New Orleans desires return of streetcars

New Orleans' fabled streetcars may not be as high on the hurricane repair list as levees or sewers but officials say the city's recovery would not be complete without the quaint, clattering cars.
The bulky rail cars with slatted wooden seats immortalised in Tennessee Williams' 1947 play "A Streetcar Named Desire" are a favourite of tourists and locals alike, but it may be weeks or perhaps months before they will run again.
The 35 cars on the famous St. Charles Avenue line were safely stowed away when Katrina struck on August 29 but the overhead cables that power them were knocked down in the storm, said Rosalind Cook Blanco, spokeswoman for the Regional Transit Authority that manages the New Orleans bus and streetcar system.