Muni's original E streetcar line was the
E Union line, running north from the
Ferry Building via
The Embarcadero to Washington/Jackson streets, where it turned west to eventually reach the
Presidio. This line was discontinued in 1947.
Streetcar demonstration Proposals for historic streetcar service along The Embarcadero were first put forward in 1974, and the first mention of separate E Embarcadero and F Market lines was in 1981. In 1987, a temporary, demonstration streetcar service was operated along part of the Embarcadero as part of the 1987
San Francisco Historic Trolley Festival, to gauge public interest in, and the practicality of, a regular streetcar service. It ran along then-existing, but disused,
San Francisco Belt Railroad tracks and operated two days a week for a little over five weeks, using two streetcars powered by electricity from portable diesel
generators.
Previous E Embarcadero service Light rail service on the section of The Embarcadero south of Folsom Street and on King Street to the
Caltrain depot began on January 10, 1998, using a
Muni Metro shuttle line between
Embarcadero Station and the Caltrain station. This temporary line was designated
E Embarcadero, and it was discontinued when it was replaced in August 1998 by an extension of the
N Judah line. In 2007 the new
T Third Street line also began operating on this extension.
Historic streetcar service Historic streetcar service on The Embarcadero north of
Don Chee Way began in March 2000 when the
F Market & Wharves line was extended to
Fisherman's Wharf. That extension and the 1998 light rail extension to the Caltrain Depot make up almost the entirety of the E line route; they were connected by unused tracks on The Embarcadero between Don Chee Way and Folsom Street.
Later changes The new E Embarcadero line operated on a temporary basis during the
2013 America's Cup yacht races. On March 28, 2014, the
San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) officially approved plans for weekend-only service of the E Embarcadero heritage streetcar line starting in summer 2015, with weeklong service starting the next year. and weeklong service began on April 23, 2016. and has yet to resume. ==Station/Stop listing==