page_title: Birmingham Railway and Electric Company
section_title: 1950s
hierarchical_section_title: Birmingham Railway and Electric Company / Fleet / 1950s
caption_attribution_description: San Francisco Streetcar 1077, an ex-Newark, ex-Minneapolis PCC-type streetcar painted in the livery colors of the former Birmingham Electric Company (of Birmingham, Alabama). The car was built for the Twin City Rapid Transit Co. (Minneapolis-St. Paul) in 1947. It was sold to Newark in 1953, and it was acquired by San Francisco Muni from Newark in 2004.
context_page_description: The Birmingham Railway and Electric Company was both a street car and electricity provider in Birmingham, Alabama.
  Created in 1890 after the consolidation of several street railway operators, including the Birmingham Street Railway:
  Highland Avenue and Belt Railroad 1885-1890
  East Lake Land Company 1886-1890
  East Birmingham Land Company 1887-1890
  Bessemer and Birmingham Railroad 1887-1890
  Enselt Company 1887-1890
  In 1940, BREC became Birmingham Electric Company.
  The company faced increased pressure from car after World War II and ridership declined. By the 1950s streetcar operations gave way to bus service in the city. Forty-seven streamlined PCC streetcars, which went into service in 1947, were sold to the Toronto Transit Commission in 1953.
  BEC changed its name to Birmingham Transit Company in 1951. In 1972, the Birmingham-Jefferson County Transit Authority took over public transit operations.
context_section_description: In addition to a variety of older cars kept in service, BEC ordered 47 PCC streetcars, at a cost of $25,000 each, from Pullman Standard in 1947. Birmingham's cars were the 17425 model and were manufactured at the Osgood Bradley plant in Worcester, Massachusetts. The interiors were three shades of green with coffee-colored leather upholstery, stainless steel seat backs and chrome trim. The cars entered service on August 31, 1947. The exterior color scheme was updated to navy blue skirts with cream above, separated by a scarlet stripe.
caption: A PCC streetcar in San Francisco in 2010 wearing the paint scheme of the Birmingham Electric Company.  The car is ex-Newark, ex-Minneapolis, and never operated in Birmingham.
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