Trolleys (Again) for Coney Island?

[Photo courtesy of Steve Kalka/nyrre.org]

The Brooklyn City Streetcar Company, which is pushing trolleys as a transportation solution in a number of Brooklyn neighborhoods, is talking up its idea of a trolley line in Coney Island. The Bay News reports on the idea, which would seem to make a lot of sense if both the Thor Equities and Taconic Investment developments move forward:

The Brooklyn City Streetcar Company imagines trolleys rumbling through the seaside streets once more, hearkening to the heyday of an amusement district now set to undergo an over $1 billion redevelopment.

The not-for-profit group has been discussing its proposal with city officials, including the Coney Island Development Corporation, a quasi-public agency working on the area’s rezoning plan.

The group proposes the trolley line to run from Dreier-Offerman Park to the West 8th Street subway station, then to Surf Avenue to Keyspan Park, with an eventual extension to the edge of Sea Gate.

Another route could run from Dreier-Offerman to Cropsey Avenue, then to Neptune Avenue, then south to Stillwell Avenue.

Of course, a long time ago, Coney Island had not one, but two east-west trolley lines, one of which ran down Surf Avenue and another that ran between Surf and Mermaid Avenues to Seagate. Other trolley lines ran to Coney from other parts of Brooklyn.

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