Utilizing hydroelectric power from Lake Biwa Canal, Kyoto Electric Railway started operating in 1895. It was the first streetcar system in Japan. At the time of its establishment, the streetcar ran up to the Keage Incline. Later, Kyoto Municipal Streetcar bought up the Kyoto Electric Railway, and train cars were also transferred to Kyoto Municipal Streetcar. Kyoto Municipal Streetcar served as the main transportation system in Kyoto City from middle of the Taisho Era (1912-1926) to the early Showa Era (192-1989), but it fell out of use in 1978. You can see the I-type narrow-gauge track (Kyoto Electric Railway) preserved in its original form at Heian Jingu Shrine. Flagstones (granite) used for the streetcar are now used as stone paving along the promenade “Philosophers’ Path.”