LosAngelesSportsFan
January 29th, 2005, 01:57 AM
Angels Flight Aims for Return by End of Year
Angels Flight, the railway shuttered after a deadly accident three years ago this week, could be up and running by the end of the year, said John Welborne, president of Angels Flight Railway, the nonprofit that runs the funicular. Welborne said a successful fundraising effort has netted $300,000 in private donations, $198,000 in federal funds and $1 million from the California Cultural and Historical Endowment. "With all of that money in hand, our campaign of about $2.5 million is down to only about $1.1 million," Welborne said.
Angels Flight re-opened in 1996 and connected Bunker Hill with the Historic Core; the fare was 25 cents a ride. The railway was closed after a Feb. 1, 2001, accident in which one of the two cars slid down the track and crashed into the other, killing one person and injuring seven more (in late 2001 the city, Angels Flight Railway and contractor Pueblo Contracting Services paid a $3 million settlement to the family of Leon Praport, who was killed in the accident). The fundraising, said Welborne, will pay for the rebuilding of the railway's drive assembly, which will occur off site. The railway will need approval from the California Public Utilities Commission (PUC) before it resumes operations, Welborne said. He added that the PUC is working with Angels Flight on the rebuilding effort.
Angels Flight, the railway shuttered after a deadly accident three years ago this week, could be up and running by the end of the year, said John Welborne, president of Angels Flight Railway, the nonprofit that runs the funicular. Welborne said a successful fundraising effort has netted $300,000 in private donations, $198,000 in federal funds and $1 million from the California Cultural and Historical Endowment. "With all of that money in hand, our campaign of about $2.5 million is down to only about $1.1 million," Welborne said.
Angels Flight re-opened in 1996 and connected Bunker Hill with the Historic Core; the fare was 25 cents a ride. The railway was closed after a Feb. 1, 2001, accident in which one of the two cars slid down the track and crashed into the other, killing one person and injuring seven more (in late 2001 the city, Angels Flight Railway and contractor Pueblo Contracting Services paid a $3 million settlement to the family of Leon Praport, who was killed in the accident). The fundraising, said Welborne, will pay for the rebuilding of the railway's drive assembly, which will occur off site. The railway will need approval from the California Public Utilities Commission (PUC) before it resumes operations, Welborne said. He added that the PUC is working with Angels Flight on the rebuilding effort.