Trams in Europe
Encyclopedia
Europe
has an extensive number of tram
way networks. Some of these networks have been upgraded to light rail
standards, called Stadtbahn
in Germany
, premetro
s in Belgium
, sneltram in the Netherlands
, and fast tram
s in some other countries.
All the former communist countries of Central and Eastern Europe, excluding Lithuania
, the Republic of Macedonia
, Montenegro
, Moldova
and Slovenia
, have extensive tram infrastructure. Industrial freight use of city tram lines was a widespread practice until 1960s but has since mostly disappeared. Another factor is an increasing replacement of trams with trolleybuses as cities face a rapid increase in traffic and such replacement often allows to increase road size. One of the exceptions is Warsaw
, Poland
, where the last trolleybus line was closed in the year 1995 due to high maintenance costs, and replaced with buses. Czech ČKD Tatra and the Hungarian Ganz
factories were notable manufacturers of trams.
In recent decades, tram networks in countries including France, Germany, Spain and Portugal have grown considerably. The Netherlands, which already makes extensive use of trams, has plans to expand trams to two additional cities.
Germany
did not undergo the tramway closure programmes that were carried out in other European countries and many cities retain their original tram networks. In some places, tram networks have been added or expanded through the introduction of hybrid tram-train
or stadtbahn
systems which may combine standard railway, on-street and underground operations. Notable examples include the systems in Cologne
and Karlsruhe
. In Frankfurt-am-Main, many tram lines were transferred to U-Bahn
operation.
In the United Kingdom
, investment in public transport in the late 1980s turned to light rail as an alternative to more costly underground railway
solutions, with the opening of the Tyne and Wear Metro
(1980) and the Docklands Light Railway
in London (1987) systems. However, the first British city to reintroduce on-street tram-style rail services was Manchester
, with the opening of its Metrolink
network in 1992. Many other UK cities followed with their own tram-style light rail systems, including Sheffield (Supertram, opened 1994), Birmingham and Wolverhampton (Midland Metro
, opened 1999), London (Tramlink
, opened 2000) and Nottingham (Nottingham Express Transit
, opened 2004). Many of these new systems are planning network extensions and several new tram systems are being proposed or are under construction, such as Edinburgh Trams (opening 2011), Belfast EWAY
(proposed) and Liverpool Merseytram
(proposed). Other tramway projects have not made it beyond the proposal stage because of funding problems, for example London's Cross River Tram
and the Leeds Supertram
.
Paris reintroduced trams
with line T1 in 1992, and many French cities have seen a similar revival, for example the Tramway de Grenoble
and the Montpellier trams
.
The Czech capital Prague
plans one new line and the extension of eight others between 2007 and 2016, with an official of the Prague Public Transport Company stating that "In Europe in the past 10 years, tram transportation is the preferred way of transit; we can say that tram transportation is going through its renaissance period".
, Gmunden
, Graz
, Innsbruck
, Linz
and Vienna
all have tramway systems. With 173.4 km of track, Vienna's network
is one of the largest in the world. The cars have been constantly modernised over the years and many are now ultra low-floored
. Many of the Austrian tramlines have been in constant operation since they were first opened. Vienna started with horse trams in 1865 with electrification in 1897. Graz had horse trams in 1878 and electric cars in 1898 while Linz goes back to 1880 with electrification in 1897. The Gmunden Tramway, only 2.3 km long, is currently one of the shortest in the world. With gradients of up to 9.6%, it is also one of the steepest and has become a popular tourist attraction. Innsbruck, which traditionally used second-hand trams from other cities, has recently replaced its whole fleet with 32 Bombardier low-floor cars (as of Summer 2009). The Pöstlingbergbahn
, in Linz, is an unusual "mountain tramway", which has a gradient of 10.6%—one of the world's steepest gradients on a surviving adhesion
-only railway—and now reaches the city centre via the tracks of the urban tram system.
In Belgium
an extensive system of tram-like local railways called Vicinal or Buurtspoorweg
lines had a greater route kilometre length than the main-line railway system. The only survivors of the Vicinal system are the Kusttram (which almost reaches France at one end and the Netherlands at the other, making it the longest tram line in the world) - and two short lines that form part of the Charleroi Pre-metro
. Urban tram networks exist in Antwerp, Ghent
and Brussels
, and are gradually being extended.
was the first city in Europe to have a full-time (from dawn to dusk) operational electric tram line, introduced shortly after the city became part of the Austro-Hungarian empire. Since then, the trams have been important in the development and expansion of the city.
Many trams were badly damaged in the recent conflict in the mid 1990s - these are once again operational though the marks on the vehicles are plainly evident.
In recent years, the authorities have upgraded to more modern vehicles to expand the fleet.
http://www.ekapija.ba/dokumenti/tramvajkonj.jpg ←PICTURE :)
had its first horse drawn tram in operation in 1898. On the 1st January 1901 the electric tram system was inagurated and had 25 cars and 10 carriages and the total length of the lines was 25 km. Currently Sofia's extensive tram network consists of 16 routes, 3 of which are operated on standard gauge. Due to the construction of the Sofia Metro
there were some closures and retracing, but nontheless the system continues to be one of the largest in Europe.
Zagreb
has had a tram service since September 5, 1891. Nowadays it is an extensive tram network with 15 daily-lines and 4 night-lines covering over 116 km (72 mi) of tracks through 255 stations. Services operate to high frequencies and are surprisingly efficient despite the high patronage numbers, and little priority on the streets for vehicles. ZET
, the major transit authority in Zagreb
has ordered 140 and 70 shorter models new 100% low-floor trams from Croatian consortium Crotram
. As of 2010, all of these locally-produced, low-floor Crotram
trams have been delivered, with a mixture of vehicle types in operation (including Czech Tatra Cars and various locally-produced trams). Zagreb is one of the few tram networks in the world where most of the operations run at the curb.
The only other Croatian city with trams still in operation is Osijek
. The first tram route commenced in 1884 (connecting the railway station and city square) and trams have been in constant existence since. Throughout 2006–07, rolling stock is progressively being refurbished and modernised. 2 lines presently exist, with another 2 extensions in planning, doubling the network length.
Dubrovnik
, Opatija
, Pula
and Rijeka
also had tram traffic.
with 141 kilometres of track and 35 lines (9 of them night-lines). Other cities with a tram system are Brno
, Ostrava
, Plzeň, Olomouc
, Most
and Litvínov
(common network), Liberec
(including intercity line to Jablonec
). Tram networks in nine other cities were closed down mainly during the 1960s and replaced with trolleybuses or buses.
Before changes in 1989 ČKD Tatra in Prague
was the largest tram producer in the world, mainly exporting its trams to Soviet Bloc countries. Production was definitely stopped in 2001 after ČKD was sold to Siemens AG
. The tradition of tram producing is continuing in Škoda Holding, Inekon and PRAGOIMEX.
In Estonia trams are used only in the capital, Tallinn
. There has been a growing tram network in Tallinn since 1888, when traffic was started by horse-powered trams. The first line was electrified on October 28, 1925. Up to 1950s Estonian-built electric trams were also used, with some gas-powered trams also used in the 1920s and 1930s. Since 1955 to 1988 German
-built trams were used. The first Czechoslovakia
n-built tram arrived in 1973. In 2007, 56 Tatra KT4SUs
, 12 KTNF6s (rebuilt KT4SUs) and 23 KT4Ds (used trams bought from Germany
) are in use. There are four lines, with total length of tramlines 39 km. Plans have been in the works since the late 1970s to open a light rail line from one of the suburbs, Lasnamäe
, to the city centre. The deadlines are postponed many times. According to current plans, the line is set to be opened in 2015 at the earliest.
In Finland
, there have been three cities with trams: Helsinki
, Turku
and Viipuri. Only Helsinki
still has retained a tram network. The system has operated continuously since 1891 and it was fully electrified by 1901. Currently there are 12 tram lines on 89.5 kilometers of track. Around 200,000 passengers use the tram network each weekday and within the inner city of Helsinki trams have established a position as the main form of public transport. The network is being actively developed, with a new line opened in 2008 and more lines planned to connect new residential areas to be built in 2009–2015. In 2009, the city called for bids on 40 new low-floor trams with an option for another 50.
, Lyon
, Marseille
, Nantes
, Grenoble
, Montpellier
, St Etienne and Strasbourg
(Strasbourg has the largest French network). Recently the tram has seen a huge revival with many experiments such as ground level power supply in Bordeaux (to avoid the need for overhead catenary) or trolleybuses masquerading as trams in Nancy (to provide a quick fix for traffic congestion).
The German-speaking countries, Germany
, Austria
, and Switzerland (where the word for tramway is "Straßenbahn", meaning street railway in German, although "Tram" is also used) are notable for their large numbers of extensive tram systems, although even in these countries, many systems were closed after the Second World War, such as the Hamburg
tramway, which last ran in 1978.
, is the term for light rail in Germany and is the predecessor of the North American light rail. Most German light rail systems were started in the 1960s and 1970s with the intention of establishing full-scale underground, or U-Bahn, systems. By the 1980s virtually all cities had abandoned these plans due to the high costs of converting tramways, and the most common systems now are a mixture of tramway-like operations in suburban areas, and a U-Bahn like mode of operation, featuring underground stations, in the city centres.
and Thessaloniki
before World War II
.
