The PCC Afterlife

Text by James Bow.

We have already shown pictures of the TTC PCC graveyard at Wychwood. Here, we saw pictures of PCC streetcars waiting to be scrapped. However, not all of these cars end up as recycled metal. Some are taken from the scrapyard and continue to stand, years later, as incongruous monuments to Toronto's PCC heritage. Farmers can use the car bodies as sheds, PCCs have appeared as boutiques, and it's even possible to eat inside a number of them.

This page describes some of the PCCs which have escaped the scrapyard and the lives they are living today.

Burger and Fries in a PCC

From 1990 until around 2015, in the hamlet of Primrose at the intersection of Highways 10 and 89, just east of the town of Shelbourne, there was a diner called Super Burger. Located at the northwest corner of Highway 10 and Highway 89, the diner looked like any other diner... except that it had a PCC streetcar attached to it.

A lot of work went gone into incorporating former PCC 4341 into the diner structure. A glass passageway led from the main building and into the front of the PCC. The PCC itself was re-floored and has had its seating removed and diner chairs and tables put back in. PCC 4341 retained most of its features. The windows were original, the advertising recalled the late 1980s. Initially, the rear doors opened when you step down onto the treadle. The venue was quite popular with children.

Owner James Nicolau bought the PCC from the TTC in 1990 as the TTC was scrapping all but 19 of its aging PCC cars. He paid $1,000 for the vehicle itself, and then a lot more to a shipping company to help take it away. In an interview conducted in 2015, owner Nicolau estimated that he spent $50,000 obtaining and incorporating the PCC into his restaurant. He expected the vehicle to last no more than five years. It continued serving customers for nearly 25. There were even weddings held within its cramped confines.

In August 2015, however, Nicolau announced that PCC 4341 was being sold for scrap. After twenty-five years, the elements had not been kind to the structure, and repairing it was too costly an option. Instead, the vehicle would be taken away, the building demolished, and a new building put up on its site. The news was greeted with sadness by more than just the railfan community, as Torontonians waxed nostalgic about the vehicle, and the restaurant that housed it.

Shelbourne PCC Image Archive

	The parking lot at Super Burger, showing the main building, flag and PCC diner.
	A close-up of the passageway connecting the PCC to the main building. The front of PCC 4341 has been drilled through.
	The side view of PCC 4341. The front doors are disabled. The rear doors open automatically when you step on the stairwells.
	Here's the inside view of the connecting passageway. Photo by James Bow.
	Inside the PCC, looking to the front. The seats and floor have been replaced, but the lighting, walls, windows and even the advertising remain the same. Photo by James Bow.
	A view of ex-TTC PCC #4341 with its face off in its early days as a restaurant. This photograph was taken by W.N. Carr circa June 1991.

The Boutique at Rutherford Road

What could be more ignominious than being abandoned? How about being abandoned twice? That's the fate of TTC PCC 4716 (ex-Birmingham 816).

The streetcar was sold complete, trucks and all, and moved to the north side of Dundas Street just west of Yonge during the late evening of July 15, 1973. Unoriginally, it was named Desire, was painted a brilliant red and opened as a boutique. On July 27, 1977 it was removed in preparation for the construction of the Atrium on Bay, and stored at an unknown location in Markham until 1981. Then it was sold again and moved to a lot at Birchmount and Steeles. In 1982, it was sold again and moved to a lot run by the owners of Shy-Low Farms on the west side of Warden Avenue just north of Steeles where it was used as a residence and office. It was repainted, poorly, in pseudo TTC colors but whether in 1981 or 1982 is unknown. The final journey took it to Bathurst and Rutherford in Thornhill (same ownership) in May, 1987 where it sits to this day.

Thanks to John Bromley and Matthew Biemiller for supplying us with pictures and information on PCC 4716.

Rutherford Road PCC Image Archive

	PCC 4716 being moved onto the Dundas site July 15, 1973. Photo donated by John F. Bromley.
	PCC 4716 being repainted, Aug 26, 1973. Photo by R D McMann, donated by John F. Bromley.
	PCC 4716 in business on April 20, 1974. Photo by R D McMann, donated by John F. Bromley.
	In this mid-1970s shot, R. Hill captured 4362 trundling east past boutique 4716. Photo donated by Rob Hutchinson.
	Early in 2001, Matthew Biemiller caught this shot of 4716, still at Shy-Low Farms on Rutherford Road.
	Its primary use now seems to be as a storage shed. Photo by Matthew Biemiller.
	Rear shot of PCC 4716. Photo by Matthew Biemiller.
	Side view of PCC 4716. Photo by Matthew Biemiller.

