Supertram fares to be capped at £2 from 1st November

Posted on Friday 28 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

Normally when we run a story on fare changes it includes the words “increase” but this time we can report on the introduction of a £2 fare cap on all tram and bus services in South Yorkshire as from 1st November. This is part of Oliver Coppard’s, the Mayor of South Yorkshire, bold plan to tackle the cost of living crisis and comes over two months ahead of national £2 cap on bus journeys due to be introduced between January and March 2023.

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Picture in Time: Blackpool Balloon 700 & OMO 5

Posted on Friday 28 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

Before “Picture in Time” moves on again we have one more photo from September 1984 today.

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In Pictures: Heaton Park Tramway Night Photography event

Posted on Thursday 27 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

Saturday 22nd October saw a Night Photography event take place at the Heaton Park Tramway with specially posed scenes including the trams – operational and not operational – as well as a visiting bus in the dark. Manchester trams 765 and 173 featured heavily in the photo opportunities with Manchester bus Daimler CVG6DD no. 4127 also posed alongside. In this pictorial article we take a look at some of the scenes which were able to be captured by photographers who took the rare opportunity to see the tramway after dark.

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In Pictures: New side adverts in Blackpool

Posted on Thursday 27 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

Different tram systems in the UK seem to have different attitudes towards advertising – and how long they keep any ads on their trams. In locations such as Manchester, Edinburgh and on the West Midlands Metro the contract comes to an end and the adverts are quickly removed but in Blackpool it seems to be a far more relaxed affair with a lot of the adverts still carried on the trams believed to be for contracts which have long expired. Indeed, aside from the full vinyl wrap adverts we have seen in the past few years, there has been very little new external advertising added to the trams – but that has recently changed with all trams not in full adverts having received small adverts for the Heart UK heart attack and stroke prevention campaign.

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And extra trams in Edinburgh for rugby internationals too!

Posted on Thursday 27 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

Once again showing its flexibility in operating extra services for big events in the city, Edinburgh Trams will be operating extra services in connection with the forthcoming Autumn Rugby Internationals at BT Murrayfield Stadium.

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In Pictures: West Midlands Metro 17 moves to Dudley!

Posted on Wednesday 26 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

Trams will arrive in Dudley in 2024? Wrong! It may not be in service but the first West Midlands Metro tram has already arrived in Dudley with the first built Urbos3 17 being moved on Tuesday 25th October to the Very Light Rail Innovation Centre where it will undergo repairs – this is the first tram to be moved there with a further six expected to follow in due course.

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Spooky goings on in Nottingham!

Posted on Wednesday 26 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

Nottingham Express Transit has joined in the Halloween fun this year with some spooky twists on tramstop names! Travellers on the network are being encouraged to spot the fake names and see if anyone can find the “ghoulishly” tricky signs that have recently appeared on the network.

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Extra trams in Edinburgh for Terminal V fans

Posted on Wednesday 26 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

There will be extra late night trams on the Edinburgh Trams network on Saturday 29th October to help get people back from the Terminal V Halloween festival which is taking place at the Royal Highland Centre. Shuttle buses are also being laid on to connect the venue with Ingiston Park and Ride.

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Public control of Supertram confirmed from March 2024

Posted on Tuesday 25 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

Members of the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) have voted in favour of proposals which will see the Supertram system come under full public control again from March 2024 when the current Stagecoach operating contract comes to an end.

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Balloon 715 gets set to say au revoir with a farewell tour

Posted on Tuesday 25 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

As revealed in August Blackpool Balloon 715 – owned by the Fylde Transport Trust – is to be withdrawn from service this year but before it runs its last its set to run a farewell tour. Details of this tour have now been announced with 715 due to cover the entire length of the tramway on Saturday 19th November – tickets to join this special occasion are now available exclusively from the Fylde Transport Trust.

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Coventry Very Light Rail project takes a step forward

Posted on Tuesday 25 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

The Coventry Very Light Rail project has taken a major step forward with a real-world demo site launched for its light rail track system. The site is based at WMG, University of Warwick and will show what is to come in Coventry when the first stage of the route opens in the future.

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In Pictures: 3146 and 3147 enter service to bring an end to the commissioning

Posted on Monday 24 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

You wait ages for one to enter service and then two do it around the same time! Both of the last two M5000s to be delivered to Manchester Metrolink have now carried their first passengers with 3146 and 3147 seeing service for the first time over the weekend of 15th and 16th October.

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Out and About: A rainy Thursday at Beamish

Posted on Monday 24 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

In this edition of “Out and About” we are in the northeast of England as we see trams running at Beamish on a rainy Thursday in September.

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What’s New on British Trams Online? 24th October 2022

Posted on Monday 24 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

This week there are photos from Nottingham:

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Trams &: Sunderland 16 & bus

Posted on Sunday 23 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

In this latest look at a tram and something else we are heading back to Beamish as we feature two of the resident fleet at the museum, one being a tram, the other a bus.

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New tram timetable to start in Blackpool 30th October

Posted on Sunday 23 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

The Blackpool Tramway will be running to a revised timetable from Sunday 30th October. Despite the Illuminations continuing to shine until the start of January 2023, Blackpool Transport believe that the enhanced evening service frequency is no longer required and so from this date it will be a 15 minute frequency during the day and evening – the one difference being that evenings only see every other tram travelling all the way through to Fleetwood with intermediate trams turning at Little Bispham.

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Strikes start on West Midlands Metro

Posted on Sunday 23 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

The first of 53 days of strikes on the West Midlands Metro have now taken place with the regular action now set to impact services at regular intervals up until early 2023. The action wad called by the Unite union after members rejected the latest offer from West Midlands Metro which would have seen pay for experienced tram crew increased to £25,250 from £21,939 – Midland Metro Limited have said that this offer remains on the table throughout the dispute.

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In Pictures: Two new adverts on Edinburgh Trams

Posted on Saturday 22 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

The past week or so has seen two new adverts unveiled on trams in Edinburgh – one is a second design for the same sponsor whist the other sees a brand new advertiser on the trams although with a link to another regular advertiser.

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Around the World in Trams: Vienna 4867 & 4830+1308

Posted on Saturday 22 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

“Around the World in Trams” today is again taking a look at some of the trams in operation in Vienna, Austria.

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New bridge set to be installed leading to road closure on WMM Brierley Hill extension

Posted on Saturday 22 October 2022 by Gareth Prior

A new purpose build bridge over Sedgley Road on the West Midlands Metro extension which will ultimately reach Brierley Hill but is currently only funded as far as Dudley is set to be installed later this month. In order for the work to take place safely a short section of Sedgley Road East in Tipton will be closed to all vehicles from Monday 24th October.

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