The first trams in Athens
begun operating in 1882. They were light vehicles drawn by 3 horses moving on an extensive network throughout the city center and a line reaching the suburb of Faliro. After the German Occupation the tram started to decline. Lines were gradually abandoned and later dismantled. Gradually, the tram network was completely dismantled and replaced with trolleybuses, which were considered more appropriate and agile for the urban environment at that time. It is frequently mentioned somehow poetically that "The last bell of the Athens Tram rang on the midnight of October 16, 1960". The tram had been a trademark of Athens until that date, and it is still viewed nostalgically in present times. However, there was one tram line left in Perama, which remained in operation until April 1977.
Athens
reinstated a modern tramline for the 2004 Summer Olympics
with vehicles designed by the famous Ferrari designer Sergio Pininfarina
. A total of 3 paths and 24 km of tramlines, which run from Syntagma Square to Eden Station (the seaside junction), and from Peace & Friendship Stadium in Piraeus
to Glyfada
along the coast. The tram lines were expanded by 0,7 km from Glyfada to Voula (completed November 2007), and will expand 2,5 km further from Peace & Friendship Stadium to Pireaus center by 2009. There are projects for further expansion, to be completed around or after 2012.
The busiest traditional city tram line in the world is still route 4-6 in Budapest
, Hungary
, where 54-meter long tram-cars run at 60 to 90 second intervals at peak time and are usually packed with people. A part of this route is the same as where electric trams made their first Hungarian run in 1887 (narrow gauge, normal service was inaugurated in 1889). Budapest has ordered 40 Siemens Combino Supra
low floor trams for route 4-6. Trams began carrying the passengers on the 1 July 2006 but during the first weeks there were many technical difficulties. The extensive tram network of Budapest was gradually reduced during the second half of the 20th century but the trend reversed in the 1990s. The network is 156 km long today.
Other Hungarian cities with operating tramway lines are Szeged
, Debrecen
and Miskolc
. Tram usage ceased to exist in Pécs
in 1960, Nyíregyháza
in 1969 and Szombathely
in 1974.
Replacing a once-extensive network of Dublin tramways, in 2004, the Irish
capital Dublin opened the first two lines of a new light-rail system known as Luas
, the Irish
word for "speed". It features on-street running in the city centre, but is considered a light-rail system because it runs along a dedicated right-of-way for much of its suburban route. There are seven more Luas
projects planned, all of which are to be complete by 2015. Two light-metro
lines fully segregated from traffic are also to be built by 2014.
Plans also exist for light-rail systems in the cities of Cork
(which had a modest system up to the early 20th century) and Galway
, both of which have strong support from the city councils and city residents alike. In January 2007, the Green Party
promised that, if it formed part of the next government in 2007, they would have light rail systems built in these cities. http://www.greenparty.ie/en/news/latest_news/green_party_commits_to_new_light_rail_projects_in_cork_galway_and_dublin In addition, there is also a smaller campaign for a light-rail system in Limerick
.
http://www.irishelection.com/01/why-have-the-greens-forgotten-about-limerick/
See also
In Italy
electric trams have run from the last years of 19th century (the first horse-drawn line opened in Turin
in 1871). The first electric line was opened in Milan
in 1893.
Italian cities operating tramways are:
Other cities are building new tramlines: Palermo
(3 lines) and Mestre
/Venice
(2 lines).
currently: Riga
(see Rīgas Satiksme
), Daugavpils
(see Daugavpils Tramway
) and Liepāja
.
many local light rail
ways were referred to as trams, even where the steam locomotives did not have enclosed motion. Today, extensive tram networks exist in:
; the Oslo Tramway that operates as a hybrid between a light rail and a street tram with six lines, and the suburban line of Trondheim Tramway
, the Gråkall Line. The Bergen Tramway
was closed in 1965, but the new Bergen Light Rail
opened in 2010.
, Elbląg
, Gdańsk
, Gorzów Wielkopolski
, Upper Silesian Industrial Region
, Grudziądz
, Kraków
, Łódź, Poznań
, Szczecin
, Toruń
, Warsaw
and Wrocław. The largest systems are in Upper Silesia (Silesian Interurbans
connecting 13 cities) with 317 km of tracks and 35 lines, Warsaw with 280 km of tracks and 34 lines and Łódź with 217 km of tracks and 28 lines. New lines are currently under construction in most cities. Tram systems will be built in Olsztyn
and Płock.
has been managed by the Companhia Carris de Ferro de Lisboa
(Carris
) (English: Lisbon Tramways Company) for over a century. The fleet includes both refurbished vintage cars and modern, articulated trams. In Porto
a tram network has been in operation since 12 September 1895, making it the first electric tramway in the Iberian Peninsula
. Most routes were closed in the 1970s and 1980s, but one survived and some closed sections have reopened in the 2000s, so that currently four routes (1, 18, 22 and T) are in operation. A heritage tram
line operates seasonally in Sintra
. It opened in 1980 using a section of the town's former tram system, closed in 1974, using surviving trams from the old system's fleet, and has since expanded.
Almada
has a light rail
network, which opened in 2007 and is expanding, the Metro Sul do Tejo
.
There are, currently, 13 tram systems in Romania: Arad
, Botoşani
, Brăila
, Bucharest
, Cluj-Napoca
, Craiova
, Galaţi
, Iaşi
, Oradea
, Ploieşti
, Reşiţa
, Sibiu
, Timişoara
.
has a large tram-network with 12 lines on 127.3 km of track. The system is operated with around 250 units and with ČKD Tatra KT4
and DUEWAG Be 4/6 trams. The first horse drawn tram line was introduced in October 1892 and the first electric one in 1894.
Previously the cities of Niš
, Novi Sad
, and Subotica
had tram networks too, but those were discontinued in the late 1960s and 1970s.....
In Spain
modern tram networks have been opened in Barcelona
(Trambaix
and Trambesòs
), Valencia
, Bilbao
, Alicante
, Madrid
(Metro Ligero ML1, ML2 and ML3) and Parla
.
The most extensive network in Sweden is in Gothenburg
(190 km line length on a total track length of 80 km, with 101 million rides in 2008. See further in Gothenburg tram
).
Stockholm
has had horse drawn trams since 1877. However, the large tram system was dismantled starting at 1957 with the last tram running in September 1967. Presently Stockholm has four lines on three non-connected systems owned by Storstockholms Lokaltrafik
(slightly less than 30 km of track and line length in total): Spårväg City; Lidingöbanan; Nockebybanan
and Tvärbanan
. There are many plans for future extensions and two projects are in active development.
Norrköping
has a rather small tram network
consisting of two radial lines, extended 5 kilometers to a southern suburb in 2006-2011.
There is a single track heritage line in Malmö
since 1987, the last "real" tram line was closed in 1973. Malmö city officials decided in October 2008 that the city should have at least one light rail line up and running before 2020, and up to six lines after that.
A combined tramway museum and heritage tramway is located in the rural village Malmköping
, maintained by Svenska Spårvägssällskapet (English:Swedish Tramway Society).
The first tram line in Istanbul was constructed by Konstantin Karapano Efendi and started operating in July 31, 1871 between the districts of Azapkapi and Ortaköy. In 1869, the tram company "Dersaated Tramvay Şirketi" was established. 430 horses were used to draw the 45 carriages, including 15 summer-type and some double-deckers, on meter gauge track. In 1912, the horse-drawn tram had to cease to operate for one year because the Ministry of Defense sent all the horses to the front during the Balkan War. The tram network was electrified by overhead contact wire on February 2, 1914. The tram began to run on the Anatolian part of Istanbul on June 8, 1928 between Üsküdar and Kisikli. By the 1950s, the length of the tram lines reached 130 km. The trams were on service on the European part until August 12, 1961 and on the Anatolian part until November 14, 1966. In the 1990s the tram service started again with new tracks and a modern stocking.
The "Tünel" funicular line between Karaköy and Beyoglu in Istanbul is the second oldest underground rail system in Europe and the third oldest in the world, after the New York Underground and the London Subway system.
Britain had the first European trams, and until 1935 a large and comprehensive network of systems. For example, it was possible to go by tram across northwest England, from Liverpool
to Ashton-under-Lyne
, using connecting systems. These were mostly closed by a mixture of the same forces as in the US, but with political overtones, since most of the UK systems were municipally owned. The oil and car industries did not like the fact that the municipal tram systems were powered by electricity generated from coal, and to some extent made car ownership unnecessary.
The 1931 Royal Commission on traffic argued that trams held up cars.
In the UK, there was a big public reaction against tramway abandonment, on a par with the similarly unsuccessful reaction against the Beeching
Rail closures
in the 1960s. Not all passengers transferred to the expanding network of buses, as car ownership continued to increase.
In the UK, tram systems were mainly dismantled between 1920 and 1960, and after the closure of Glasgow
's once extensive network in 1962 only Blackpool's survived (see Blackpool tramway
), although a funicular
line continued to operate up the Great Orme
in Llandudno
. However in recent years new lines have been opened in:
Several others are under consideration, and extensions are authorised or under construction in Manchester, Nottingham and the West Midlands. New tram lines currently under construction in the United Kingdom include the Edinburgh tram network
which was expected to be open by 2011, though this has now been pushed back to 2014.
