With the horses of the Douglas Bay Horse Tramway now seemingly back up to full health some more good news from the only horse tramway in British Isles is that double deck tram no. 18 is to see regular use throughout the summer. In a similar fashion to the use of 1 or 2 on the Manx Electric Railway, 18 will be used when timetable P is in operation, subject to the usual caveats.
Timetable P – the most intensive service operated during the year and including departures every 15 minutes during parts of the day using three trams – will run between Friday 2nd and Thursday 8th June and then from Tuesday 11th July until Sunday 3rd September (except most Mondays and between Friday 28th and Sunday 30th July when an enhanced timetable will run in connection with the Manx Heritage Transport Festival). It is planned that 18 will form the 1100 departure from Derby Castle and the 1120 return from the Sea Terminal. In the event of bad weather 18 will not run.
Built in 1883 for South Shields 18 was the last of a batch of six trams purchased second hand for Douglas – the only second hand trams to have been acquired for the horse tramway. Arriving on the Isle of Man in 1887 the tram was actually only run as a double decker for 16 years when it was converted into an enclosed single decker (along with 17). It remained in this condition until the 1980s when it was decided to return it to original double deck condition.