California Dreaming

Dale Laird was kind enough to send me two photographs of a Toronto PCC that ended up as far afield as a field in Perris, California. PCC 4460 was retired by the TTC in 1991 and kept in storage inside Russell Carhouse until it was purchased by one Ralph Cantos along with two others that almost went to San Francisco's Muni's F Line before San Francisco backed out of the deal. Car 4460 was stored temporarily beside an ex-CTA 'L' car which caught fire, causing minor damage to the PCC. Ralph looked into donating the PCC to streetcar museums in Vancouver and San Diego but the car is still in storage.

Perris PCC Image Archive

Side view shot of PCC 4460 in a field in Perris, California. Photo by David Laird.

Perkinsfield

Matthew Biemiller discovered a class A-8 PCC masquerading as a diner in Perkinsfield, Ontario, near Georgian Bay. Unlike the diner in Primrose, this diner looked to be closed down and abandoned, so there's no chance of a meal, here, unfortunately...

Perkinsfield PCC Image Archive

	Front view of the Red Rocket diner in Perkinsfield, Ontario. Photo by Matthew Biemiller.
	A shot of the rear of the diner. The place isn't nearly as well kept up as the diner at Primrose, but the PCC here has been the least modified of the two. Only some interior work and some exterior painting has taken place. Photo by Matthew Biemiller.
	A side view of the PCC diner, showing air conditioning vent and general clutter. Photo by Matthew Biemiller.

A Streetcar Named Dessert

In Springville, NY, an establishment called 'A Streetcar Named Dessert' uses ex-TTC PCC 4434 to enhance its gimmick. According to Duane Fischer, "You will find it off West Main Street just behind the old Depot which is called Choo-Choo Gifts. Also you will find a neat ice cream place in the middle made out of an old caboose. The owner/operators are Leo nad Linda Lubke. Great people."

West Main Street is also Route 39 - head east from the 219 Expressway or 219 from the south ( turn right) slow down when you come to the railroad tracks and turn left into the Gift Shop (Depot).

Jeffrey Kay paid a visit to this site in 2007, 2009 and 2011 and witnessed the deterioration of the PCC. By 2009, the establishment was abandoned and the PCC looked to be in poor shape. By 2011, PCC 4434 had been removed.

Springville PCC Image Archive

	PCC 4434 and patio in spring. Photo by Leo Lubke, donated by Lytton Brown.
	Another shot of the establishment, this time in winter. Photo by Leo Lubke, donated by Lytton Brown.
	The site also features a double decker bus. A sign on the bus indicates that it is a 1946 Regent. It bears London Transport lettering. Apparently a green line coach, unless it has been repainted this way. Photo and information by Roger DuPuis.
	Photographer Jeffrey Kay caught this image on October 4, 2007, and found PCC 4434 in good condition and being used as a summer ice cream stand.
	A side view of the Streetcar Named Dessert, taken by Jeffrey Kay in October 2007. After years out in the open, rust is beginning to show along the roofline.
	The seats are in good condition in this October 2007 shot. Photo by Jeffrey Kay.
	A somewhat creepy looking mannequin greets patrons in the driver's seat. This October 2007 photo is by Jeffrey Kay.
	A view of the overall location, taken on October 4, 2007, showing the former train station and other pieces of equipment. Photo by Jeffrey Kay.
	On October 21, 2009, Jeffrey Kay returned to Springville and found a very different site. The PCC had clearly been abandoned for some time and was falling into repair.
	PCC 4434 is clearly showing the effects of the elements, with peeling paint. Photo by Jeffrey Kay.
	A view from the back, showing rust and a patched over window. October 2009 photo by Jeffrey Kay.
	A view of the preparation counter in the back. This October 2009 photo is by Jeffrey Kay.
	A front view of PCC 4434 in October 2009. Photo by Jeffrey Kay.
	Finally, on June 2, 2011, Jeffrey Kay returned to find streetcar and patio removed. He was told that the streetcar was taken to a nearby scrap yard, but it may still be intact with other rail cars. The adjacent railway station was operating as a Drug Store at the time this photo was taken.