CINCINNATI TRANSIT ROUTES

HORSE CAR/CABLE CAR/STEAM DUMMY ROUTES

Cincinnati's original horse car and cable car routes were constructed by several companies, and were assigned a common numbering system by the city with the franchise ordinances. This numbering system is unrelated to the Cincinnati Street Railway (CSR) numbering system used after 1920, which evolved into the present SORTA numbering system.

Some routes not constructed on city property were not originally assigned numbers.

Many routes were originally named for the streets used near downtown Cincinnati. Although as routes were later extended, they later received names reflecting more distant streets or areas.

Discontinued routes are indicated by "Disc."


Original  Route  Original                    First  First  First      CSR     SORTA
Route     Name   Company                     Horse  Cable  Electric   Route   Route
Number                                       Car    Car    Streetcar  Number  Number

 1  John St.    City Passenger RR            1859          1895       19      33
 2  7th St.     Cincinnati Street RR         1859          1895               Disc.
 3                                           (authorized/never constructed)
 4  5th St.     Passenger RR. of Cincinnati  1859          ????       45      Disc.
 5  East End    Pendleton & 5th St. Market   1859          1891       28      28
 6                                           (route never existed)
 7  East End    Pendleton St. RR             1860          1891       28      28
 8  Main St.    Mt. Auburn St. RR            1864          1889       53      24
 9  Vine St.    Route Nine Street RR         1868   1887   1898       46      46
10  Gilbert     Walnut Hills & Cinc. St. RR  1872   1885   1898        3       4
11                                           (route never existed)
12                                           (route never existed)
13  Avondale    Cinc. Walnut H. & Avondale   1874          1890       40      47
14                                           (route never existed)
15  5th St.     Mt. Adams & Eden Park        1877          1895               Disc.
16  Eden Park   Mt. Adams & Eden Park        1878          1888       49       1
17  Main St.    Cinc. Inclined Plane Ry.     (incline railway)
18  Colerain    Cumminsville St. Psgr. RR    1870's        1889       16      16
19                                           (route never existed)
20                                           (authorized/never operated)
21  Warsaw      Rees McDuffie (owner)        1884          1895       35      10
22  Highland    Mt. Auburn Cable Ry.                1887   1902       44      44
23  Fairview    Cincinnati Street Railway    1892          1895       60      51
Spring Grove    Cincinnati & Spring Grove    1870's        1895       15      16
Fairmount       Cincinnati & Spring Grove    1870's        ????       18      49
Sedamsville     Storrs & Sedamsville St. RR  1878          ????       34      50
McMicken        Cincinnati Street Railway    1881          1895       64      64
Ohio            Cinc. & Clifton Incline Pl.  1870's        ????       62      Disc.
In addition, the Delta route was a steam dummy route. Opened in 1866 by the Cincinnati and Columbia Street Railroad, and converted to electric operation in 1891. Under Cincinnati Street Railway was route number 68, with service subsequently evolving to present SORTA route 80.

Route 7 was a later extension of Route 5, evolving into Cincinnati Street Railway and SORTA route 28.

Go to Chicago Transit & Railfan Web Site