Clang, clang, clang went the trolley
Ding, ding, ding went the bell
Zing, zing, zing went my heartstrings as we started for Huntington Dell.
Chug, chug, chug went the motor
Bump, bump, bump went the brake
Thump, thump, thump went my heartstrings …

The Saint Louis Loop Trolley Project will receive $25 million in federal dollars, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said Thursday.  The $25 million grant is part of the government’s nationwide, $400 million Urban Circular Program.  The 2.2-mile fixed-track system will cost $44 million to build, which will travel from the Loop to the history museum in the Park.  The route will feature nine stops and include two MetroLink stations.  Joe Edwards, owner of the Blueberry Hill restaurant and president of the Loop Trolley company, said the trolley system could be up and running by 2012 and hopes it will be operating by the summer of that year.   Just in time for the Democratic convention?

I noticed while driving up and down I-170 on Thursday that the City of Charlack has resurrected their campaign to use photo enforcement of speed limits on the highway that passes through their municipality.  They tried to do this earlier this year, but their first attempt was met with a firestorm of criticism.  In fact, I thought that the state had passed a law requiring speed cameras on state roads to be approved by MODOT.  Anyway their camera is up and running on a highway overpass.  Maybe this is just a trial project, but since Charlack derives a third of their city budget from speeding tickets, I doubt that any trial will run for very long, before it becomes an active program.

Anne sent from the Cabin via iPhone the above picture of a piece of purple beach glass.  Beach glass is broken glass that has been smoothed and polished by beach sand abrasion.  As beach glass goes, purple is an unusual color.  Sometimes you find a piece of beach glass that is not quite ripe.  The surface is not completely glazed or there is still a bit of an edge on the broken faces.  Don’t tell anyone, but I just throw those unripe pieces of glass back out into the lake and let them cook some more.