There is no doubt that one of the most popular classes of trams with enthusiasts in Blackpool is the Coronation Cars and we feature a long-gone member of that class today in our regular look back into the archives.
The tram in the frame here is Coronation 662 which is just making the call at Thornton Gate with a healthy load of passengers waiting to join the tram for a trip into Blackpool; it seems unlikely many of the passengers will want a tram ride all the way to Starr Gate. The photo was taken on 16th May 1970 and those passengers waiting are showing the fashions of the day.
As for the tram, 662 was introduced into service as 326 in the October of 1953 and by the time this photo was taken it had lost its VAMBAC equipment in favour of more conventional control equipment. 662 only had a further five years in service before withdrawal and eventual disposal in 1976.
1970 was the final season in which there was a notable presence of these Coronation Cars, by which time all but three of the remaining trams of this type (by then 15, I recall) had been converted to Z4 operation. At that time much of the promenade track and in particular the street track in Fleetwood was in a poor, rather corrugated condition. The noise of the 1930s fleet resonated throughout the streets of Fleetwood sometimes well into the night and I recall from my youth that it seemed quite loud even in the hotel in which we stayed as a family on the front near the now-absent pier. However, several of the remaining Coronations ran very smoothly and quietly, especially 662, which gave passengers the impression that the street track was in good condition. Right up to the end of its life on the Tramroad, this car must certainly have been the smoothest. My final ride on it was in October 1973, which I recall as a very pleasant experience and in contrast to 661, on which I also travelled and found to be something of a rattletrap. No doubt when the work on 663 is completed, this should run every bit as well and hopefully prove reliable.