NEW ORLEANS — The Societé des Champs Elysée Carnival club has a new way to parade this Mardi Gras season without the North Rampart streetcar.
Every year the Societé has sent the Regional Transit Authority a deposit check to reserve the street car for its annual parade on Jan. 6, and each year RTA sends it back.
It became evident that the route would not be restored in time. Instead of a neighborhood bar crawl, the Societé found something else to replace the real red streetcar.
This year the group found a trolley-style bus available for rent and decided to take it for a ride for its upcoming parade.
According to our partners at Nola.com, the real red streetcar and the North Rampart Street route have not been in service for more than four years. After damaged infrastructure, COVID-19, supply chain lags, weather and staffing changes at RTA, the streetcar plans to be back in operation after carnival season.
An RTA spokesperson told WWL Louisiana that the route is expected to be back in service after Mardi Gras.
For now, the substitute streetcar will do for Societé. Because the vehicle is smaller, the 80-member group will take turns rolling Downtown. Divided into three groups, members will take separate rides each hour starting at 7 p.m. with the last ride ending at 9 p.m.
The parade will roll on Saturday, Jan. 6, starting at the Holy Diver bar at 1200 St. Bernard Ave and ending at the corner of St. Claude Avenue and Elysian Fields, where Societé members will march through the Robért Fresh Market grocery store.
Learn more about The Societé des Champs Elysée Carnival club and the parade route here.
► Get breaking news from your neighborhood delivered directly to you by downloading the new FREE WWL-TV News app now in the IOS App Store or Google Play.
