BLINK meant record numbers for streetcar, but also exposed ongoing struggles

When BLINK's organizers set out to plan and design the four-day light, art and music festival, they immediately had the streetcar in mind: The 21 outdoor light-art installations were all situated along the streetcar's 20-block loop through Over-the-Rhine, Downtown and The Banks. One could even say the streetcar was itself a character in the light show production, rolling by with its familiar ding-ding as visitors toured the city streets. What leaders didn't expect, though, were the immense crowds that poured into the urban core last weekend, estimated at roughly $1 million people, and what that would mean for the show's star character.