As the last interurban, Iowa Traction's operations are completely unique. Here, #51 crosses 19th Street to take four cars up to the CP interchange. On the back of the engine, the conductor is pulling the trolley pole down off of the wire while the train coasts through the intersection. This is likely because the wire in this section is not in good shape which could risk the pole coming off and snagging on the tension wires. While not captured here, there was large arching of the 600 volts between the wire and pole when it was brought down. Only on Iowa Traction can you see these ancient railroading practices.
