Trams on the back of low loaders is not exactly ground-breaking news with the West Midlands Metro in particular seemingly always sending their trams off somewhere or another. But the sight of a tram from Nottingham on a lorry is a bit more unusual which makes this story a little more exciting. The tram which has on the move recently has been Citadis 232.
Those of you with good memories will remember that 232 derailed at Bulwell on 12th June 2023 which caused significant damage and saw the tram stored in the yard at Wilkinson Street Depot with plastic sheeting covering some of the affected areas.
The last official update released (from the Greater Nottingham Light Rail Transport Authority Committee) in September 2023 said that the tram was being assessed by Alstom (who built all the Citadis trams in Barcelona, Spain between 2013 and 2014) to determine what repairs were required. Since then it has been quiet and it just remained in the yard waiting for a decision to be made on what to do with it.
On Monday 20th May 2024, the tram was collected from Wilkinson Street by Reid Freight (the same company who have made all recent West Midlands Metro moves) for it to head off repairs. These look set to be completed by Alstom at their Derby plant (which when still part of Bombardier before the two companies merged) assembled the Incentro trams which formed the original Nottingham Express Transit fleet.
Repair work will now take place over the coming months before 232 returns to Nottingham and is prepared for service once again.