On this day in 1974...

...DDOT took over as the transit provider within the Detroit city limits.

In April 1956, the Detroit Department of Street Railways became that in name only. Around 1962, the system began to decline and when the 1970's arrived it was on the verge of becoming bankrupt. Then in November 1973, Detroiters approved a charter that would restructure the city's transportation department and as a result, on this day in 1974, at midnight, the DSR became the Detroit Department of Transportation.

More info: http://www.detroittransithistory.inf...OTHistory.html

As a result, today DDOT turns 37 years old.

I still call it the DSR, though. Old habits die hard.

It was just the final straw. They'd been trying to turn it into an all-bus system for 50 years before the final name change.

"You are never far from the DSR." I don't know if that was an official slogan, but we said it all the time.