Most people see the Loop trolley as a nuisance. For Webster University sophomore Carter Reeves, the little engine that never could is his muse.
Reeves started making a documentary about the trolley for a documentary production class but soon found the topic deserved more than what he could pack into a 10-minute assignment. The budding filmmaker hopes to release a longer video, currently called “A Trolley Problem,” to the public sometime within the next few months.
We spoke with Reeves about all things trolley — and the challenge of understanding the full scope of one of the region’s most hated projects.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Why make a documentary about the trolley?
I’m originally from southern Illinois and had no idea that there even was a trolley. One of my friends brought it up, and I had no idea how many people had a problem with it. I was trying to find a topic for my documentary production class, so I did more research. The rabbit hole just kept getting deeper and I realized the full scale of the project.
I’ve been doing interviews and trying to get a sense of all the opinions on this, what the history of this project is and how I can put that into a documentary.
What stories have you heard so far?
So far I’ve talked to Mark Loehrer who works at the Missouri History Museum and colorizes black and white photos. From him and Emery Cox from the National Building Arts Center I got more of a historical side of things. I’ve learned a lot about the history of streetcars in St. Louis and public transportation. They also talked about how different the trolley is from the original trolley system in St. Louis. It’s not for public transportation, it’s more of a tourist draw. Which is crazy, considering how much money has been put in the project. I think that’s a big reason why people have such an issue with it.
But I’ve heard good things, too. I recently interviewed the owner of Subterranean Books and she was very much in favor of the trolley. Whenever construction was going on, her sales doubled — which is much different from other stories I’ve heard. I have an interview coming up with Big Shark Bicycle Company who used to be in the Loop. One of the main factors of them leaving was because of the trolley. Lots of differing opinions.
Well, what’s your opinion? Or are you trying to keep it neutral?
I’m definitely trying to keep it neutral. I’m very much just trying to soak up all the information.
I feel like whenever the trolley is in the news it’s usually for something bad: Here’s something we spent millions of dollars on and it’s getting hit by a car. Or it’s hitting a car. Have you found those incidents are as common as people think?
At this point, I haven’t heard many firsthand stories about it getting hit by cars. I haven’t been able to get a whole lot of people to do a sit-down interview, but I would love to sit down with more businesses and hear more stories like that. There definitely is a lot of publicity around the negative sides of the project.
What would you say is the central story of this documentary?
The story is something I’ve definitely struggled with finding. Usually, with documentaries, you have to have a beginning and an end. The trolley is still an ongoing thing.
My plan is to go year by year and see how the project unfolded. I’m not sure how far back I’m going to go with it. I mean, I’ve done research all the way to the 1800s, when St. Louis had omnibuses and horse drawn trolleys.
It’s all still connected. They’re under new names, but it’s pretty much the same companies that have gone all the way back to horses. That’s my plan now — to divide it up by year.
Sounds like you have a lot of work ahead of you.
This project has been a huge undertaking, but I’m excited about it. I’m realizing this is a very important topic to bring up in St. Louis.
Do you think you'll get an A?
I certainly hope so.
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