San Francisco's Cable Cars Have No Reverse Gear

San Francisco's Powell Street cable cars cannot back up. They have no reverse gear, and there is no loop at the end of the line to turn them around. So every single run ends the same way: the crew steps off, turns the entire car by hand, and everyone climbs back on.

Built to Go One Way

The Powell-Mason and Powell-Hyde cars are "single-ended." The grip that grabs the moving cable and the brakes only work when the car is facing forward.

California Street's cars are different. They were built with a grip and brakes at both ends on purpose, precisely so they never need to be turned at all.

The Turn

At the end of the line, the car rolls onto a circular turntable set into the street. It runs on ball bearings and rollers.

The crew sets the brakes and climbs off. Then, working with the conductor, they grab stanchions on the car and walk it around, or use pipework mounted on the turntable to spin it without touching the car directly.

Either way, the 15,500-pound car swings a slow half circle until it faces back down the hill, ready for the next trip.

A Rule From the 1970s

It wasn't always crew-only. Until the 1970s, riders could hop off and help push the turntable themselves, and even ride it around for free.

That is banned now for safety. Today the job belongs to the operator and conductor alone, dozens of times a day.

The Last One Left

Andrew Hallidie ran the first cable car down Clay Street in 1873. The system was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1964.

San Francisco has run the world's only cable car system, cars that grip a moving cable beneath the street, since 1957, when a similar line in Dunedin, New Zealand shut down. Every few minutes, at both ends of the Powell lines, the same small ritual repeats: brakes on, crew off, car turned, everyone back on.