Book Review: Street Smart: Streetcars and Cities In the Twenty-First Century

An over-size glossy book full of pictures, Street Smart: Streetcars and Cities In the Twenty-First Century is a self-published book available on Amazon and edited by Ohland and Poticho of the firm Reconnecting America . Basically a giant brochure for streetcars, while the book gives a good overview of how streetcars work and how you can get one in your town (including information on how to pay for it initially), it ignores some basic questions that many people would like to know, such as how many people will ride my streetcar? And how will I pay for the operation of my streetcar on an ongoing basis? The success of streetcars in Seattle and Portland (OR) has whetted the nation's appetite for these retro-vehicles, but each city needs to carefully assess whether it is the right strategy for them; a careful assessment that needs more than just this book to complete. Read my full review .