In many cities of Russia
, Ukraine
, in Armenia
, Georgia
and Azerbaijan
tramways have been facing difficulties since the disintegration of the USSR. Tramways of Shakhty
, Arkhangelsk
, Astrakhan
, Grozny
, Tbilisi
, Baku
and Yerevan
have been abandoned. Some tramway systems have suffered extensive closures of vital parts of network (including Saint Petersburg
, Moscow
, Kiev
) and some are facing threats of closures (Nizhniy Novgorod, Tver
) or even total abandonment (Voronezh
). Saint Petersburg's tramway network
, once the largest in the world, yielded its position to Melbourne
, Milan
and Leipzig
.
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
has an extensive number of tram
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
way networks. Some of these networks have been upgraded to light rail
Light rail
Light rail or light rail transit is a form of urban rail public transportation that generally has a lower capacity and lower speed than heavy rail and metro systems, but higher capacity and higher speed than traditional street-running tram systems...
standards, called Stadtbahn
Stadtbahn
A ' is a tramway or light railway that includes segments built to rapid transit standards, usually as part of a process of conversion to a metro railway, mainly by the building of tunnels in the central city area....
in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, premetro
Premetro
A premetro is a tramway or light railway which includes segments built to rapid transit standards, usually as part of a process of conversion to a metro railway, mainly by the construction of tunnels in the central city area...
s in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, sneltram in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, and fast tram
Fast tram
Fast tram is a type of LRT, which is a tram system with high velocities. The Belgian Premetro and German Stadtbahn are two of types of fast trams....
s in some other countries.
Overview
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
, the Republic of Macedonia
Republic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
, Montenegro
Montenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
, Moldova
Moldova
Moldova , officially the Republic of Moldova is a landlocked state in Eastern Europe, located between Romania to the West and Ukraine to the North, East and South. It declared itself an independent state with the same boundaries as the preceding Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1991, as part...
and Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
, have extensive tram infrastructure. Industrial freight use of city tram lines was a widespread practice until 1960s but has since mostly disappeared. Another factor is an increasing replacement of trams with trolleybuses as cities face a rapid increase in traffic and such replacement often allows to increase road size. One of the exceptions is Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, where the last trolleybus line was closed in the year 1995 due to high maintenance costs, and replaced with buses. Czech ČKD Tatra and the Hungarian Ganz
Ganz
The Ganz electric works in Budapest is probably best known for the manufacture of tramcars, but was also a pioneer in the application of three-phase alternating current to electric railways. Ganz also made / makes: ships , bridge steel structures , high voltage equipment...
factories were notable manufacturers of trams.
Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
did not undergo the tramway closure programmes that were carried out in other European countries and many cities retain their original tram networks. In some places, tram networks have been added or expanded through the introduction of hybrid tram-train
Tram-train
A tram-train is a light-rail public transport system where trams run both on an urban tramway network and on main-line railways to combine the tram's flexibility and availability and the train's greater speed...
or stadtbahn
Stadtbahn
A ' is a tramway or light railway that includes segments built to rapid transit standards, usually as part of a process of conversion to a metro railway, mainly by the building of tunnels in the central city area....
systems which may combine standard railway, on-street and underground operations. Notable examples include the systems in Cologne
Cologne Stadtbahn
The Cologne Stadtbahn is a light rail system in the German city of Cologne, including several surrounding cities...
and Karlsruhe
Stadtbahn Karlsruhe
The Karlsruhe Stadtbahn is a German tram-train system combining tram lines in the city of Karlsruhe with railway lines in the surrounding countryside, serving the entire region of the middle upper Rhine valley and creating connections to neighbouring regions...
. In Frankfurt-am-Main, many tram lines were transferred to U-Bahn
Frankfurt U-Bahn
The Frankfurt U-Bahn, together with the Frankfurt S-Bahn and the Frankfurt Straßenbahn, is the backbone of the public transport system of Frankfurt, Germany. Its name derives from the German term for underground, Untergrundbahn. The U-Bahn opened in 1968 and now consists of 87 stations on nine...
operation.
In the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, investment in public transport in the late 1980s turned to light rail as an alternative to more costly underground railway
Rapid transit
A rapid transit, underground, subway, elevated railway, metro or metropolitan railway system is an electric passenger railway in an urban area with a high capacity and frequency, and grade separation from other traffic. Rapid transit systems are typically located either in underground tunnels or on...
solutions, with the opening of the Tyne and Wear Metro
Tyne and Wear Metro
The Tyne and Wear Metro, also known as the Metro, is a light rail system in North East England, serving Newcastle upon Tyne, Gateshead, South Tyneside, North Tyneside and Sunderland. It opened in 1980 and in 2007–2008 provided 40 million public journeys on its network of nearly...
(1980) and the Docklands Light Railway
Docklands Light Railway
The Docklands Light Railway is an automated light metro or light rail system opened on 31 August 1987 to serve the redeveloped Docklands area of London...
in London (1987) systems. However, the first British city to reintroduce on-street tram-style rail services was Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, with the opening of its Metrolink
Manchester Metrolink
Metrolink is a light rail system in Greater Manchester, England. It consists of four lines which converge in Manchester city centre and terminate in Bury, Altrincham, Eccles and Chorlton-cum-Hardy. The system is owned by Transport for Greater Manchester and operated under contract by RATP Group...
network in 1992. Many other UK cities followed with their own tram-style light rail systems, including Sheffield (Supertram, opened 1994), Birmingham and Wolverhampton (Midland Metro
Midland Metro
The Midland Metro is a light-rail or tram line in the West Midlands of England between the cities of Birmingham and Wolverhampton via West Bromwich and Wednesbury. It is owned and promoted by Centro, and operated by West Midlands Travel Limited, a subsidiary of the National Express Group , under...
, opened 1999), London (Tramlink
Tramlink
Tramlink is a tramway system in south London in the United Kingdom which began operation in May 2000...
, opened 2000) and Nottingham (Nottingham Express Transit
Nottingham Express Transit
Nottingham Express Transit is a light-rail tramway in the Nottingham area in England. The first line opened to the public on 9 March 2004, having cost £200 million to construct. The scheme took sixteen years from conception to implementation...
, opened 2004). Many of these new systems are planning network extensions and several new tram systems are being proposed or are under construction, such as Edinburgh Trams (opening 2011), Belfast EWAY
EWAY
The EWAY is a light rail or bus system proposed for East Belfast, Northern Ireland.In January 2007, then Regional Development Minister in Northern Ireland, David Cairns, announced that engineering consultants WS Atkins PLC were to undertake economic feasibility studies on rapid transit proposals...
(proposed) and Liverpool Merseytram
Merseytram
Merseytram is a proposed tram system for Liverpool and surrounding districts of Merseyside, England. Originally proposed in 2001, forming part of the Merseyside Local Transport Plan, it consists of three lines, connecting outlying suburbs of the city with the city centre...
(proposed). Other tramway projects have not made it beyond the proposal stage because of funding problems, for example London's Cross River Tram
Cross River Tram
Cross River Tram was a Transport for London proposal for a tram system in London, England, UK. It was planned to run on a north-south route from Camden Town in the north, through and , to Peckham and Brixton in the south....
and the Leeds Supertram
Leeds Supertram
The Leeds Supertram was a proposed light rail/tram system in Leeds and West Yorkshire in England.-Initial proposals:Proposals for the reinstatement of trams or a light rail system in Leeds which were withdrawn in 1959 have been ongoing since the 1970s with various plans for varying light rail...
.
Paris reintroduced trams
Tramways in Paris
The French region of Île-de-France, encompassing the capital city of Paris, currently has four tram lines, and is planning an additional line. Of the existing lines, three are operated by its public transport authority, RATP, which also operates the Paris Métro and most bus services. The fourth...
with line T1 in 1992, and many French cities have seen a similar revival, for example the Tramway de Grenoble
Tramway de Grenoble
The Grenoble tramway network is 35 km long, and comprises four lines: lines A, B, C and D. Line A was opened in 1987, line B in 1990, line C on 20 May 2006 and line D on October 2007. There previously existed a network of tramways in Grenoble, between 1894 and 1952...
and the Montpellier trams
Trams in Montpellier
The city of Montpellier, France has a network of two tram lines currently in service, with a third line in construction. Responsibility for trams is held by the agglomeration community of the Montpellier agglomeration , and trams are operated by the Transports de l'agglomération de Montpellier ...
.
The Czech capital Prague
Prague Tram System
The Prague tram system is the largest tram system in the Czech Republic, consisting of 140 kilometres of track, over 900 tram cars, and 33 lines with a total route length of 540 km. It is operated by Dopravní podnik hlavního města Prahy a.s., a company owned by the City of Prague. The system...
plans one new line and the extension of eight others between 2007 and 2016, with an official of the Prague Public Transport Company stating that "In Europe in the past 10 years, tram transportation is the preferred way of transit; we can say that tram transportation is going through its renaissance period".
Austria
In AustriaAustria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Gmunden
Gmunden
Gmunden is a town in Upper Austria, Austria in the district of Gmunden. It has 13,202 inhabitants . It is much frequented as a health and summer resort, and has a variety of goat, lake, brine, vegetable and pine-cone baths, a hydropathic establishment, inhalation chambers, whey cure, etc...
, Graz
Graz
The more recent population figures do not give the whole picture as only people with principal residence status are counted and people with secondary residence status are not. Most of the people with secondary residence status in Graz are students...
, Innsbruck
Innsbruck
- Main sights :- Buildings :*Golden Roof*Kaiserliche Hofburg *Hofkirche with the cenotaph of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor*Altes Landhaus...
