The Ink-Pot and the Palette

Nothing's really wrong with streetcars--they're kind of nice. But they're incredibly expensive to build for and totally inflexible once they're in. Mile for mile, if a city really wants to move people around, running regular buses on existing street surfaces is a much better transportation purchase.

Some cities--like Vancouver BC, as I understand it--have rubber-tire streetcars, more like electric buses, that run linked to overhead wires but aren't dependent on rails. Apparently they're a little more flexible and a lot less expensive to build for, but I'm not an expert.

Portland is tearing up streets and laying down rails while its bus system is suffering huge service and route cutbacks. The net effect is that lovely streetcars run in attractive tourist and entertainment districts and to and from the airport, while poorer people living in cheaper outlying areas have fewer and fewer options for getting to work--especially if they work evenings, weekends and holidays.

As a minor side-note, streetcar (and light rail) rails and bike tires are a dangerous mix, so I personally don't love riding in streets where traffic might force me into the streetcar lane. Fortunately, I can avoid those streets most of the time.