What is very important to understand is the idea of progress.

It should be kept in mind that the supporters of the streetcars were also motivated by the idea of technological progress. This identification of electrification with progress did much to structure the debate over the trolley’s introduction. Proponents of the trolley drew on the symbolism of progress to cast the struggle as one between tradition and modernity, castigating opponents as technically ignorant, narrow-minded traditionalists.            

The opponents of the trolley in Philadelphia, NY and elsewhere attacked the association of overhead wires with progress. They insisted that other paths to mechanization such as the underground conduit system, subways, or battery cars were more progressive than the trolley.