, Linz
Linz
Linz is the third-largest city of Austria and capital of the state of Upper Austria . It is located in the north centre of Austria, approximately south of the Czech border, on both sides of the river Danube. The population of the city is , and that of the Greater Linz conurbation is about...
and Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
all have tramway systems. With 173.4 km of track, Vienna's network
Trams in Vienna
The Vienna tramway network is a vital part of the public transport system in Vienna, capital city of Austria. In operation since 1865, the network reached its greatest extent during the interwar period . Today, it is still one of world's largest tram networks, at about in total length.The trams...
is one of the largest in the world. The cars have been constantly modernised over the years and many are now ultra low-floored
Ultra Low Floor
The Ultra Low Floor tram is a low-floor tram operating in Vienna, Austria and Oradea, Romania, with the lowest floor-height of any such vehicle...
. Many of the Austrian tramlines have been in constant operation since they were first opened. Vienna started with horse trams in 1865 with electrification in 1897. Graz had horse trams in 1878 and electric cars in 1898 while Linz goes back to 1880 with electrification in 1897. The Gmunden Tramway, only 2.3 km long, is currently one of the shortest in the world. With gradients of up to 9.6%, it is also one of the steepest and has become a popular tourist attraction. Innsbruck, which traditionally used second-hand trams from other cities, has recently replaced its whole fleet with 32 Bombardier low-floor cars (as of Summer 2009). The Pöstlingbergbahn
Pöstlingbergbahn
The Pöstlingbergbahn is a narrow-gauge electric railway, or "mountain tramway", in Linz, Austria. It connects the main square in the center of Linz with the district of Pöstlingberg, located at the top of a hill at the northern end of the city...
, in Linz, is an unusual "mountain tramway", which has a gradient of 10.6%—one of the world's steepest gradients on a surviving adhesion
Rail adhesion
The term adhesion railway or adhesion traction describes the most common type of railway, where power is applied by driving some or all of the wheels of the locomotive. Thus, it relies on the friction between a steel wheel and a steel rail. Note that steam locomotives of old were driven only by...
-only railway—and now reaches the city centre via the tracks of the urban tram system.
Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
an extensive system of tram-like local railways called Vicinal or Buurtspoorweg
Vicinal tramway
The Tramways vicinaux or Buurtspoorwegen were a system of narrow gauge tramways or local railways in Belgium, which covered the whole country and had a greater route length than the mainline railway system...
lines had a greater route kilometre length than the main-line railway system. The only survivors of the Vicinal system are the Kusttram (which almost reaches France at one end and the Netherlands at the other, making it the longest tram line in the world) - and two short lines that form part of the Charleroi Pre-metro
Charleroi Pre-metro
The Charleroi Metro is a express tram network in Belgium, consisting of a horseshoe-shaped line around central Charleroi and two branches towards the suburbs of Gilly and Anderlues. It was built between 1976 and 1996 with 26 stations, of which 20 are in service as of 1996, and 6 regular tram...
. Urban tram networks exist in Antwerp, Ghent
Ghent
Ghent is a city and a municipality located in the Flemish region of Belgium. It is the capital and biggest city of the East Flanders province. The city started as a settlement at the confluence of the Rivers Scheldt and Lys and in the Middle Ages became one of the largest and richest cities of...
and Brussels
Brussels trams
The Brussels tram system is one of the ten largest in the world, carrying some 75.6 million passengers in 2009. Its development demonstrates many of the quandaries that face local public transport planners...
, and are gradually being extended.
Bosnia and Herzegovina
SarajevoSarajevo
Sarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
was the first city in Europe to have a full-time (from dawn to dusk) operational electric tram line, introduced shortly after the city became part of the Austro-Hungarian empire. Since then, the trams have been important in the development and expansion of the city.
Many trams were badly damaged in the recent conflict in the mid 1990s - these are once again operational though the marks on the vehicles are plainly evident.
In recent years, the authorities have upgraded to more modern vehicles to expand the fleet.
http://www.ekapija.ba/dokumenti/tramvajkonj.jpg ←PICTURE :)
Bulgaria
SofiaSofia
Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...
had its first horse drawn tram in operation in 1898. On the 1st January 1901 the electric tram system was inagurated and had 25 cars and 10 carriages and the total length of the lines was 25 km. Currently Sofia's extensive tram network consists of 16 routes, 3 of which are operated on standard gauge. Due to the construction of the Sofia Metro
Sofia Metro
The Sofia Metropolitan is the underground urban railway network servicing the Bulgarian capital Sofia. It is the first and only network of this kind in Bulgaria...
there were some closures and retracing, but nontheless the system continues to be one of the largest in Europe.
Croatia
Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
has had a tram service since September 5, 1891. Nowadays it is an extensive tram network with 15 daily-lines and 4 night-lines covering over 116 km (72 mi) of tracks through 255 stations. Services operate to high frequencies and are surprisingly efficient despite the high patronage numbers, and little priority on the streets for vehicles. ZET
ZET
The Zagrebački električni tramvaj is the major transit authority responsible for public transport in Zagreb, the capital of Croatia, and one part of the Zagreb County. ZET is now a branch of the Zagreb Holding...
, the major transit authority in Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
has ordered 140 and 70 shorter models new 100% low-floor trams from Croatian consortium Crotram
CROTRAM
Crotram is a Croatian consortium of two companies, which produces the first Croatian low-floor tram . It consists of Končar Elektroindustrija d.d. and TŽV Gredelj d.o.o., both from Zagreb...
. As of 2010, all of these locally-produced, low-floor Crotram
CROTRAM
Crotram is a Croatian consortium of two companies, which produces the first Croatian low-floor tram . It consists of Končar Elektroindustrija d.d. and TŽV Gredelj d.o.o., both from Zagreb...
trams have been delivered, with a mixture of vehicle types in operation (including Czech Tatra Cars and various locally-produced trams). Zagreb is one of the few tram networks in the world where most of the operations run at the curb.
The only other Croatian city with trams still in operation is Osijek
Osijek
Osijek is the fourth largest city in Croatia with a population of 83,496 in 2011. It is the largest city and the economic and cultural centre of the eastern Croatian region of Slavonia, as well as the administrative centre of Osijek-Baranja county...
. The first tram route commenced in 1884 (connecting the railway station and city square) and trams have been in constant existence since. Throughout 2006–07, rolling stock is progressively being refurbished and modernised. 2 lines presently exist, with another 2 extensions in planning, doubling the network length.
Dubrovnik
Dubrovnik tram
A tram network and services operated in the Croatian city of Dubrovnik from 1910 until 1970.The first tram commenced operations on 10 December 1910 between the city gates at and nearby port of Gruž, and expanded throughout its life with an extension of the original line to the Dubrovnik railway...
, Opatija
Opatija tram
Trams in Opatija ran from 1908 thru to 1933, connecting the railway station in Matulji with Opatija and Lovran.-History:The Opatija line was planned in 1892 as a steam driven tramway line from Matulje to Volosko, however, this concept was not accepted due to complaints by the hotel industry fearing...
, Pula
Trams in Pula
Pula had an electric tram system in the early 20th century. It was built in 1904 as a part of Pula's economic crescendo during the Austro-Hungarian rule...
and Rijeka
Trams in Rijeka
Tram traffic in Rijeka was introduced in 1899. The first electric tram appeared on the streets of Rijeka on November 7, 1899 and thus marked the beginnings of organised public transport in the town. By a single-track line that was four kilometres long it carried passengers from the bridge on...
also had tram traffic.
Czech Republic
Many cities in the Czech Republic have extensive tram infrastructure. The largest is the Prague Tram SystemPrague Tram System
The Prague tram system is the largest tram system in the Czech Republic, consisting of 140 kilometres of track, over 900 tram cars, and 33 lines with a total route length of 540 km. It is operated by Dopravní podnik hlavního města Prahy a.s., a company owned by the City of Prague. The system...
with 141 kilometres of track and 35 lines (9 of them night-lines). Other cities with a tram system are Brno
Brno
Brno by population and area is the second largest city in the Czech Republic, the largest Moravian city, and the historical capital city of the Margraviate of Moravia. Brno is the administrative centre of the South Moravian Region where it forms a separate district Brno-City District...
, Ostrava
Ostrava
Ostrava is the third largest city in the Czech Republic and the second largest urban agglomeration after Prague. Located close to the Polish border, it is also the administrative center of the Moravian-Silesian Region and of the Municipality with Extended Competence. Ostrava was candidate for the...
, Plzeň, Olomouc
Olomouc
Olomouc is a city in Moravia, in the east of the Czech Republic. The city is located on the Morava river and is the ecclesiastical metropolis and historical capital city of Moravia. Nowadays, it is an administrative centre of the Olomouc Region and sixth largest city in the Czech Republic...
, Most
Most
Most is the capital city of the Most District, situated between the Czech Central Mountains and the Ore Mountains, approximately northwest of Prague along the Bílina River and southwest of Ústí nad Labem.-Etymology:...
and Litvínov
Litvínov
Litvínov is a town in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. The largest oil refinery in the Czech Republic is located there. Models Eva Herzigová and Iva Frühlingová come from Litvínov. The HC Litvínov ice hockey club is based in the town....
(common network), Liberec
Liberec
Liberec is a city in the Czech Republic. Located on the Lusatian Neisse and surrounded by the Jizera Mountains and Ještěd-Kozákov Ridge, it is the fifth-largest city in the Czech Republic....
