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Ernest H. Robl stock photos:
Kinkisharyo Ameritram streetcar introduction, Charlotte, N.C.

In January of 2011, Japanese railcar manufacturer Kinkisharyo chose Charlotte, N.C. as the site for the formal introduction of a prototype streetcar designed for the American market, the Ameritram.

The Ameritram is a straight-eletric/battery electric hybrid (or "E-brid") vehicle that an operate off overheat wires or, for distances of up to five miles, from internal batteries. The batteries are charged from overhead wires where they are present and from regenerative braking.

Click on the images for larger versions of the pictures.
11D00042 Ameritram
demonstration in Charlotte.

Kinkisharyo officials offered a variety of scenarios in which this vehicle would be suitable, including streetcar lines in historic sections, where overhead wires and poles might be undesirable and downtown sections where wiring might be impratical.

11D00017 Lettering on side of Ameritram prototype.

Charlotte has some interest in this application as it has parades with balloons and outsize floats on a key downtown street and running wires on or crossing this street would preclude future parades of this type. At the same time, Charlotte wants to add a downtown circulator streetcar to its transit mix.

The demonstration runs were made on the northernmost segment of the Charlotte Lynx light rail system, as two-block single-track section that is normally only used by the replica historic trolleys.

Invited guests for the formal introduction included transit officials from Charlotte and several other cities as well as members of the media.

Kinkisharyo has built streetcars for several American cities, and officials at the prototype introduction described it as having a "Portland front end," using the styling of standard Portland streetcars being built by the company at the same time.

As with most rail transit vehicles, a production order of the Ameritram would offer exterior and interior styling to match customer specifications.

Kinkisharyo said that the Ameritram was particularly designed for American operating environments and to match Amerian streetcar standards. Production runs of the Ameritram would be built at the company's U.S. facilities with largey American components to match "buy American" specifications.

The formal introduction followed about a month of testing in Charlotte.

After the introduction, the Ameritram prototype was trucked to a series of other cities for demonstration runs.

The Ameritram is small enough that it can be transported on a large highway trailer without disassembly.

For additional information, see the Kinkisharyo site at www.Ameritram.com.
11D00024 Ameritram at the 9th Street trolley station with the Charlotte skyline in the background.
11D00031 Invited guests board the Ameritram for a demonstration run.
11D00032 A television news crew tapes the demonstration runs.
11D00046 Southbound Ameritram on one of its demonstration runs. Though this is a dedicated right of way, the streetcar is primarily designed for street running.

For additional background on the Charlotte Lynx light rail system, see my main Lynx image page.

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