Blackpool 680 arrives at Heaton Park

Posted on Tuesday 24 March 2015 by Andrew Waddington

Some five years after it was acquired for preservation by the Manchester Transport Museum Society, Blackpool Ex-Towing car 680 finally arrived in Manchester for the very first time late on the night of 23rd March. This follows a highly successful operating loan period at Beamish Museum, but now the tram is ready to settle down into service at its new permanent home, the Heaton Park Tramway.

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Blackpool Balloon 726 joins Facebook!

Posted on Tuesday 24 March 2015 by Andrew Waddington

Blackpool Balloon 726 has become the latest of a select few trams to be given its very own Facebook page! A new page has recently been created to provide updates on what is described as a ‘fun restoration’ project to return 726 to near-original condition. This follows a few years of uncertainty for this tram which has been the subject of various different proposals, but hopefully this time the tram will at last be able to look forward to a brighter future.

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Picture in Time: Sheffield 189

Posted on Tuesday 24 March 2015 by Gareth Prior

Another Sheffield tram which has survived as part of the national collection is no. 189 but it has been 35 years since this tram last carried passengers and it awaits funding and a space in the workshops before it can be considered for a return to service.

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Birkenhead Tramway prepare to celebrate 20 years of service

Posted on Tuesday 24 March 2015 by Gareth Prior

On 14th April 1995 a unique tramway started operation – the Birkenhead Heritage Tramway. The tramway was to be the first – and to date only – new permanent heritage tramway to open outside of a Museum and now 20 years later the Merseyside Tramway Preservation Society are preparing to celebrate the occasion with a special event taking place on Saturday 18th April 2015.

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Great Orme Tramway gets off to a smashing start

Posted on Tuesday 24 March 2015 by Gareth Prior

The first tram movements of 2015 on the Great Orme Tramway took place on Saturday 21st March with clearance runs on both of the lower and upper sections. Unfortunately things did not quite go according to plan as a car parked adjacent to the tracks on the lower section was struck by one of the trams causing damage to the car.

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Helping the Hovertram

Posted on Monday 23 March 2015 by Andrew Waddington

The North Eastern Electrical Traction Trust have launched an online appeal to assist with the cosmetic restoration of one of the most distinctive preserved Blackpool trams in existence today – the illuminated Hovertram 735. The iconic feature car was transported to NEETT’s base near Sunderland last year after spending several years hidden away from public gaze in Scotland, and mere months later plans are being formulated which will hopefully result in another improvement in its fortunes.

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Posted in North Eastern Electrical Transport Trust | 1 Comment

Totally Transport cancelled

Posted on Monday 23 March 2015 by Andrew Waddington

On the evening of 23rd March, it was announced that the annual Totally Transport event in Blackpool would not be taking place in 2015. The New South Promenade based transport event has been a popular part of the Fylde events calendar every year since 2005 and has usually featured a special vintage tram service through the heart of the site, but sadly this will not be the case this year.

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Posted in Blackpool Tramway | 8 Comments

East Anglia on track for a great season

Posted on Monday 23 March 2015 by Andrew Waddington

The East Anglia Transport Museum at Carlton Colville near Lowestoft, is gearing up for the start of its 2015 operating season on 1st April (this isn’t a joke – the museum does actually re-open on April Fools Day!). During the closed season there has been considerable investment in the tramway infrastructure with new track being laid; something that many visitors will probably not even notice, but which is essential to the future of this museum.

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Centenary car 648 goes back in time

Posted on Monday 23 March 2015 by Andrew Waddington

The latest member of the Blackpool heritage fleet to be fitted with replica period-style destination blinds is Centenary car 648. During yet another visit to Blackpool over the weekend of 21st & 22nd March, Peter Watts – who is supplying these new destination blinds – handed over the latest set which were then fitted to car 648.