(including intercity line to Jablonec
Tramway line between Liberec and Jablonec
The 12 km long tramway line between cities Liberec and Jablonec nad Nisou in the Czech Republic is an intercity transportation system connecting these cities.-Overview:...
). Tram networks in nine other cities were closed down mainly during the 1960s and replaced with trolleybuses or buses.
Before changes in 1989 ČKD Tatra in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
was the largest tram producer in the world, mainly exporting its trams to Soviet Bloc countries. Production was definitely stopped in 2001 after ČKD was sold to Siemens AG
Siemens AG
Siemens AG is a German multinational conglomerate company headquartered in Munich, Germany. It is the largest Europe-based electronics and electrical engineering company....
. The tradition of tram producing is continuing in Škoda Holding, Inekon and PRAGOIMEX.
Estonia
In Estonia trams are used only in the capital, Tallinn
Tallinn
Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...
. There has been a growing tram network in Tallinn since 1888, when traffic was started by horse-powered trams. The first line was electrified on October 28, 1925. Up to 1950s Estonian-built electric trams were also used, with some gas-powered trams also used in the 1920s and 1930s. Since 1955 to 1988 German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
-built trams were used. The first Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
n-built tram arrived in 1973. In 2007, 56 Tatra KT4SUs
Tatra KT4
Tatra KT4 is the name of an articulated tramcar developed by the Czech firm ČKD Tatra. The first pre-production vehicles entered service in Potsdam in 1975, with the first production vehicles in 1977. A total of 1747 units were built, with initial deliveries to East Germany and later The USSR and...
, 12 KTNF6s (rebuilt KT4SUs) and 23 KT4Ds (used trams bought from Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
) are in use. There are four lines, with total length of tramlines 39 km. Plans have been in the works since the late 1970s to open a light rail line from one of the suburbs, Lasnamäe
Lasnamäe
Lasnamäe is the most populous administrative district of Tallinn, the capital of Estonia. The districts' population is about 115,000, the majority of which is Russian-speaking. Local housing is mostly represented by 5-16 stories high panel blocks of flats, built in the 1970-1990s. Lasnamäe is...
, to the city centre. The deadlines are postponed many times. According to current plans, the line is set to be opened in 2015 at the earliest.
Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, there have been three cities with trams: Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
, Turku
Turku
Turku is a city situated on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River. It is located in the region of Finland Proper. It is believed that Turku came into existence during the end of the 13th century which makes it the oldest city in Finland...
and Viipuri. Only Helsinki
Helsinki tram
The Helsinki tram network forms part of the Helsinki public transport system organised by Helsinki Regional Transport Authority and operated by Helsinki City Transport in the Finnish capital city of Helsinki. The trams are the main means of transport in the city centre. 56.6 million trips were made...
still has retained a tram network. The system has operated continuously since 1891 and it was fully electrified by 1901. Currently there are 12 tram lines on 89.5 kilometers of track. Around 200,000 passengers use the tram network each weekday and within the inner city of Helsinki trams have established a position as the main form of public transport. The network is being actively developed, with a new line opened in 2008 and more lines planned to connect new residential areas to be built in 2009–2015. In 2009, the city called for bids on 40 new low-floor trams with an option for another 50.
France
Despite the closure of most of France's tram systems in previous decades, a rapidly growing number of France's major cities boast new tram networks, including ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
, Marseille
Marseille
Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
, Nantes
Nantes
Nantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the 6th largest in France, while its metropolitan area ranks 8th with over 800,000 inhabitants....
, Grenoble
Grenoble
Grenoble is a city in southeastern France, at the foot of the French Alps where the river Drac joins the Isère. Located in the Rhône-Alpes region, Grenoble is the capital of the department of Isère...
, Montpellier
Montpellier
-Neighbourhoods:Since 2001, Montpellier has been divided into seven official neighbourhoods, themselves divided into sub-neighbourhoods. Each of them possesses a neighbourhood council....
, St Etienne and Strasbourg
Strasbourg
Strasbourg is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace are historically German-speaking,...
(Strasbourg has the largest French network). Recently the tram has seen a huge revival with many experiments such as ground level power supply in Bordeaux (to avoid the need for overhead catenary) or trolleybuses masquerading as trams in Nancy (to provide a quick fix for traffic congestion).
Germany, Austria, Switzerland
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, and Switzerland (where the word for tramway is "Straßenbahn", meaning street railway in German, although "Tram" is also used) are notable for their large numbers of extensive tram systems, although even in these countries, many systems were closed after the Second World War, such as the Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
tramway, which last ran in 1978.
Light rail in Germany
Stadtbahn, meaning city railway in the German languageGerman language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, is the term for light rail in Germany and is the predecessor of the North American light rail. Most German light rail systems were started in the 1960s and 1970s with the intention of establishing full-scale underground, or U-Bahn, systems. By the 1980s virtually all cities had abandoned these plans due to the high costs of converting tramways, and the most common systems now are a mixture of tramway-like operations in suburban areas, and a U-Bahn like mode of operation, featuring underground stations, in the city centres.
Greece
Tram used to be the main means of mass transport in AthensAthens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
and Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki , historically also known as Thessalonica, Salonika or Salonica, is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of the region of Central Macedonia as well as the capital of the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace...
before World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
The first trams in Athens
Athens Tram
The Athens Tram is public tram network system serving Athens. It is constructed, owned and operated by Tram S.A. , subsidiary company of Attiko Metro S.A. ....
begun operating in 1882. They were light vehicles drawn by 3 horses moving on an extensive network throughout the city center and a line reaching the suburb of Faliro. After the German Occupation the tram started to decline. Lines were gradually abandoned and later dismantled. Gradually, the tram network was completely dismantled and replaced with trolleybuses, which were considered more appropriate and agile for the urban environment at that time. It is frequently mentioned somehow poetically that "The last bell of the Athens Tram rang on the midnight of October 16, 1960". The tram had been a trademark of Athens until that date, and it is still viewed nostalgically in present times. However, there was one tram line left in Perama, which remained in operation until April 1977.
Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
reinstated a modern tramline for the 2004 Summer Olympics
2004 Summer Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad, was a premier international multi-sport event held in Athens, Greece from August 13 to August 29, 2004 with the motto Welcome Home. 10,625 athletes competed, some 600 more than expected, accompanied by 5,501 team...
with vehicles designed by the famous Ferrari designer Sergio Pininfarina
Sergio Pininfarina
Sergio Pininfarina is an Italian automobile designer, like his father Battista Farina. After joining his father at Carrozzeria Pininfarina, he quickly became integral to the company, and during his career oversaw many of the designs for which the company is famous...
. A total of 3 paths and 24 km of tramlines, which run from Syntagma Square to Eden Station (the seaside junction), and from Peace & Friendship Stadium in Piraeus
Piraeus
Piraeus is a city in the region of Attica, Greece. Piraeus is located within the Athens Urban Area, 12 km southwest from its city center , and lies along the east coast of the Saronic Gulf....
to Glyfada
Glyfada
Glyfada is a suburb of Athens, situated in the southern parts of the Athens Metropolitan Area. The area, which is home to many of Greece's millionaires, ministers and celebrities, stretches out from the foot of the Hymettus mountain and reaches out to embrace the Saronic Gulf. It is the largest of...
along the coast. The tram lines were expanded by 0,7 km from Glyfada to Voula (completed November 2007), and will expand 2,5 km further from Peace & Friendship Stadium to Pireaus center by 2009. There are projects for further expansion, to be completed around or after 2012.
Hungary
The busiest traditional city tram line in the world is still route 4-6 in Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, where 54-meter long tram-cars run at 60 to 90 second intervals at peak time and are usually packed with people. A part of this route is the same as where electric trams made their first Hungarian run in 1887 (narrow gauge, normal service was inaugurated in 1889). Budapest has ordered 40 Siemens Combino Supra
Combino Supra
The Combino Supra , Combino MkII, or Combino Plus is a new Combino model made of stainless steel instead of light materials, and manufactured at a new assembly line in Vienna.-Design differences with original Combino:...
low floor trams for route 4-6. Trams began carrying the passengers on the 1 July 2006 but during the first weeks there were many technical difficulties. The extensive tram network of Budapest was gradually reduced during the second half of the 20th century but the trend reversed in the 1990s. The network is 156 km long today.
Other Hungarian cities with operating tramway lines are Szeged
Szeged
' is the third largest city of Hungary, the largest city and regional centre of the Southern Great Plain and the county town of Csongrád county. The University of Szeged is one of the most distinguished universities in Hungary....
, Debrecen
Debrecen
Debrecen , is the second largest city in Hungary after Budapest. Debrecen is the regional centre of the Northern Great Plain region and the seat of Hajdú-Bihar county.- Name :...
and Miskolc
Miskolc
Miskolc is a city in northeastern Hungary, mainly with heavy industrial background. With a population close to 170,000 Miskolc is the fourth largest city of Hungary It is also the county capital of Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén and the regional centre of Northern Hungary.- Geography :Miskolc is located...
. Tram usage ceased to exist in Pécs
Pécs
Pécs is the fifth largest city of Hungary, located on the slopes of the Mecsek mountains in the south-west of the country, close to its border with Croatia. It is the administrative and economical centre of Baranya county...
in 1960, Nyíregyháza
Nyíregyháza
- Tourist sights :Nyíregyháza also has several museums and exhibitions, showing the city's rich cultural heritage.* Collection of the International Medallion Art and Small Sculpture Creative Community of Nyíregyháza-Sóstó – periodic exhibitions of works of contemporary artists-Twin towns — Sister...
in 1969 and Szombathely
Szombathely
Szombathely is the 10th largest city in Hungary. It is the administrative centre of Vas county in the west of the country, located near the border with Austria...
in 1974.
