Streetcars in Boise, ID

Cleaner than buses, cheaper than light rail, and perhaps locally affordable, the allure of streetcars is growing. Streetcars can be a good fit for cities emphasizing mixed-use development and trying to deal with transportation issues.

"People all the time approach me and say, 'Mayor, give me an alternative, get me out of my car,'" said Boise Mayor Dave Bieter in a recent State of the City address.

Now, Boise is one of about 80 cities considering adding or returning trolleys to their urban landscape, following the example of cities like Portland, Tampa and Little Rock.

"The attractiveness of it for us is that we could potentially do it without federal funding, without state funding and in a reasonable amount of time," Bieter said, as quoted in the Boise Weekly, referring to the possibility of a Local Improvement District to finance the project, in combination with existing federal planning grants.

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