Progress made on horse tram restoration at Beamish

Posted on Saturday 21 July 2018 by Gareth Prior

A fairly low profile tram restoration which has been ongoing for a number of years at Beamish is that of the horse tram – a combination of Newcastle & Gosforth 49 and Leamington & Warwick 8. Work has been continuing recently in Beamish’s Regional Heritage Engineering Centre by a small team of volunteers.

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Blackpool to take advantage of events

Posted on Friday 20 July 2018 by Gareth Prior

Two interesting developments to report of in Blackpool – the first of which is on Sunday! To take advantage of the expected high visitor numbers Blackpool Heritage Tram Tours will be operating four trams on Sunday 22nd July whilst a couple of weeks down the line Blackpool Transport will be introducing a Park and Glide service for visitors to the Airshow.

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Now Metrolink drivers balloted over possible strike action

Posted on Friday 20 July 2018 by Gareth Prior

Services on Manchester Metrolink could be set for major disruption with the news that drivers are currently being balloted over potential strike action in a dispute over pay. Despite the fact that talks are still ongoing between KeolisAmey Metrolink (KAM) and Unite officials the ballot has been sent out to drivers asking them if they would be willing to go on strike over the issue.

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In Pictures: Latest Wolverhampton extension trackwork

Posted on Thursday 19 July 2018 by Gareth Prior

Since we reported on the laying of the first track on Piper’s Row as part of the Wolverhampton City Centre extension further progress has been made with more track now in place. As we have mentioned previously the work on Piper’s Row is due to be completed by the early autumn with further work also now underway as the line makes its way towards the railway station. Andy Walters with the photos.

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In Pictures: Supertram rail replacement works continue

Posted on Thursday 19 July 2018 by Gareth Prior

The latest phase of rail replacement works on the Stagecoach Supertram network are currently on Birley Lane with the worksite being just below Birley Lane tramstop. This area – the second area of give to be treated in 2018 – means that no service is currently running between Birley Lane and Halfway until Wednesday 8th August with a replacement bus service being offered instead. The Yellow and Purple routes are running to a normal timetable with Blue route trams only running Malin Bridge to Birley Lane. Stuart Cooke has supplied us with the below images of the latest work.

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Around the World in Trams: Grenoble 2046 & 2052

Posted on Thursday 19 July 2018 by Gareth Prior

As we continue a look at trams from outside of the UK we go to the French city of Grenoble for a view of two trams in service.

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In Pictures: Overhead issue on Metrolink

Posted on Wednesday 18 July 2018 by Gareth Prior

It’s spreading! Manchester Metrolink has now suffered from an overhead problem with issues with the overhead at St Peter’s Square on the 2CC lines. The problem was first reported around 0700 with repairs completed to allow a normal service to resume around three hours later.

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In Pictures: Bluebird meets with its bogies

Posted on Wednesday 18 July 2018 by Gareth Prior

London County Council 1 – or Bluebird if you prefer – has been reunited with its bogies temporarily as the major restoration of the tram continues at Crich. The temporary fitting of the bogies saw the tram moved out of its long term place in the Workshop and into the depot yard to test for clearances.

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Posted in National Tramway Museum | 1 Comment

In Preview: Tramtastic Day Out at Heaton Park Tramway

Posted on Wednesday 18 July 2018 by Gareth Prior

Sunday 22nd July will be a Tramtastic Day Out if you happen to go to the Heaton Park Tramway with Blackpool Brush 623 due to return to service following its return from a year long loan spell in Blackpool. But that isn’t all that is planned for the day with three trams in service plus several trams will be on display – including Blackpool Replica Vanguard 619 and Stockport 5 as their respective overhauls continue.

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In Pictures: Daylight testing starts to Rotherham

Posted on Tuesday 17 July 2018 by Gareth Prior

Ever so slightly we are edging towards the start of the pilot Tram-Train service in the UK which will run between Sheffield and Rotherham. The latest milestone (how many times have we used that word recently!) in the project has seen the start of daylight testing along the Network Rail line to Rotherham Central and Rotherham Parkgate – a major component in the preparations for the start of services. There is still no official word as to when the service may start although late summer/early autumn is the expected start of the service which will see three train-trams an hour between Cathedral and Rotherham Parkgate.

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In Pictures: Its bye-bye to Blackpool for 623

Posted on Tuesday 17 July 2018 by Andrew Waddington

Blackpool Brush Railcoach 623‘s period of operation back on its original home tramway has now come to an end, and after a year-long loan, the tram was transported back to Manchester on Monday 16th July. However, before it left it did enjoy a couple of high-profile outings, giving its many fans a final chance to enjoy a ride on the car in Blackpool.

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Picture in Time: Croydon Tramlink

Posted on Tuesday 17 July 2018 by Gareth Prior

Today Picture in Time is heading to South London for an image from a tram on test on Tramlink.

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In Pictures: Lowestoft Trams at East Anglia Transport Museum

Posted on Monday 16 July 2018 by Gareth Prior

The East Anglia Transport Museum is the home to two local trams, both from Lowestoft. The more famous of the two is open topper 14 which continues to be restored in the depot whilst the second is in use as an exhibition and has recently enjoyed a repaint.

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In Pictures: Blue is the colour as West Midlands Metro new livery unveiled

Posted on Monday 16 July 2018 by Gareth Prior

Some three weeks after Midland Metro became West Midlands Metro the new livery has been unveiled and it would be fair to say its very blue! Battery fitted 31 is the tram which has received the vinyls first off with the tram entering service for the first time in the new look for the evening rush hour on Monday 16th July.

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Man suffers serious injuries after becoming trapped under tram

Posted on Sunday 15 July 2018 by Gareth Prior

A man suffered life threatening injuries after becoming trapped under a tram in Oldham Town Centre in the early hours of Saturday 7th July. The incident happened close to the tramstop at Oldham Central at approximately 0020 with no details released into what happened. The man – said to be in his 40s – was taken to hospital with life threatening injuries.

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This week on British Trams Online

Posted on Sunday 15 July 2018 by Gareth Prior

Two more Photo Galleries for you this week including a British Trams Online debut:

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West Midlands Metro extensions approach next stage of construction

Posted on Saturday 14 July 2018 by Gareth Prior

Currently of all the tram systems in the UK the one which is about to undergo the biggest expansion is West Midlands Metro with work underway on two lines – and more to come in the forthcoming years – at each end of the current system between Birmingham and Wolverhampton. These two extensions – Wolverhampton City Centre and Birmingham Westside – are now approaching their latest phases which will see new road closures for other traffic.

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Picture in Time: Great Orme Tramway

Posted on Saturday 14 July 2018 by Gareth Prior

Today we take a trip to North Wales for a couple of different than usual images from the Great Orme Tramway.

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Safety warning in Manchester over tram surfing incidents

Posted on Saturday 14 July 2018 by Gareth Prior

“Tram surfing” – where people hang on the back of trams or in some cases on the couplers between two trams – is an activity which has been popular with youths across the UK for a long time. But after a high profile spate of incidents in Manchester – and covered in the Manchester Evening News – an urgent safety warning has been issued about how dangerous this can be.

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Ratchet Car 14 makes its first moves on the mainline

Posted on Friday 13 July 2018 by Gareth Prior

For just over three years Ratchet Car 14 has been enjoying a major restoration jointly done by paid staff from Isle of Man Railways and volunteers and now the culmination of the project is rapidly approaching with the tram making its first tentative moves onto the mainline ahead of the commencement of the testing and commissioning period.

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