Ireland
Replacing a once-extensive network of Dublin tramways, in 2004, the Irish
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
capital Dublin opened the first two lines of a new light-rail system known as Luas
Luas
Luas , also promoted in the development stage as the Dublin Light Rail System, is a tram or light rail system serving Dublin, the first such system in the decades since the closure of the last of the Dublin tramways. In 2007, the system carried 28.4 million passengers, a growth of 10% since...
, the Irish
Irish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
word for "speed". It features on-street running in the city centre, but is considered a light-rail system because it runs along a dedicated right-of-way for much of its suburban route. There are seven more Luas
Luas
Luas , also promoted in the development stage as the Dublin Light Rail System, is a tram or light rail system serving Dublin, the first such system in the decades since the closure of the last of the Dublin tramways. In 2007, the system carried 28.4 million passengers, a growth of 10% since...
projects planned, all of which are to be complete by 2015. Two light-metro
Dublin Metro
The Dublin Metro is a proposed metro system for the city of Dublin. The first two lines were set out in the Irish Government's 2005 Transport 21 transport plan: they are known as Metro North and Metro West...
lines fully segregated from traffic are also to be built by 2014.
Plans also exist for light-rail systems in the cities of Cork
Cork (city)
Cork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and the island of Ireland's third most populous city. It is the principal city and administrative centre of County Cork and the largest city in the province of Munster. Cork has a population of 119,418, while the addition of the suburban...
(which had a modest system up to the early 20th century) and Galway
Galway
Galway or City of Galway is a city in County Galway, Republic of Ireland. It is the sixth largest and the fastest-growing city in Ireland. It is also the third largest city within the Republic and the only city in the Province of Connacht. Located on the west coast of Ireland, it sits on the...
, both of which have strong support from the city councils and city residents alike. In January 2007, the Green Party
Green Party (Ireland)
The Green Party is a green political party in Ireland. It was founded as the Ecology Party of Ireland in 1981 by Dublin teacher Christopher Fettes. The party became the Green Alliance in 1983 and in 1987 was renamed to its current title in English...
promised that, if it formed part of the next government in 2007, they would have light rail systems built in these cities. http://www.greenparty.ie/en/news/latest_news/green_party_commits_to_new_light_rail_projects_in_cork_galway_and_dublin In addition, there is also a smaller campaign for a light-rail system in Limerick
Limerick
Limerick is the third largest city in the Republic of Ireland, and the principal city of County Limerick and Ireland's Mid-West Region. It is the fifth most populous city in all of Ireland. When taking the extra-municipal suburbs into account, Limerick is the third largest conurbation in the...
.
http://www.irishelection.com/01/why-have-the-greens-forgotten-about-limerick/
See also
- LuasLuasLuas , also promoted in the development stage as the Dublin Light Rail System, is a tram or light rail system serving Dublin, the first such system in the decades since the closure of the last of the Dublin tramways. In 2007, the system carried 28.4 million passengers, a growth of 10% since...
(Dublin's light-rail network). - Dublin MetroDublin MetroThe Dublin Metro is a proposed metro system for the city of Dublin. The first two lines were set out in the Irish Government's 2005 Transport 21 transport plan: they are known as Metro North and Metro West...
(Future light-metro in Dublin). - Corrib Light RailCorrib Light RailCorrib Light Rail is the title of a proposal for a light-rail system for Galway City and County. The proposed light rail system takes into account existing urban and suburban structures and projected population densities. It requires of track and is expected to cost in the region of €25m per...
(a proposed light-rail network for GalwayGalwayGalway or City of Galway is a city in County Galway, Republic of Ireland. It is the sixth largest and the fastest-growing city in Ireland. It is also the third largest city within the Republic and the only city in the Province of Connacht. Located on the west coast of Ireland, it sits on the...
). - Transport 21Transport 21Transport 21 is an Irish infrastructure plan, announced in November 2005. It aims to greatly expand Ireland's transport network. A cost estimate of €34 billion was attached to the plan at the time....
.
Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
electric trams have run from the last years of 19th century (the first horse-drawn line opened in Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
in 1871). The first electric line was opened in Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
in 1893.
Italian cities operating tramways are:
- BergamoBergamoBergamo is a town and comune in Lombardy, Italy, about 40 km northeast of Milan. The comune is home to over 120,000 inhabitants. It is served by the Orio al Serio Airport, which also serves the Province of Bergamo, and to a lesser extent the metropolitan area of Milan...
- since 2009 (1 suburban light railLight railLight rail or light rail transit is a form of urban rail public transportation that generally has a lower capacity and lower speed than heavy rail and metro systems, but higher capacity and higher speed than traditional street-running tram systems...
line, 12.5 km, operated by TEB Bergamo). - CagliariCagliariCagliari is the capital of the island of Sardinia, a region of Italy. Cagliari's Sardinian name Casteddu literally means castle. It has about 156,000 inhabitants, or about 480,000 including the outlying townships : Elmas, Assemini, Capoterra, Selargius, Sestu, Monserrato, Quartucciu, Quartu...
- since 2008 (1 urban line, 6.3 km, operated by FdSFerrovie della SardegnaThe Ferrovie della Sardegna , know also as ARST Gestione FdS and with the acronym FdS, is the regional railway network, in the island of Sardinia, Italy....
). - FlorenceFlorenceFlorence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
- since 2010 (1 urban line, other 2 approved for construction, 7.4 km, operated by a joint venture GEST between municipal transport company ATAF Firenze and RATP Paris). - Messina - since 2003 (1 urban line, 7.7 km, operated by ATM Messina).
- MilanMilanMilan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
- non-stop since 1881 (17 urban lines, 2 interurban lines, totalling 160 km, operated by ATMAzienda Trasporti MilanesiAzienda Trasporti Milanesi is a public company, responsible for public transportation in Milan city and some surrounding municipalities, in Italy...
). - NaplesNaplesNaples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
- non-stop since 1875 (3 urban lines, totalling 10 km, operated by ANM Napoli); see Trams in NaplesTrams in NaplesThe Naples tramway network is located within the city and comune of Naples, in the region of Campania, southern Italy. In operation since 1875, the network has waxed and waned in size and vitality over the years, and is now growing once again...
. - Padova - since 2007 (1 TranslohrTranslohrTranslohr is a guided bus system manufactured by Lohr Industrie of France. It is used in Clermont-Ferrand, Tianjin, Padua and in the mainland Mestre district of Venice in Italy. Translohr runs on rubber tires and is guided by a single central rail....
urban line, 10.3 km, operated by APS Padova). - RomeRomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
- non-stop since 1877 (6 urban lines, totalling 39 km, operated by ATAC Roma). See Rome tramRome TramThe current Rome tram system is a leftover from what once was the largest tram system in Italy. With its fragmented structure, it does not currently function as a backbone of the city's public transport...
. - SassariSassariSassari is an Italian city. It is the second-largest city of Sardinia in terms of population with about 130,000 inhabitants, or about 300,000 including the greater metropolitan area...
- since 2006 (1 tram-trainTram-trainA tram-train is a light-rail public transport system where trams run both on an urban tramway network and on main-line railways to combine the tram's flexibility and availability and the train's greater speed...
line, 4.3 km, operated by FdSFerrovie della SardegnaThe Ferrovie della Sardegna , know also as ARST Gestione FdS and with the acronym FdS, is the regional railway network, in the island of Sardinia, Italy....
); see Sassari Tram-trainSassari Tram-trainThe Sassari Tram-train also known as the Sassari metro-tramway is a tram-train system in Sassari, Italy...
. - TriesteTriesteTrieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...
- non-stop since 1902 (1 hybrid tramway-funicular railwayOpicina TramwayThe Opicina Tramway is an unusual hybrid tramway and funicular railway in the city of Trieste, Italy. It links Piazza Oberdan, on the northern edge of the city centre, with the village of Villa Opicina in the hills above....
line, 5.2 km, operated by Trieste Trasporti). - TurinTurinTurin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
- non-stop since 1871 (8 urban lines, totalling 110 km, operated by GTT TorinoGruppo Torinese TrasportiThe Gruppo Torinese Trasporti is a public benefit corporation responsible for public transportation in the provinces of Turin, Alessandria, Cuneo and Asti...
).
Other cities are building new tramlines: Palermo
Palermo
Palermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...
(3 lines) and Mestre
Mestre
Mestre is a city part of the comune of Venice, in Veneto, northern Italy.The city is connected to Venice by a large rail and road bridge, called Ponte della Libertà ....
/Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
(2 lines).
Latvia
There are 3 tram systems in LatviaLatvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
currently: Riga
Riga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
(see Rīgas Satiksme
Rigas Satiksme
Rīgas Satiksme is a limited liability company of Riga municipality which operates public transport and vehicle hire in the Latvian capital Riga and its surrounding areas. The organisation's principal activities involve the operation of the city's 476 buses, 354 trolleybuses and 267 trams. It is...
), Daugavpils
Daugavpils
Daugavpils is a city in southeastern Latvia, located on the banks of the Daugava River, from which the city gets its name. Daugavpils literally means "Daugava Castle". With a population of over 100,000, it is the second largest city in the country after the capital Riga, which is located some...
