1503/304 Wreck on the 6th and Main Ramp in 1960
Ralph Cantos Collection
Los Angeles Metropolitan Transit Authority no. 1503 (former Pacific Electric no. 304) suffers an ignoble fate after losing control while descending the viaduct ramp at the 6th and Main Street station in 1960. This Los Angeles Herald Examiner photo illustration depicts the car’s path before coming to rest at the nose of a tractor-trailer on San Pedro Street.
The caption reads:
FAULTY BRAKES BLAMED AS HUGE MTA STREETCAR JUMPS THE TRACKS
The Interurban Ran Wild Down Terminal Ramp Near Sixth Street, Leaped Off Rails and Zig-Zagged (Broken Arrow) Across San Pedro St., Then Hit Moving Vans (Arrows); Five Persons Were Hurt
From Ralph Cantos:
The last “BIG WRECK” of LA’s “Interurban Era’ happened in 1960 when the #1503 lost its brakes while descending the 6th & Main ramp. no one was seriously injured , but the #1503 (PE #304) was not repaired. It was towed to Fairbanks year by another Blimp and stored there until the end of Long Beach Line service on 4-9-1961
Ralph Cantos Collection
