporation and arrived nearly two months ahead of initial projections, M-1 Rail officials said in a news release.

The three-piece QLINE streetcars are 66 feet in length and have a capacity of 125 passengers per car.

QLINE streetcars will share the road with vehicular traffic and have a top speed of 35 mph. Each car will offer Wi-Fi access, vertical bike racks, and heating and cooling systems.

QLINE expects to begin revenue service in spring 2017.

Detroit Streetcar Route Testing Begins

Track testing of the Detroit QLINE streetcar route because last week using a motorized inspection car.

Detroit M-1 Rail, which will operate the 3.3-mile line along Woodward Avenue, said the speeder checked for obstructions and reviewed the physical dimensions of infrastructure to ensure proper maintenance of traffic.

M-1 Rail said installation of the overhead catenary system is 60 percent complete and that 85 percent of the poles have been installed.

Track installation is 83 percent complete. Revenue service is expected to begin in early 2017.