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Is Los Angeles the Tiny Railway Capital of the World?

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Yes, yes, LA's rail system is not the world's greatest--they're working on it!--and the legendary Red and Yellow Cars that criss-crossed SoCal in the early part of the twentieth century had enough faults (crowding, slowness) to make the mid-century autopia seem like a genius solution, but Metro Day Pass points out one rail advantage we do have going for us: tiny little railways. Consider:

Angels Flight: "the world's shortest railway" at 282 feet
The Grove trolley: 1,189 feet long
The Americana at Brand trolley: 1,755 feet long
The Getty Center tram: 3,720 feet long
The Griffith Park and Southern Railroad: 4,387 feet long
The Travel Town Railroad (also in Griffith): 2,169 feet long
The LA Live Steamers Museum (another in Griffith Park): One and a half miles
The San Pedro Waterfront Red Car: Also one and a half miles

Then there are all the little Disney trains, plus what seems to be a regional fondness for private funiculars (like the one at John Lautner's Chemosphere in the Hollywood Hills). So, thank Grove/Americana developer Rick Caruso for helping LA to have a (kind of lame but still fun) rail win, we guess? Now, let's talk Dodger Stadium...
· Small Railways [MDP]

The Grove

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