In New Orleans, The vintage electric rail vehicles are called streetcars – never trolleys. No one knows exactly why or when New Orleanians made the distinction; in most places, the terms are used interchangeably. The most likely reason for the distinction is the pride that New Orleanians take in being the first city west of the Allegheny Mountains to implement passenger rail service. ''Streetcars'' rolled through New Orleans for more than 60 years before the ''trolley'', a device that transmits electric current to the motors, was used to power them.
There are three different lines: St. Charles, Canal Street, and the Riverfront, each of which originates downtown but takes passengers along different parts of the city.
Vintage streetcars still operate along the lines.
