DDOT announced on its Facebook page on Tuesday that the three streetcars owned by the District of Columbia are now en route from the Czech Republic to D.C.  DDOT posted several photos of the streetcars being loaded onto trucks in Ostrava, Czech Republic on November 13th and then being tranferred from the trucks to cargo skids in the Port of Hamburg, Germany, on November 17th for their trans-Atlantic voyage by ship.  According to a source at DDOT, the streetcars are scheduled to arrive at the Port of Baltimore on December 10.  Sometime thereafter they are expected to be on display a location in D.C., perhaps at Union Station.

D.C. streetcar being loaded on truck in Ostrava, Czech Republic, where D.C.’s streetcars were manufactured and stored by Inekon.

D.C. streetcar being loaded on cargo skid at Port of Hamburg, Germany.

Much of H Street NE and Benning Road NE remains a construction zone.  However, work completed to date is starting to reveal what the “Great Streets” version of this arterial will look like.  In addition to streetcar tracks, the new and improved version of this long-neglected corridor will feature wider sidewalks, curb bulb-outs and new lighting.   In addition, work on two streetcar stops at 20^th Street & Benning Road NE and at Oklahoma Avenue & Benning Road NE are nearing completion, giving us a good idea of what streetcar stops at the eastern end of the corridor, where streetcars will run in the center lanes, are going to look like.  Here are some photographs (cell phone – please excuse the quality) of the Oklahoma Avenue & Benning Road stop, in front of historic Langston Golf Course.  

 Looking west on Benning from Oklahoma: note the raised curbs, which are presumably located where the streetcar doors will open.

 Looking east on Benning towards Oklahoma:  the streetcar platforms are in the median beyond what will likely be a raised planting bed.  The Orange & Blue Line tracks are in the distance.

Looking east on Benning toward Oklahoma: raised planting bed and streetcar platform.  Note the left turn lane for westbound traffic turning south on Oklahoma.

Streetcar platform from southwest corner of Oklahoma & Benning