page_title: Charlottesville and Albemarle Railway
section_title: Development of the streetcar system
hierarchical_section_title: Charlottesville and Albemarle Railway / History / Development of the streetcar system
caption_attribution_description: English: A sign for the C&amp;A railway advertising its electric services.
context_page_description: The Charlottesville and Albemarle Railway was a short electric street railroad operating within the city of Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, during the early 20th century. The line was preceded by several streetcar lines operating both horse-drawn and electric powered cars dating back to 1887. After facing financial difficulties, the predecessor lines were reorganized into the C&A in 1903. The C&A's electric streetcars operated off of an overhead line system that was powered by the railroad's own power plant. The C&A also offered electric power generated by its plant to the city of Charlottesville. During the mid-1910s, the line received numerous upgrades, including the construction of a new power plant on the Rivanna River, a new company headquarters building, expansion of track, and the purchase of new streetcars.
  Increased expenses and decreasing ridership, coupled with the Great Depression, caused the railway to cease streetcar operations in 1935. The railway was reorganized as the Charlottesville and Albemarle Bus Company in 1936 with a transition to bus service.
context_section_description: The C&A's earliest predecessor line was chartered by the Virginia General Assembly on March 30, 1887 as the Charlottesville and University Street Railway Company.  This line constructed the first horse-drawn streetcar line within Charlottesville and began operation on June 14, 1887.  The Piedmont Construction and Improvement Company (renamed as Piedmont Traction Company in January 1896) was incorporated by the General Assembly on March 4, 1890 and began work on an electrified streetcar line.  Meanwhile, the Charlottesville and University Street Railway Company – renamed as the Charlottesville City and Suburban Railway in 1895 – continued operation.  For a time these two companies operated both horse-drawn and electric streetcars on parallel tracks simultaneously, beginning with the first operation of the electric streetcars on January 12, 1895.
  This continued until all of the Piedmont Traction Company's holdings were transferred to the Charlottesville City and Suburban Railway on July 31, 1896, at which time the operation of horse-drawn streetcars ceased.  Several other companies, including the Charlottesville and University Electric Light and Gas Company, the Consolidated Ice and Electric Company, and the Jefferson Park Company, were acquired by the Charlottesville City and Suburban Railway around 1900.  Having defaulted on six months of payments towards bonds and mortgages, the Charlottesville City and Suburban Railway was sold at public auction on November 10, 1903, after which it was reorganized as the Charlottesville and Albemarle Railway.
caption: A sign advertising the C&A's electric services.  Note the images of the power plant and the Rotunda at the University of Virginia.
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