California Line (Red)It's the least busy of the three. It's also full of thrills as it climbs the steep hill from California and Market to the top of Nob Hill, then runs back downhill to Van Ness.
Historic Transit Route MapThe F-line's vintage streetcars and the world-famous cable car lines – the Powell-Hyde line, the Powell-Mason line, and the California Street line – currently operate between 7 a.m. – 11 p.m. every day.
The route is 1.4 miles long, taking about 16 minutes. Starting near the Ferry Building, the SF cable cars glide through the Financial District and Chinatown, climbing up to Nob Hill and ending at Van Ness Avenue.
Cable cars are often misidentified as 'trolleys', but that term refers specifically to the trolley pole used by streetcars to get power from an overhead wire (hence streetcars are often called trolleys, correctly). Cable cars use no overhead wire, and have no trolley poles.
Powell/Hyde Line: Union Square, Lombard Street to Fisherman's Wharf. The Powell/Hyde line is one of two cable cars in San Francisco that run from Union Square to Pier 39 and Fisherman's Wharf.
The centrepiece of the Firstbahn is the six-seater Gondola Cable Car, which runs from Grindelwald via Bort and Schreckfeld to First. The gondola trip takes around 25 minutes.