The first public transportation in Nashville began in 1860 when the McGavock and Mt. Vernon Horse Railroad Company and the South Nashville Street Railroad Company were joined together to create a public transportation system using steam and mules to power rail cars. The first electric streetcar in Nashville came in 1889. Over the years, several different companies offered transit in Nashville. The first buses came in 1926, as a complement to the preceding rail lines. In 1930, Tennessee Electric Power Company took over the transit system and phased out streetcars by February 1941. In 1953, the company was reorganized and changed its name to Nashville Transit Company. The next 20 years saw the decline of public transportation in Nashville and the rise of the automobile. This led to higher fares and service cutbacks for the transit system. In order to keep public transportation in the city viable, Metro-Nashville government purchased the Nashville Transit Company and created the Metropolitan Transit Authority in 1973.