As previously announced here on British Trams Online and elsewhere, the Birkenhead tramway is set to re-open for one day only on Saturday 17th December for the pre-arranged Santa Specials. It is planned that two trams will be operating – one of which will be reserved for use as the special ‘Santa tram’ for pre-booked visitors, whilst the other will be in normal passenger service.
The special tram will be operating departures from Woodside Ferry at 12:15, 12:45, 13:15, 13:45, 14:15 and 14:45. For a charge of £4.50 per person (for both children and adults), visitors will get a return trip on the specially decorated tram and a visit to meet Santa and his helpers in his grotto. There will also be a model railway display, festive treasure hunt with the chance to win a prize, face-painting and refreshments available, including sherry for adults and something a bit more suitable for the little ones! Special family tickets for 2 adults and 2 children are also available and can be purchased online, using PayPal, from the Merseyside Tramway Preservation Society’s website here. The single normal service tram is scheduled to operate in-between the specials detailed above, giving a departure of some sort from Woodside every 15 minutes during the afternoon.
As the Birkenhead tramway has been forced to temporarily close – a decision prompted by the fact that the tram depot does not currently have an electrician employed – this day will provide a very welcome chance to sample the delights of this superb tramway in the winter, and hopefully this one-off operating day will be well supported by both tram enthusiasts and the general public alike. A small group of enthusiasts have already decided to combine the Birkenhead event with a visit to Manchester to ride on other vintage trams at Heaton Park, and this could make for a potentially great weekend of tram riding in the North West. Let’s just hope the weather is kind, as the Merseyside preservationists
could certainly use some Christmas cheer to round off what has been a rather difficult year.
Report by Andrew Waddington