I think we need to bring back this kind of trolley. No consultants or studies necessary, easy and very cheap to build, low operating costs and maintenance, goes anywhere, lots of nice scenery, "shovel ready" (if you know what I mean ;D), environmentally friendly, and no electrical fires to worry ourselves with.
We should apply for a stimulus grant immediately!
(http://docsouth.unc.edu/nc/king/king386.jpg)
Apparently, the proper name for this is a "horsecar". Per Wikipedia, they first started passenger service in England in 1807. Upon the advent of electric trolleys, they met their final demise in the US in 1926. Except...for that great purveyor of history, the Disney Company!:QuoteReplica horsecar lines are in operation at all Disney theme parks except Tokyo and Hong Kong as part of the parks' Main Street, U.S.A. "themed land".
Perhaps, this would be a Downtown attraction not to be forgotten!See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horsecar
(http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_3jV5FcVqpE8/SJOBzVdMY0I/AAAAAAAADHI/KkLgAk1sFFg/s400/1l%2Bhorse%2Bcar%2Band%2BDD.JPG)
Okay, so Walt Disney was a railroad buff! BTW, so was sidekick Ward Kimble.
I'm your huckleberry, you had to know I couldn't resist this one!
(http://www.trolleystop.com/images/flhorsecar1.jpg)
Here is a REAL PHOTO (hand tinted) of a true Florida horsecar in Palm Beach
(http://www.dot.state.fl.us/publicinformationoffice/historicdotphotos/images/palatka.jpg)
The real deal in North Florida, meet the Palatka and Heights Street Railway, 1888 - 1906.
The first photo in your post is not a Trolley at all. It was a horse car on the St. Johns Railway, Tocoi landing to St. Augustine. The woodcut drawing is completely fanciful as the real equipment was very crude. Lakelander and I were both on this line just Tuesday! In West St. Augustine, the FEC RY has a junction, called Moultree Junction. There is the mainline that goes South and East from this point and a branchline that heads slightly Southwest. From about 1/3 of a mile West of the Junction, there is a railroad crossing over the branchline, if you continue slowly another 200 yards or so, you'll see an old industrial warehouse like building on your right. The right-of-way is visible from this point to Moultree Jct. and across the road, one can see the right-of-way in the woods.
This was Floridas FIRST RAILROAD and it dates from the 1830's. It was to be modernized just prior to the War of Yankee Aggression, and iron rail, coaches and a steam engine were on the wharf when the war broke out.
Yankee raiders stole all the equipment and the rail, then distroyed the entire railroad all the way to St. Augustine. After the war it was rebuilt and finally got the proper railroad equipment it deserved. It served our ancestors up until Flager went to St. Augustine. When this tiny line and the Jacksonville and St. Augustine Railroad tried to "jack" Flagler on freight rates, they were bought up and turned into what would become the Florida East Coast Railway.... Sadly, not even a marker tells this story.
(http://i196.photobucket.com/albums/aa111/Ocklawaha/AnastasiaIslandTrolley.jpg)
Anastasia Island Horse Car
(http://www.metrojacksonville.com/photos/thumbs/lrg-183-image16.jpg)
Fernandina and Amelia Beach Railway on 7Th Street
As for Jacksonville? Actually, it might do quite well on Water Street or Bay if we had anything to see there. Otherwise, a Horse Car Line might be a nice fit for the short trip between Atlantic Ave at the FEC crossing to San Marco Village. Then for Gods sake, someone open up some clubs, museums and things to do! Another location? How about the beach?
OCKLAWAHA