Growing up in Allentown, Joe Lance was encouraged by his father to take an interest in model trains. But the youngster was more intrigued by trolleys, finding something almost hypnotic about the way they ding, ding, dinged over the tracks.

He was so taken by all things trolley-related, he said, that had his parents not insisted he go to college, he would have operated a trolley for a living.

The opportunity, then, to drive one of the six or so vintage trolleys in service at the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum in Washington County is like a dream come true for him, especially since all he had to do to become a motorman was take a three-day training course.

"I'm living out my childhood fantasy," said Mr. Lance, who last year traveled 13 times from his home in Austin, Texas, to the museum in Chartiers where -- as his motorman's cap proudly announces -- he serves as volunteer trainman No. 1273.

On a recent day, Mr. Lance manned the controls of a Port Authority 4004, a streamlined PCC streetcar remanufactured by Port Authority in 1988 at its South Hills Village Rail Center. It was the last of its kind to operate on the Pittsburgh system.

"Some people drink beer, others operate streetcars," agreed motorman No. 1143 Andrew Lynn, a fellow volunteer who joined Mr. Lance on the scenic 4-mile trolley ride along Arden Creek. He was visiting from Lexington, Ky.

As Mr. Lance and Mr. Lynn so aptly demonstrate, the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum in Chartiers -- which will offer special activities May 2-4 to celebrate transit history as part of Pittsburgh's 250th anniversary -- draws a dedicated crowd of helpers. Last year, about 150 volunteers logged a record 30,000 hours, said Scott Becker, executive director since 1993. That's the equivalent of 15 full-time employees.

Over four years, volunteers put 20,000 hours into the restoration of a 1917 "low-floor" streetcar that will be rolled out for the first time during the 250 celebration. Also known as Pittsburgh cars or "yellow cars" -- although their true color when newly painted is orange -- these cars were an important step in transit for both riders and trolley companies because they were easier for everyone to board and therefore cut down on "dwell time" -- the amount of time a car sits idle.

No detail was small enough to be overlooked in the restoration, from the weathered "Beechview" sign on the front to the cane seats inside to the original stanchions, which gave riders something to hold onto so they wouldn't fall.

Trolleys have captivated the masses ever since the first electric streetcars arrived on American streets at the end of the 19th century.

Unlike many other museums where artifacts are stored away from prying hands in glass cases, the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum is extremely user friendly.

It has the requisite photo exhibit of streetcars throughout the years, and visitors can watch a 12-minute video on the trolley era and view a "Wish You Were Here" postcard exhibit that speaks to how exciting travel by trolley was considered in the early 20th century. What really brings the museum to life, though, is that each paid visit includes a half-hour ride on a real classic streetcar.

"You can hear the grind of the gears and feel the sway of the cars," said Mr. Becker, a lifelong lover of trolleys who volunteered at the Shore Line Trolley Museum in East Haven, Conn., as a teenager.

But it's not just about nostalgia. Trolleys, he noted, are a great way to teach American history because from the late 19th to the mid 20th centuries, people's lives revolved around the streetcar. Those who saw Bill Mazeroski's World Series-winning home run in 1960 at Forbes Field in Oakland, for instance, more than likely got there by trolley. Ditto with minor league hockey games played by the Pittsburgh Hornets at Duquesne Gardens.

Trolley buffs can take a trip down memory lane at two other places in Pennsylvania: Rockhill Trolley Museum near Fort Littleton, Fulton County, and Electric City Trolley Museum in Scranton, home to the first completely electric powered street car system in the United States. Pennsylvania Trolley Museum, though, is the largest and the oldest trolley museum in the state.

Nowhere is that more evident than in the 28,000-square-foot display building, which opened in 2005 and can be toured at 1:15 p.m. each day of operation for an additional fee. More of an airplane hangar than car barn, the sprawling facility contains 30 recent and historic trolleys in various states of repair -- some donated, some purchased -- from across Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia.

Car styles run the gamut, including a refrigerated milk car built in 1913 by J. G. Brill & Co.; an all-steel 1918 Jewett trolley that operated in northern West Virginia before being turned into a summer cottage in Ohio in the 1940s; a glass-domed horsecar dating from the 1870s; and a 78-ton diesel-electric Armco Steel Corp. locomotive built in 1930 by Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Co. and still in operating condition.

The museum also has an open-sided 1911 trolley that operated in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, until the mid '60s. It hopes to fully restore the car next year. While open cars, or "breezers," weren't typical of those used in Pittsburgh, a few were operated by West Penn Railways in the early 1900s on "picnic specials" to Kennywood, West View, Oakford and Eldora parks.

The museum's most famous trolley, though, is No. 832, which was built in 1923 for the New Orleans Public Service. In 1947, the red-and-green trolley was featured in Life magazine when Tennessee William's "A Streetcar Named Desire" debuted on Broadway. It was purchased for $1 by the museum in 1964.

Surprisingly, most of the museum's 20,000-plus visitors each year come not from Washington County, where the facility opened in 1962, but from Allegheny County. That would include those such as Nicole and Joe Ehman, of Ohio Township, who brought their son, Ryan, to the museum to celebrate his third birthday because "he loves trains."

Similarly, volunteers hail from all parts of Western Pennsylvania and beyond. Bernie Orient, of Bethel Park, for instance, is among those who donate countless hours each year doing everything from trolley restoration and maintenance to taking care of the grounds, leading tours, doing research and manning the museum store. A technician for Lennox, he puts in about 600 hours each year on mechanical issues.

Just as dedicated is retired vet Jim Herron, of Canonsburg, who has volunteered at least 20 hours a week for the past four years. On a recent day, he was loosening the inspection hatches on the almost-ready-to-go 1917 yellow car with a rubber mallet because someone had painted them shut.

Because transit is still evolving, the museum also includes a handful of vehicles from more current times, including modern transit buses and a 1970 diesel locomotive that served as the power unit of a six-car rail grinding train. It was used to help construct Port Authority's light rail line through Mt. Lebanon and now serves as the museum's utility locomotive.

"It all helps us interpret history," Mr. Becker said.

The Pennsylvania Trolley Museum, 1 Museum Road in Chartiers, Washington County (follow signs off the Racetrack Road exit of I-79), will celebrate more than 100 years of transit history May 2-4 as part of the Pittsburgh's 250th anniversary celebration. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $8 for adults, $7 for seniors and $5 for children ages 3-15. A tour of the Trolley Display Building costs an additional $3 for adults and $1 for children.

For more information, call 724-228-9256 or visit www.pa-trolley.org.