After watching the new movie, Twisters, people are asking about the street car riding through a small town in Oklahoma.

Twisters (2024) briefly features a vintage streetcar trolley going down a small OK town’s Main Street. Do any towns in OK actually still have one of those?
byu/DangerBanks inoklahoma

The answer is yes, sort of. Although the trolley is used for tours and weekend rides, it is not the main way to get around in El Reno; home of the only rail-based trolley still working in the state. The street car in the movie is of the El Reno Heritage Express.

The El Reno Heritage Express

Although the trolley service that used to connect Oklahoma City and El Reno together ended after World War II, there is still a piece of that history cruising the rails in El Reno's streets.

Originally, the trolley system was built as part of a restoration project for downtown El Reno, which needed help renovating its drainage systems that caused flooding issues.

Posts from the transit community on Reddit

Since they needed help funding the restoration, they were able to strike a deal with the state and get an Intermodel Surface Transportation Efficiency Act grant (ISEA) under one condition: to install, at the same time, a rail-based transit system that [the city of El Reno] would financially support and maintain.

So, the city got a disused 1924 J.G. Brill Strafford Car, fixed it up and converted it to propane, then got permission from the Canadian County Historical Society to use the former rail system.


Read more: A Real Oklahoma Severe Storm Destroyed 'Twisters' Set


Can You Ride the El Reno Heritage Express?

Yes, you can. In fact, the trolley is up and running for the summer and visitors can ride along every Saturday until August 24, 2024. The trolley departs at 11a.m., noon, 1p.m. and 2p.m. from the Canadian County Historical Society Museum Complex.

Admission for the trolley ride is $5 per person.


Read more: Oklahoma Town Struck By Severe Storm During 'Twisters' Opening Weekend


 

Other Street Cars in Oklahoma

Oklahoma does have other street cars in Oklahoma City, which are modernized and used daily. They travel throughout the city, along the historical rails that have been in the roads for decades.

@elima_iii Traveled to the beautiful town of El Reno, #oklahoma for a hearing #elrenooklahoma #elreno #traveloklahoma #smalltownlawyer ♬ original sound - Kellen Bottomley

However, you're not going to get the same "old-timey," authentic exprience as on the El Reno Heritage Express.

Should we bring the old trolleys back? Tell us your thoughts on the app!

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