Bryan's Trolley Sometimes Needed a Push to Reach A&M

Bryan and Texas A&M were four miles apart in 1910, and the Bryan-College Interurban Railway made the trip in 30 minutes. A round trip cost 15 cents. For 13 years, the trolley gave downtown and the college a regular link.

Regular did not always mean effortless. The early cars relied on an underpowered gasoline engine. On crowded Saturday afternoons, a car sometimes had to be pushed up the Hillcrest incline. The line switched to electric power in 1915 and kept running through 1923.

The tracks also pulled Bryan southward. The city credits the railway with opening land south of downtown for homes. Dellwood Park, created in 1910 about halfway to A&M, was meant to connect downtown and college life while extending Bryan's footprint. Bryan's old campus corridor began with tracks, a 15-cent fare, and, on a crowded Saturday, a trolley that might need a shove.