Woman dies after being hit by tram on Metrolink

Posted on Friday 24 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

A woman aged in her 30s has sadly died after being hit by a tram close to the Droylsden tramstop on Manchester Metrolink’s East Manchester Line. The woman was struck by the tram at around 2000 on Friday 17th December and was pronounced dead at the scene after a large emergency services presence. No tram services ran between Piccadilly and Ashton-under-Lyne for several hours whilst the incident was dealt with. An investigation into the incident is now underway.

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In Pictures: Southampton 57 to be moved

Posted on Thursday 23 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

Southampton 57 – the “other” Southampton tram – is about to go on the move with the tram expected to leave its long-term storage home of the Hampshire Cultural Services at Chilcomb near Winchester to further storage in Romsey. This was the tram which started off tram preservation in the city but as time has gone on it has been superseded by work on fellow discoveries Southampton cars 11 and 38.

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Punctuality and reliability falls on Metrolink

Posted on Thursday 23 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

The now quarterly release of performance statistics on Manchester Merolink has shown that from the high of period 6 (ending mid-September) the last three four week periods (taking us from 19th September to 11th December) have seen a fall in both punctuality and reliability – with some lines seemingly hitting new lows of punctuality in particular.

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Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year

Posted on Thursday 23 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

As we reach the end of another year we wish all readers of British Trams Online a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. With it having been another year which has been “unlike any other” I’m not going to give a review of what has happened over the past 12 months as we all know there have been some challenges but in spite of that there has still been plenty to keep the website regularly updated. This is only possible thanks to the generosity of those who send information and photos in so a big thank you to everyone who has supplied us with anything over the past year and of course thank you to everyone who reads and views the site – without you doing that there wouldn’t be much point in any of it!

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On the internet: All Things Trams – YouTube channel

Posted on Thursday 23 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

Do you want to see what the driver sees on Nottingham Express Transit? If you do then there is a You Tube channel just for you! All Things Trams gives a tram driving experience onboard both the newer Alstom Citadis trams and also the original Bombardier Incentro trams with journeys filmed from eye level in the drivers cab.

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Christmas and New Year services 2021/2

Posted on Thursday 23 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

Although we are now entering a period with additional restrictions amid a new Coronavirus variant if you need to get out the house over the Christmas and New Year period (whilst taking all the necessary precautions to slow the spread) this is your one stop guide to what services are running when and where. Its pretty much the same as previous years with late night services again axed following recent developments. Read on to see what is planned to be running on systems across the British Isles.

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Out and About: Beighton/Drake House Lane on Supertram

Posted on Thursday 23 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

Today we are “Out and About” again with the system being treated to our attention this time being South Yorkshire’s Supertram network.

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15 Years Apart: Leeds 399

Posted on Thursday 23 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

It’s a return to the Crich Tramway Village for this edition of “15 Years Apart”.

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In Pictures: More progress on the Trams to Newhaven project

Posted on Wednesday 22 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

The Trams to Newhaven project may be starting its long Christmas and New Year shutdown (there will be no work taking place between 1700 on 22nd December and 0700 on 10th January 2022) but ahead of that starting there have been more developments in the construction of the extension to the Edinburgh Trams system. In this article we visit Ocean Terminal, Constitution Street and at The Shore tramstop. John Hampton is the photographer.

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In Pictures: Urbos 100s continue to stretch their legs

Posted on Wednesday 22 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

As we have seen over the past week or so since services on the West Midlands Metro resumed on 15th December, the new Urbos 100 trams (number 38 up) have been used fairly regularly in passenger service with now four different examples having officially entered service. These are 38, 39, 40 and 42. One such day when all four were allocated for service – albeit two only as peak extras – was Tuesday 21st December which is when the photos in this pictorial article were taken by Andy Walters.

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In Pictures: Trams publicise contactless payments in Blackpool

Posted on Wednesday 22 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

Back at the start of November it was announced that you could now pay for tickets on the trams in Blackpool using contactless payment methods for the first time – and now this is being publicised with window posters on the trams.

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They Ran in 2021: Blackpool 31

Posted on Wednesday 22 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

We make a return trip to Beamish for this latest edition of “They Ran in 2021” as we feature another of the trams which have run in service during this calendar year.

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15 Years Apart: Stagecoach Supertram 111

Posted on Wednesday 22 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

Today’s edition of “15 Years Apart” is returning to a modern tram image as its another trip to South Yorkshire and the Stagecoach operated Supertram system.

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Final assembly starts on new Tyne & Wear Metro trains

Posted on Tuesday 21 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

The quick progress being made on the construction of 46 new trains for the Tyne & Wear Metro is continuing with the final assembly of the first of the trains now underway – coming just a few weeks after the first bodyshell was finished. This work includes the installation of wheels, seats, equipment cases, piping, wiring, flooring, windows and other internal furnishings.

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Edinburgh free late night trams follow Hogmanay celebrations in being cancelled

Posted on Tuesday 21 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

Edinburgh Trams have confirmed that their previously announced free overnight trams on New Year’s Eve into New Year’s Day will now not run after new restrictions introduced by the Scottish government saw the Edinburgh Hogmanay celebrations cancelled.

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Rigby Road Depot Tours for 2022 now open for booking!

Posted on Tuesday 21 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

The incredibly popular Rigby Road Depot Tours in Blackpool are now booking for early 2022 – and they will now be taking place twice a week throughout January and February! The tours are all led by fully trained guides and take in both the main tram sheds as well as the workshops – and what’s more all money from ticket sales goes directly to the preservation of the historic depot building.

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Out and About: Disrupted service in Blackpool

Posted on Tuesday 21 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

We go “Out and About” in Blackpool again today. This time we take a look at some of the trams running when the service was disrupted at the end of November by structural damage just to the north of North Pier.

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15 Years Apart: Blackpool Brush 630

Posted on Tuesday 21 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

Throughout this series of “15 Years Apart” all of the trams we have featured have been at the same location in 2006 and 2021 (although some may have been elsewhere in between) with the exception of one – and it is that exception which we focus on today.

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In Pictures: West Midlands Metro 42 enters service – then fails on its second day!

Posted on Monday 20 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

The fourth of the eight Urbos 100 trams already delivered by CAF to the West Midlands Metro has entered service with 42 carrying its first passengers on Saturday 18th December. It managed a full day on this date although when allocated to service again the following day it developed a fault and was returned to depot.

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In Pictures: Tram tracks uncovered in North Shields

Posted on Monday 20 December 2021 by Gareth Prior

North Shields is the latest town/city in the UK to have uncovered a piece of its tramway past recently with some tracks not used for at least 90 years having been found during some redevelopment work in the town.

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