The W line ran on Washington Blvd. from Vineyard Ave. to Figueroa St. and on North Figueroa from Ave. 20 to Marmion Way, on private right of way mostly parallel to the Santa Fe (now Gold Line) right of way, on Monte Vista, and on North Figueroa from Ave. 59 to Buena Vista St., and another branch on York Blvd. to Ave. 50.
Starting our tour towards the western end of the line, the next shot, taken in 1956, shows a W line car passing the ornate facade of the bakery for the Ralph's grocery chain at 7th Ave.
The photo below is looking north on Figueroa Street at Washington Boulevard in 1926. A streetcar on the W line has just turned north on Figueroa Street.
The next shot looks north on Broadway towards 6th. Broadway was still drawing sizeable crowds of pedestrians when this shot was taken in 1956.
The next photo shows a W line car southbound on Broadway at 4th, with The Broadway department store in the background (now a state office building).
Next we have a shot, taken in 1954, looking along Monte Vista St. in Highland Park. The W car is southbound toward downtown.
The next shot is at the northern end of the line -- York Blvd. at Ave. 50, with the York Theater behind the car.
In 1955 the Highland Park segment of the W line was converted to bus operation and the W line was re-routed up North Broadway to Lincoln Park — the former route of the 9 line. In the following photo, taken in 1956, we see an outbound W car on North Broadway in Lincoln Heights, near the point where the Golden State Freeway now crosses under North Broadway. The bay windowed building makes this seem as though it might be in the Bay Area.
