The A-trains of the Key System (shown) went between San Francisco and San Leandro [map]. The Oakland traffic engineering department wanted trains eliminated near Lake Merritt so the right of way of the trains could be used for more automobile lanes. In 1950, the "heavily used" A-line was severed. As a result of a hostile takeover in 1946 by General Motors Corp., the Key System transit company supported its own destruction.

Many more examples of how General Motors and traffic engineers decimated the train system is contained in this report