Kenosha, WI - Downtown Streetcar Loop

Kenosha, Wisconsin is an often overlooked city on lake Michigan about halfway between Milwaukee and Chicago. It is the furthest northbound stop on the METRA, Chicago's commuter rail, and those tracks essentially separate the downtown from the outlying neighborhoods to the west.


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Anyway, I had a week off (still have some of that left) and it was time to visit mom in Wisconsin and my sister in Chicago. Finally I would get the chance to check off one of the more unique locations running vintage streetcars.

Not sure of how the system worked, my mom and I just started walking next to the tracks and looking back every so often. After a couple of blocks we saw it approaching in the distance.

Looking West on 56th St....train approaching.

As it got closer, something looked funny with the paint job. It was green in the style of the former Chicago streetcars of years past. This was all accurate except the nose of the vehicle. What was this white, strangely shaped area? Ugh. The Easter Bunny.

Why, Kenosha? Why?

So at first I was a little confused. I came all this way to ride a paper and electrical tape rabbit on wheels? Can't I just peel that rabbit off for my picture? Then I decided that it is these types of oddities on this streetcar adventure that will make this more than a bunch of words and pictures about trains. This was so weird. This was so Wisconsin.

We got on the completely empty train and paid our one buck fare. The train operator was very cordial and desperately bored. Any time he saw someone remotely close to the tracks he would slow down, while probably making puppy dog eyes out the window to guilt them into boarding. 

The interior was really well done. They modernized it a little bit with some cushioning on the seats and a wheelchair lift at the back doors, but the lights still had that 1940s glow to them.

Our operator looking for some additional company.

We did the full loop through downtown, past the lakeshore and back around. We thanked our friend up front, and hit the road to Chicago. Kenosha is great. From the people walking around and specifically the operator who wanted to show people around, I have a new city on my list to return to as much as possible.

My weird stitched together panoramic...

Goodbye, Kenosha. So long, Easter Bunny.