Winnipeg Street Railways

With the rapid growth of Winnipeg between 1871 and 1879 it became apparent to various groups of entrepreneurs that some form of public transportation system was necessary in the growing city. The first group to actually form and operate such a system was 'omnibus' (stage coach) service that operated for only one day, July 19th, 1877, before being cancelled the same day.

On May 27th, 1882, the Winnipeg Street Railway Company was formed and on June 12th, 1882, a franchise was granted by the City of Winnipeg. Following this, a track was laid on the west side of Main Street for the operation of horse drawn street cars. The track was completed and entered into public service on October 20th, 1882. It was soon found that the track was not suitable for winter operation and the street cars were equipped with sleighs.

Over the next two years the trackage was extended to the north on Main Street as far as St. John’s, westward on Portage Avenue, and southward on Kennedy Street to Broadway Avenue. By 1885 the single line of track for the horse drawn cars was proving inadequate for the volume of passengers riding the system. A second track was built between the Assiniboine and the CPR Depot. In 1883, Fort Rouge became part of Winnipeg and the city limits extended northwards to Inkster Boulevard. Portage Avenue had been extended westward to St. James Street.

The expansion of city boundaries, combined with the rapidly growing population within the new City Boundaries, led the Winnipeg Street Railway Company (WSRC) to believe a faster transportation mode was required if the city was to be adequately served with public transportation.

In the spring of 1888, an electric railway was being successfully operated in the City of Richmond, Virginia. This led the WSRC to investigate such a system for Winnipeg.

Following two years of frustration in gaining approval of the City Council for the construction of an electric street car system, the City grudgingly permitted the construction along River Avenue adjacent to the south banks of the Assiniboine River.

In order for WSRC to be viable in this endeavour, Mr. Austin, President of the WSRC, purchased large lots of land on both sides of the Red River on Pembina Highway, now know as Osborne Street. This purchase opened development of the land, to become home to many new residents of Fort Rouge and adjoining areas, and to what became River Park, along the north bank of the Red River at the south end of what is now known as Osborne Street. Thus, the development of the area generated the necessary passenger traffic for the WSRC.

It was on this trackage that the first electric street car ever brought into the Canadian Northwest was delivered on November 28th, 1980. Initially only one street car, built by Patterson and Corbin Co. of St. Catherines, Ontario, was purchased. The first day of operation for the electric street car was at 7:30 pm in the evening of January 27th, 1891.

The introduction of electrical power led to the construction of infrastructure that included electric power stations, car barns, and other structures, that became part of Winnipeg's built heritage.

From the simple horse drawn cars on Main Street and the initial electric car the development of large residential areas became possible as the systems grew into today's Winnipeg Transit System. Thus, it the catalyst for the development and growth of Winnipeg and its Transit System.