In this edition of “Still Standing!” we take a trip to the south coast and find ourselves in Brighton.
The building seen in the below photos is the former Brighton Corporation Tramways Depot on Lewes Road which was opened on 25th November 1901 and closed to trams on 31st August 1939. It was the sole depot of the tramway throughout its operating career which funnily enough covers exactly the same dates! At its peak the route length of the tramway was just short of 9.5 miles but despite this relatively small size it had a credible 165 double deck trams in the fleet, all of which would have been kept at this 6 track depot.
Upon closure of the tramway in 1939 the depot was converted for use by trolleybuses and buses with buses taking sole charge in 1960 and that is exactly what is still used for in 2021 as we see in these images.
As well as the depot the adjoining former Corporation Tramway offices are still standing although they are now used by a number of small businesses. In this view two brightly coloured buses stand outside.
The entrance to the depot. You may just note on the left hand side a former trolleybus/tram traction pole with a street light on it.
This photo is taken from Bear Road and shows the former tram shed now in use by buses. (Photographs x3 by Bob Hodges)
Another view of the former tramway offices.
Taken from the top deck of a passing bus here we look into the yard again with the former tram depot in the centre. (Photographs x2 by Tony Sullivan, 27th April 2021)