Shopping on a Streetcar in Mendoza

The Urban Shopping Trolley is a very particular passenger service in the City of Mendoza, reminiscent of the old twentieth-century streetcars.

We saw it going along Las Heras Avenue as we went for a ride around the center. We were surprised to see its yellow outside with neatly painted details. Even the front metallic grille usual in the old vehicles was painted that color. The usual sight of streetcars on the downtown streets in the 1960s is still remembered by denizens.

The Shopping Trolley goes along San Martín, Colón, Belgrano and Las Heras Avenues on a fix tour that is completed every half hour. It goes all around the downtown area during the day.

Many details from the original historic trolley cars have been considered. Had it not been for the fact that the new ones roll on tires and not on trails, we would have believed these were the same old cars. Their inside, their lights, their windows, the cord to tell the driver to stop in order to get off, they all feature the same style as the old streetcars. They travel at low speed and have fix stops which they reach every ten minutes.

It is clear that the use of this service has rescued certain traditions that make up a past that should not be forgotten. They gave identity to Mendoza’s lifestyle and attempts to raise awareness of this fact are being made at present. The comfort of air-conditioning has been added to modern streetcars.

We paid for the ticket with coins and let ourselves be carried away by that air of nostalgia that let us remember the times when the conductor and the motorman used to wear huge hats and check our tickets. Shopping has been done on a streetcar for a while now in the City of Mendoza.