Are Trams Socialist by Christian Wolmar

Author:Christian Wolmar [Wolmar, Christian]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781907994579
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Where are those trams?

After becoming less fashionable than bloomers and plus fours, trams eventually began to again be recognized as a very effective form of urban transport. France led the way in Europe, with new tram systems in Grenoble and Nantes in the mid 1980s, and even in car-­dominated North America systems began appearing in places as diverse as Calgary, Portland and San Diego. Britain was slow off the mark, opening its first schemes in Manchester and Sheffield in 1992. London got its only tramline, the Croydon Tramlink, in 2000, and so far, if the historic Blackpool system (which has now been given new rolling stock) is included, eight urban areas can now boast systems. The latest one is in Edinburgh, where the massive cost overruns and delays have probably killed off any hopes of new systems being built for a generation. There are also the Tyne and Wear Metro (1980) and London’s Docklands Light Railway (1987), which are classified as light rail though unlike trams they do not run on roads, but again this is a story of missed opportunities. Most of the new British systems, particularly those in Croydon, Manchester and Nottingham, have been successful and well patronized. The Nottingham system benefited from finance generated by a workplace parking levy – the only such scheme in the country but one that clearly has the potential to provide funding for other new transport infrastructure.

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