Streetcar lines grew and prospered in Dallas from 1872 until
the 1920s. Automobile competition siphoned many of their
riders away, but ridership soared again during World War II .
After the war, the trolleys entered an era of gradual attrition, and
they were abandoned by 1956. Amazingly, in 1989, the nonprofit
McKinney Avenue Transit Authority (MATA ) returned restored
vintage trolley cars to the city in the Uptown neighborhood near
downtown. MATA evolved from a tourist attraction into a true
transit company and became the M-Line. Since then, the area
has experienced rapid growth and is now home to midrise office
buildings and upscale apartments.