Pacific Electric Red Car Line 1901 Mug

The Pacific Electric Railway (PE), nicknamed the Red Car Line, was a privately owned mass transit system in Southern California consisting of electrically powered streetcars, interurban cars, and buses. The PE grew to become the largest interurban system in the world, spanning over 1,100 miles and operating 1,200 cars throughout Southern California in the pre-freeway era. Red Car service provided fast efficient passenger and freight interurban transportation in Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside Counties, making commuting within minutes possible. Suburban towns sprang up and developed along the PE rails. The Pacific Electric also ran one of the few electrically-powered Railway Post Office routes in the country.