Skip to content

Friday Video: RIP, The D.C. Streetcar

Advocates are mourning the loss of the D.C. streetcar ... but they'e not entirely sad to see it die.

The streetcars stopped running in our nation’s capital just over a week ago, after barely a decade in service. But it’s not too early for a post-mortem report on one of America’s most fraught transit projects … and maybe a victory lap?

Check out this deep dive from Cities of Lions, which offers the most thorough recap we’ve seen of Washington, D.C’s doomed attempt to add a whole new mode of transit — and why even some urbanists say it wasn’t worth saving. It’s a well-researched object lesson from the Obama era of streetcar build-outs, with some fun jokes and Futurama clips thrown in for good measure.

Stay tuned for lion masks, Godfather memes, and a Tears for Fears ukulele cover (oh my!) Watch it below or on YouTube.

Streetsblog has migrated to a new comment system. New commenters can register directly in the comments section of any article. Returning commenters: your previous comments and display name have been preserved, but you'll need to reclaim your account by clicking "Forgot your password?" on the sign-in form, entering your email, and following the verification link to set a new password — this is required because passwords could not be carried over during the migration. For questions, contact tips@streetsblog.org.

More from Streetsblog USA

Friday Video: Take Transit to the World Cup … If You Can Afford It

May 1, 2026

Good Public Transit + Good Public Funding = Good Public Health

May 1, 2026

Friday’s Headlines Walk Warily

May 1, 2026

Boston’s New Climate Plan Is At Odds With Boston’s New Transportation Policies

April 30, 2026

Talking Headways Podcast: The Logistics of Package Delivery

April 30, 2026
See all posts