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In Pictures: Conductor training in Blackpool

Posted on Monday 23 March 2015 by Andrew Waddington

The process of recruiting volunteer conductors to work on Blackpool’s heritage trams during the 2015 season culminated in a training exercise on Sunday 22nd March, when eleven successful candidates were taken out for a day of intensive training on ‘Princess Alice’ 706. This followed the initial application process and some assessments undertaken a few weeks earlier.

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This week on British Trams Online

Posted on Sunday 22 March 2015 by Gareth Prior

This week we bring you another Photo Gallery; this time we head to the Docklands Light Railway for a selection of images:

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Picture in Time: Manchester Metrolink 1024

Posted on Sunday 22 March 2015 by Gareth Prior

It’s modern Sunday again on British Trams Online as our latest trip into the archive sees us visit Manchester for a view of T68 1024 on 6th September 1993 with services on the original Bury and Altrincham routes now over a year in existence.

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Manx Electric Railway starts running for 2015

Posted on Sunday 22 March 2015 by Gareth Prior

Friday 20th March saw the start of the 2015 season for the Manx Electric Railway with Winter Saloon 19 in charge of services on the special “Timetable L”. As the works on Ballure Viaduct have yet been completed services are only running between Derby Castle and Laxey until Saturday 28th March when Ramsey once again becomes the northern terminus.

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Picture in Time: Blackpool Balloons at Tower

Posted on Saturday 21 March 2015 by Gareth Prior

It’s back to Blackpool again for the latest photo in our Picture in Time series but this time we feature not one, not two but three Balloon Cars as we travel back until 1969.

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Posted in Blackpool Tramway, Picture in Time | 4 Comments

NET testing reaches Clifton terminus

Posted on Friday 20 March 2015 by Gareth Prior

It seems a week cannot pass at the moment without another milestone being reached on the Nottingham Express Transit Phase Two extensions but this week’s milestone was quite a special one as a tram made it way all the way to the Clifton Park and Ride terminus for the first time.

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In Pictures: Crich make preparations for start of operating season

Posted on Friday 20 March 2015 by Gareth Prior

There have been signs of life in the Derbyshire countryside over the past few days as final preparations are made at the Crich Tramway Village for the start of their 2015 operating season (which will be on Saturday 28th March). Over the winter we have reported on the track relaying on the interlaced track through the Bowes Lyon Bridge and the subsequent relaying on the granite setts but with this work now nearing completion the trams have started to come out to play!

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Plans revealed for new Seaton Tramway terminus

Posted on Friday 20 March 2015 by Gareth Prior

The main Seaton terminus of the Seaton Tramway is set for a major facelift later this year if plans currently being prepared are approved it has been announced. Although exact details of what the improved terminus will look like have not yet been revealed it is planned that it will be state of the art and will provide an all weather facility.

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In Pictures: Urbos 3 21 returns to service

Posted on Friday 20 March 2015 by Gareth Prior

Midland Metro can now call upon 11 Urbos 3 trams following the return to service of 21 on Wednesday 18th March. 21 had been missing in action since September when it suffered internal damage with the main partition between the cab and passenger compartment broken. This has now been repaired and the tram has returned to the serviceable ranks. Trams 18–27 and 31 are now all available for service with 32 having been used on extensive testing recently.

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Posted in West Midlands Metro | 1 Comment

3096 arrives in Manchester as 3095 enters service

Posted on Friday 20 March 2015 by Gareth Prior

Manchester Metrolink has seen its latest arrival with 3096 being delivered to Queens Road Depot on Saturday 14th March. The tram is now undergoing commissioning work and mileage accumulation before it can join its sister M5000s in service which isn’t likely to be too long.

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Midland Metro Digbeth extension route chosen

Posted on Friday 20 March 2015 by Gareth Prior

The route of the Midland Metro extension through Digbeth in central Birmingham has been chosen following the results of a recent consultation into the plans. This extension is part of the Eastside line which will also serve the new HS2 railway station due to be built at Curzon Street.

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