(see Daugavpils Tramway
Daugavpils Tramway
Daugavpils Tramway , the tram system of the Latvian town of Daugavpils, was opened on 5 November 1946 with a Russian broad-gauge trackage . An uncommon characteristic of this system is the use of trolley poles for current collection....
) and Liepāja
Liepaja
Liepāja ; ), is a republican city in western Latvia, located on the Baltic Sea directly at 21°E. It is the largest city in the Kurzeme Region of Latvia, the third largest city in Latvia after Riga and Daugavpils and an important ice-free port...
.
Netherlands
In the NetherlandsNetherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
many local light rail
Light rail
Light rail or light rail transit is a form of urban rail public transportation that generally has a lower capacity and lower speed than heavy rail and metro systems, but higher capacity and higher speed than traditional street-running tram systems...
ways were referred to as trams, even where the steam locomotives did not have enclosed motion. Today, extensive tram networks exist in:
- AmsterdamAmsterdamAmsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
(GVBGemeentelijk VervoerbedrijfThe Gemeentelijk Vervoerbedrijf is the municipal transport company of Amsterdam. As of 2007, the GVB is an independent corporation wholly owned by the city of Amsterdam.-History:...
) - RotterdamRotterdamRotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
(RETRotterdamse Elektrische TramRotterdamse Elektrische Tram is the main public transport operator in Rotterdam, Netherlands. It currently operates 28 bus lines, 9 tram lines and five metro/light rail lines in Rotterdam and the surrounding municipalities....
) - The HagueThe HagueThe Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
(HTMHTM PersonenvervoerHTM Personenvervoer NV is a public transport company in the Netherlands operating trams, lightrail and buses in The Hague, Rijswijk, Leidschendam-Voorburg, Delft, Zoetermeer, Wateringen and Nootdorp, the so-called Conurbation Haaglanden...
)
Norway
There are three tramways in NorwayNorway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
; the Oslo Tramway that operates as a hybrid between a light rail and a street tram with six lines, and the suburban line of Trondheim Tramway
Trondheim Tramway
Trondheim Tramway located in Trondheim, Norway consists presently of one 8.8 km tramway line, Gråkallbanen, from St. Olav's Gate in the city centre through Byåsen to Lian Station in Bymarka...
, the Gråkall Line. The Bergen Tramway
Bergen Tramway
Bergen Tramway was a tramway in Bergen, Norway, which was in operation from 1897 to 1965. The first three lines were opened on 29 June 1897. Starting in 1950, tramway lines were gradually replaced with bus and trolleybus routes. The last line was closed in 1965. Since 1993, a heritage tram operates...
was closed in 1965, but the new Bergen Light Rail
Bergen Light Rail
Bergen Light Rail is a light rail system in Bergen, Norway. The first stage of the project is a fifteen-station, stretch between the city center and Nesttun, which opened on 22 June 2010...
opened in 2010.
Poland
There are 14 tram systems in Poland currently: Bydgoszcz, CzęstochowaCzestochowa
Częstochowa is a city in south Poland on the Warta River with 240,027 inhabitants . It has been situated in the Silesian Voivodeship since 1999, and was previously the capital of Częstochowa Voivodeship...
, Elbląg
Elblag
Elbląg is a city in northern Poland with 127,892 inhabitants . It is the capital of Elbląg County and has been assigned to the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship since 1999. Before then it was the capital of Elbląg Voivodeship and a county seat in Gdańsk Voivodeship...
, Gdańsk
Gdansk
Gdańsk is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area.The city lies on the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay , in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, spa town of Sopot, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called the...
, Gorzów Wielkopolski
Gorzów Wielkopolski
Gorzów Wielkopolski is a city in western Poland, on the Warta river. It is the biggest city in the Lubusz Voivodeship with 125,149 inhabitants...
, Upper Silesian Industrial Region
Upper Silesian Industrial Region
The Upper Silesian Industrial Region is a large industrial region in Poland. It lies mainly in the Silesian Voivodeship, centered around Katowice....
, Grudziądz
Grudziadz
Grudziądz is a city in northern Poland on the Vistula River, with 96 042 inhabitants . Situated in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship , the city was previously in the Toruń Voivodeship .- History :-Early history:...
, Kraków
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
, Łódź, Poznań
Poznan
Poznań is a city on the Warta river in west-central Poland, with a population of 556,022 in June 2009. It is among the oldest cities in Poland, and was one of the most important centres in the early Polish state, whose first rulers were buried at Poznań's cathedral. It is sometimes claimed to be...
, Szczecin
Szczecin
Szczecin , is the capital city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in Poland. It is the country's seventh-largest city and the largest seaport in Poland on the Baltic Sea. As of June 2009 the population was 406,427....
, Toruń
Torun
Toruń is an ancient city in northern Poland, on the Vistula River. Its population is more than 205,934 as of June 2009. Toruń is one of the oldest cities in Poland. The medieval old town of Toruń is the birthplace of the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus....
, Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
and Wrocław. The largest systems are in Upper Silesia (Silesian Interurbans
Silesian Interurbans
Silesian Interurbans - one of the largest tram systems in the world has been in existence since 1894. The system is spread over more than 50 kilometres and covers thirteen towns in the Upper Silesia metropolitan area and their suburbs Silesian Interurbans - one of the largest tram (streetcar)...
connecting 13 cities) with 317 km of tracks and 35 lines, Warsaw with 280 km of tracks and 34 lines and Łódź with 217 km of tracks and 28 lines. New lines are currently under construction in most cities. Tram systems will be built in Olsztyn
Olsztyn
Olsztyn is a city in northeastern Poland, on the Łyna River. Olsztyn has been the capital of the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship since 1999. It was previously in the Olsztyn Voivodeship...
and Płock.
Portugal
The Lisbon tramway networkTrams in Lisbon
The Lisbon tramway network serves the municipality of Lisbon, capital city of Portugal. In operation since 1873, it presently comprises five urban lines, and is primarily a tourist attraction.-History:...
has been managed by the Companhia Carris de Ferro de Lisboa
Carris
Carris is a public transportation company in Lisbon, Portugal. Carris operates Lisbon's buses, trams, and funiculars. It does not operate the Lisbon Metro. Carris was founded September 18, 1872. A total of 234.4 million passenger boardings were recorded in 2008.As of Dec...
(Carris
Carris
Carris is a public transportation company in Lisbon, Portugal. Carris operates Lisbon's buses, trams, and funiculars. It does not operate the Lisbon Metro. Carris was founded September 18, 1872. A total of 234.4 million passenger boardings were recorded in 2008.As of Dec...
) (English: Lisbon Tramways Company) for over a century. The fleet includes both refurbished vintage cars and modern, articulated trams. In Porto
Porto
Porto , also known as Oporto in English, is the second largest city in Portugal and one of the major urban areas in the Iberian Peninsula. Its administrative limits include a population of 237,559 inhabitants distributed within 15 civil parishes...
a tram network has been in operation since 12 September 1895, making it the first electric tramway in the Iberian Peninsula
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula , sometimes called Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes the modern-day sovereign states of Spain, Portugal and Andorra, as well as the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar...
. Most routes were closed in the 1970s and 1980s, but one survived and some closed sections have reopened in the 2000s, so that currently four routes (1, 18, 22 and T) are in operation. A heritage tram
Heritage streetcar
Heritage streetcars or heritage trams are a development of the heritage railways that are becoming popular across the world. As with modern streetcar systems, the vehicles are referred to as trams or tramcars in the United Kingdom, Australasia and certain other places , but as streetcars or...
line operates seasonally in Sintra
Sintra
Sintra is a town within the municipality of Sintra in the Grande Lisboa subregion of Portugal. Owing to its 19th century Romantic architecture and landscapes, becoming a major tourist centre, visited by many day-trippers who travel from the urbanized suburbs and capital of Lisbon.In addition to...
. It opened in 1980 using a section of the town's former tram system, closed in 1974, using surviving trams from the old system's fleet, and has since expanded.
Almada
Almada
Almada is a municipality in Portugal, covering an area of 70.2 km² located on the southern margin of the Tagus River. Its municipal population in 2008 was 164,844 inhabitants; the urbanized center had a population of 102,357.The seat is the city of Almada....
has a light rail
Light rail
Light rail or light rail transit is a form of urban rail public transportation that generally has a lower capacity and lower speed than heavy rail and metro systems, but higher capacity and higher speed than traditional street-running tram systems...
network, which opened in 2007 and is expanding, the Metro Sul do Tejo
Metro Transportes do Sul
The Metro Transportes Sul do Tejo is a light rail system that provides the Almada and Seixal municipalities, Portugal with mass-transit services.-Lines:MTS has three lines:*Line 1: Cacilhas — Corroios*Line 2: Corroios — Pragal...
.
Romania
There are, currently, 13 tram systems in Romania: Arad
Arad, Romania
Arad is the capital city of Arad County, in western Romania, in the Crişana region, on the river Mureş.An important industrial center and transportation hub, Arad is also the seat of a Romanian Orthodox archbishop and features two universities, a Romanian Orthodox theological seminary, a training...
, Botoşani
Botosani
Botoșani is the capital city of Botoșani County, in northern Moldavia, Romania. Today, it is best known as the birthplace of many celebrated Romanians, including Mihai Eminescu and Nicolae Iorga.- Origin of the name :...
