Uplands Streetcar

The Uplands streetcar line was built in 1913 to help developers market an upscale "garden community" subdivision

Robert Loewing photo courtesy John Bromley | Gary Wilcox Collection

Uplands Streetcar (June 8, 1940)

On Dunlevy Street, leaving undeveloped Uplands

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	Uplands was one of three streetcar lines to service Oak Bay in the early years. The other two lines were Willows and Oak Bay. see Wards
	The Uplands line began in 1913 as an extension of the city's Fort Street run to the Willows.
	This extension was aggressively promoted by Uplands Limited, the land development company behind the planning and marketing of — the Uplands, an upscale "garden community" subdivision.
	On February 3, 1913, the 7,570-foot Uplands line went into service, from the Willows to its graceful loop on Midland Circle, via Cadboro Bay Road, and Dalhousie and Dunlevy streets, which became Midland Road within Uplands subdivision, whose parent, Uplands Limited, had contributed $1,817.13 to the last half-mile of the line, which had its own private right of way and attractive ornamental trolley wire hangers.1
	Oak Bay's boom years from 1910 through 1912 came to a crashing halt through 1913 with the inevitability of World War I.2 The municipality was in dire straits in 1913,3 as was Uplands Limited with a new streetcar line leading to 465 acres of mostly-unsold luxury lots.
	Despite slow lot sales through World War I and the Great Depression, regular streetcar service to the Uplands faithfully continued with multi-car runs. But in 1941, during World War II, service was cut back and in 1943 an unused siding track along Dunlevy Street was removed and recycled.
	By July 1, 1947, all tracks were removed from the Uplands subdivision:
	No more would the operator and his streetcar circle the picturesque loop around Midland Circle, stopping just before re-gaining the straight track so that the operator could re-line the switch with his switch iron for the return trip. Capitol Iron in Victoria would acquire the streetcar system's removed rails, except for those at Midland Circle which merely had their heads sliced off, the rest of the rails and their bases still malingering today under the pavement.4
	On December 1, 1947, the track beyond the Willows and along Dunlevy Street was abandoned and subsequently removed.
	After the war, when gasoline and rubber were no longer rationed, streetcars yielded to busses throughout the city and municipalites.
	1 Ewert, Henry. Victoria's Streetcar Era. (Sono Nis Press:1992) p 54.
	2 As war clouds gathered over Europe, the Duke and Duchess of Connaught visited Victoria and Oak Bay in 1912 to strengthen already-strong ties with the motherland and to solicit support for the inevitable. The royal couple stayed at Oak Bay's Mount Baker Hotel and attended the horse races at the Willows.
	3 The municipality's banker, the Bank of North America, refused an additional overdraft which resulted in the stoppage of public work projects which added further to the rising unemployment. The Merchants Bank of Canada came to the rescue and established a branch office in Oak Bay in 1913.
	4 Ewert. p 128.
	Streetcar Fare . . .
	Streetcar service in Victoria began on February 22, 1890. Each car was staffed with a motorman (sometimes called a motorneer) and a conductor who, among other resposibilities, collected fares. The fare was five cents.
	In 1890, the first year of operation, it was decided to issue transfers to allow passengers to connect with other lines (within 30 minutes of issuance).
	In 1894 designated stops were introduced. Prior to this, passengers could get on and off wherever they pleased.
	In 1909 the PAYE (pay as you enter) system was introduced. Prior to this, fares were collected by the conductor (who wore a change dispenser clipped to his belt). The PAYE system necessitated exact fare, as change was no longer being made.
	In 1937 BC Electric's 50-year franchise to provide streetcar service in the city (including the Oak Bay runs) was due to expire. By this time it was obvious to all that busses would replace streetcars. In fact there were already several bus routes in the city. But then WW II happened and gas and rubber were rationed, obligating the city and municipalities to extend the service of streetcars indefinitely. Streetcar service ended in Oak Bay on March 2, 1948 (the Oak Bay line), and in the city on July 5, 1948.
	* * *
	The year 1948 marked the end of an era in both Oak Bay and Victoria. Not only did streetcars become history, but so too did the Willows Fairgrounds after several exhibition buildings were destroyed by fire in that same year. Almost overnight a relaxed, romantic era was replaced with the hustle of post-war boom years.
	FURTHER READINGS
	Ewert, Henry. Victoria's Streetcar Era. (Sono Nis Press:1992)
	Kelly, Brian and Daniel Francis. Transit in British Columbia: The First Hundred Years. (Harbour Publishing:1990)
	Parker, Douglas V. No Horsecars in Paradise: A History of the Street Railways and Public Utilities in Victoria, British Columbia before 1897. (Railfare/Whitecap:1981)

PHOTOGRAPHS

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Cadboro Bay Road 1	Cadboro Bay Road 2	Dalhousie Street 1

Dalhousie Street 2	Dunlevy Street 1	Dunlevy Street 2

Midland Circle 1	Midland Circle 2	Midland Circle 3

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