By Railfan & Railroad Staff

San Francisco Municipal Railway recently acquired a third “Boat Tram” that once operated in Blackpool, England. The streetcar joins two others already on the MUNI roster, one of which is running every Sunday until October 13, to celebrate the 90th anniversary of its construction. 

Blackpool is a seaside resort town and in the 1930s, it acquired 12 open-top, canoe-shaped trams to run on sunny days. Today, eight of the original 12 still exist. Three are in California, including Nos. 226, 228 and 233. Car 226 was the first to ever operate in San Francisco in 1983, when MUNI leased it from the Western Railway Museum in Solano, Calif., for the city’s first Trolley Festival. While the car was very popular in San Francisco, the museum was not interested in selling it, so after the lease it returned home. MUNI then went looking for one of its own and acquired 228 directly from Blackpool in 1984. In 2013, another was acquired by Market Street Railway — the non-profit that supports historic transit in the city — and given the MUNI. 

The “boats” are often run on special occasions or during the summer and have proven popular with locals and tourists alike. MUNI decided if it could get another one, it would. But all of the remaining trams are spoken for and no one was interested in parting with theirs — until recently. Last year, the Western Railway Museum decided it would just focus on California trolleys and the English boat was now up for grabs. Market Street Railway and MUNI jumped at the opportunity and in May it was relocated to San Francisco. The tram will need some work before it can run.

Meanwhile, Blackpool 233, which is celebrating its 90th year, returned to service in mid-July. The car will run every Sunday until fall. For more information and to see where the boat tram is running visit streetcar.org.