We normally report on there being two operational tramways in Scotland \u2013 one modern and one heritage. But whilst the modern tram system in Edinburgh has had positive news to report over the past month with the opening of the extension to Newhaven, there has been a less positive development at the Summerlee heritage line which is has not been running for several months with no sign of when it may return.<\/p>\n
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Recent visitors to Summerlee Museum of Scottish Industrial Life have been met with a notice just inside the entrance saying that the tramway is not running due to an \u201celectrical fault\u201d. When asking about this at the museum they have been told this has been the case since last September although there is some footage on the Summerlee Transport Group Facebook page of Dusseldorf 392<\/strong> running after overhaul which was posted at the very start of October 2022. Regardless of the slight difference in dates it has been several months since trams ran.<\/p>\n The museum is owned by North Lanarkshire Council and they have been quoted in the railway press as saying that they aim to restore services as soon as possible.<\/p>\n There is currently no mention on either the Summerlee Museum of Scottish Industrial Life or the Summerlee Transport Group websites that the tramway is not currently running.<\/p>\n With the Summerlee tramway out of action this means that there are currently three heritage lines in the UK which are closed. The other two are the line at the Black Country Living Museum and the Wirral Heritage Tramway in Birkenhead.<\/p>\n The Black Country Living Museum has not run their trams for several years as a result of development works. A statement on their website states: \u201cDue to the ongoing construction works, on weekdays we are currently unable to operate any transport which requires the use of electric overhead wires. There will be limited services on our trolleybuses on selected weekends and bank holidays. Our trams are currently out of operation, but will be on show for visitors to view.\u201d\u00a0 There is no sign of when, or if, trams will resume running.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the Wirral Heritage Tramway was closed temporarily in April just ahead of an inspection by the ORR. Wirral Borough Council said in a statement at the time of the closure: \u201cWirral Transport Museum and Tramway will be temporarily closed to allow for maintenance works to take place. This is ahead of a scheduled inspection by the Office of Rail and Road next week. It is anticipated that the facilities will reopen following that inspection.\u201d However, this has not yet happened and it remains closed almost three months later.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" We normally report on there being two operational tramways in Scotland \u2013 one modern and one heritage. But whilst the modern tram system in Edinburgh has had positive news to report over the past month with the opening of the … Continue reading