Ref
Description
Limited edition of
238.05
1952
GM TDH-5103 (Twin Cities Rapid Transit Co. 900-1004 series) & 1953/54
GM TDH-5105 (Twin Cities Lines 1005-1399 series).
After
the war, the conservative TCRT management decided to stick with streetcars,
but continued to convert a few lightly traveled lines, including Robbinsdale,
North West Terminal and Rondo-Stryker in 1948. By 1950, just before the
new management began the wholesale phase-out of streetcars, bus ridership
had jumped to 22 percent of the system total. The company acquired 105
GM TDH-5103 buses in 1952 in two batches (900-1004 series) and continued
to buy the TDH-5105 model: between May 1953 and May 1954 395 coaches were
acquired, numbered 1005-1399. TCRT converted the last streetcars to bus
in June 1954. The company changed owners in 1957 when the previous managers
went to jail for crimes connected with scrapping the streetcars. The big
fleet of 500 GM "king size" buses served Twin Cities very well;
four coaches (1171, 1303, 1364 and 1399) are preserved now at Minnesota
Transportation Museum.
Scale 1:48
Available 2007
Available through SPTC, U.S.A./Canada
Dealers