, Brăila
Braila
Brăila is a city in Muntenia, eastern Romania, a port on the Danube and the capital of Brăila County, in the close vicinity of Galaţi.According to the 2002 Romanian census there were 216,292 people living within the city of Brăila, making it the 10th most populous city in Romania.-History:A...
, Bucharest
Bucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
, Cluj-Napoca
Cluj-Napoca
Cluj-Napoca , commonly known as Cluj, is the fourth most populous city in Romania and the seat of Cluj County in the northwestern part of the country. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest , Budapest and Belgrade...
, Craiova
Craiova
Craiova , Romania's 6th largest city and capital of Dolj County, is situated near the east bank of the river Jiu in central Oltenia. It is a longstanding political center, and is located at approximately equal distances from the Southern Carpathians and the River Danube . Craiova is the chief...
, Galaţi
Galati
Galați is a city and municipality in Romania, the capital of Galați County. Located in the historical region of Moldavia, in the close vicinity of Brăila, Galați is the largest port and sea port on the Danube River and the second largest Romanian port....
, Iaşi
Iasi
Iași is the second most populous city and a municipality in Romania. Located in the historical Moldavia region, Iași has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Romanian social, cultural, academic and artistic life...
, Oradea
Oradea
Oradea is the capital city of Bihor County, in the Crișana region of north-western Romania. The city has a population of 204,477, according to the 2009 estimates. The wider Oradea metropolitan area has a total population of 245,832.-Geography:...
, Ploieşti
Ploiesti
Ploiești is the county seat of Prahova County and lies in the historical region of Wallachia in Romania. The city is located north of Bucharest....
, Reşiţa
Resita
' is a city in western Romania and the capital of Caraş-Severin County, in the Banat region. Its 2004 population was 83,985.- Etymology :The name of Reşiţa, might comes from the Latin recitia, meaning "cold spring", as the great historian Nicolae Iorga once suggested, presuming that the Romans...
, Sibiu
Sibiu
Sibiu is a city in Transylvania, Romania with a population of 154,548. Located some 282 km north-west of Bucharest, the city straddles the Cibin River, a tributary of the river Olt...
, Timişoara
Timisoara
Timișoara is the capital city of Timiș County, in western Romania. One of the largest Romanian cities, with an estimated population of 311,586 inhabitants , and considered the informal capital city of the historical region of Banat, Timișoara is the main social, economic and cultural center in the...
.
Serbia
BelgradeBelgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
has a large tram-network with 12 lines on 127.3 km of track. The system is operated with around 250 units and with ČKD Tatra KT4
Tatra KT4
Tatra KT4 is the name of an articulated tramcar developed by the Czech firm ČKD Tatra. The first pre-production vehicles entered service in Potsdam in 1975, with the first production vehicles in 1977. A total of 1747 units were built, with initial deliveries to East Germany and later The USSR and...
and DUEWAG Be 4/6 trams. The first horse drawn tram line was introduced in October 1892 and the first electric one in 1894.
Previously the cities of Niš
Niš
Niš is the largest city of southern Serbia and third-largest city in Serbia . According to the data from 2011, the city of Niš has a population of 177,972 inhabitants, while the city municipality has a population of 257,867. The city covers an area of about 597 km2, including the urban area,...
, Novi Sad
Novi Sad
Novi Sad is the capital of the northern Serbian province of Vojvodina, and the administrative centre of the South Bačka District. The city is located in the southern part of Pannonian Plain on the Danube river....
, and Subotica
Subotica
Subotica is a city and municipality in northern Serbia, in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina...
had tram networks too, but those were discontinued in the late 1960s and 1970s.....
Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
modern tram networks have been opened in Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
(Trambaix
Trambaix
The Trambaix is a light rail system operated by TRAMMET connecting the Baix Llobregat area with the city of Barcelona, Catalonia. It opened to the public on April 5, 2004 after a weekend when the tram could be used free of charge....
and Trambesòs
Trambesòs
The Trambesòs is a light rail system operated by TRAMMET connecting Sant Adrià de Besòs and Badalona with the city of Barcelona in Catalonia. The original line, known as T4, opened on May 8, 2004 and runs from Ciutadella-Vila Olímpica in Barcelona to the east of the city and extends roughly...
), Valencia
Valencia (city in Spain)
Valencia or València is the capital and most populous city of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third largest city in Spain, with a population of 809,267 in 2010. It is the 15th-most populous municipality in the European Union...
, Bilbao
Bilbao
Bilbao ) is a Spanish municipality, capital of the province of Biscay, in the autonomous community of the Basque Country. With a population of 353,187 , it is the largest city of its autonomous community and the tenth largest in Spain...
, Alicante
Alicante
Alicante or Alacant is a city in Spain, the capital of the province of Alicante and of the comarca of Alacantí, in the south of the Valencian Community. It is also a historic Mediterranean port. The population of the city of Alicante proper was 334,418, estimated , ranking as the second-largest...
, Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
(Metro Ligero ML1, ML2 and ML3) and Parla
Parla
Parla is a municipality of the Madrid Metropolitan Area, Spain. It is located in the southern part of the autonomous community, approximately 20 km from the capital, Madrid. , it has a population of 120,182.- History :- Origins :...
.
Sweden
Gothenburg
Gothenburg is the second-largest city in Sweden and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated on the west coast of Sweden, the city proper has a population of 519,399, with 549,839 in the urban area and total of 937,015 inhabitants in the metropolitan area...
(190 km line length on a total track length of 80 km, with 101 million rides in 2008. See further in Gothenburg tram
Gothenburg tram
The Gothenburg tram network is part of the public transport system organised by Göteborgs Spårvägar AB, controlled by Västtrafik in the Swedish city of Gothenburg...
).
Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
has had horse drawn trams since 1877. However, the large tram system was dismantled starting at 1957 with the last tram running in September 1967. Presently Stockholm has four lines on three non-connected systems owned by Storstockholms Lokaltrafik
Storstockholms Lokaltrafik
Storstockholms Lokaltrafik AB, , commonly referred to as SL, is the organisation running all of the land based public transport systems in Stockholm County....
(slightly less than 30 km of track and line length in total): Spårväg City; Lidingöbanan; Nockebybanan
Nockebybanan
Nockebybanan is a tram line between Nockeby and Alvik in the western suburbs of Stockholm, Sweden. The long line is part of the Storstockholms Lokaltrafik public transport network, and connects with the Stockholm Metro and Tvärbanan light rail at Alvik...
and Tvärbanan
Tvärbanan
Tvärbanan is a light rail line in the suburbs of Stockholm, Sweden. Its name literally translated into English is Crossways line. It links together many bus and rail lines crossways through its connections with the southern and western subway branches of the Stockholm Metro and the Stockholm...
. There are many plans for future extensions and two projects are in active development.
Norrköping
Norrköping
Norrköping is a city in the province of Östergötland in eastern Sweden and the seat of Norrköping Municipality, Östergötland County. The city has a population of 87,247 inhabitants in 2010, out of a municipal total of 130,050, making it Sweden's tenth largest city and eighth largest...
has a rather small tram network
Norrköping tramway
The Norrköping tramway network is a system of trams forming a principal part of the public transport services in Norrköping, Sweden. It has been in service since 1904, and is, along with the larger Göteborg Tramway, one of only two city-centre tramways in Sweden that survived the switch to...
consisting of two radial lines, extended 5 kilometers to a southern suburb in 2006-2011.
There is a single track heritage line in Malmö
Malmö
Malmö , in the southernmost province of Scania, is the third most populous city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg.Malmö is the seat of Malmö Municipality and the capital of Skåne County...
since 1987, the last "real" tram line was closed in 1973. Malmö city officials decided in October 2008 that the city should have at least one light rail line up and running before 2020, and up to six lines after that.
A combined tramway museum and heritage tramway is located in the rural village Malmköping
Malmköping
Malmköping is a locality situated in Flen Municipality, Södermanland County, Sweden with 2,000 inhabitants in 2005.Malmköping is located about 15 kilometers north of the municipal seat Flen . It is a tourism attraction due to its two annual markets...
, maintained by Svenska Spårvägssällskapet (English:Swedish Tramway Society).
Turkey
The "Tünel" funicular line between Karaköy and Beyoglu in Istanbul is the second oldest underground rail system in Europe and the third oldest in the world, after the New York Underground and the London Subway system.
United Kingdom
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
to Ashton-under-Lyne
Ashton-under-Lyne
Ashton-under-Lyne is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. Historically a part of Lancashire, it lies on the north bank of the River Tame, on undulating land at the foothills of the Pennines...
, using connecting systems. These were mostly closed by a mixture of the same forces as in the US, but with political overtones, since most of the UK systems were municipally owned. The oil and car industries did not like the fact that the municipal tram systems were powered by electricity generated from coal, and to some extent made car ownership unnecessary.
The 1931 Royal Commission on traffic argued that trams held up cars.
In the UK, there was a big public reaction against tramway abandonment, on a par with the similarly unsuccessful reaction against the Beeching
Richard Beeching
Richard Beeching, Baron Beeching , commonly known as Doctor Beeching, was chairman of British Railways and a physicist and engineer...
Rail closures
Beeching Axe
The Beeching Axe or the Beeching Cuts are informal names for the British Government's attempt in the 1960s to reduce the cost of running British Railways, the nationalised railway system in the United Kingdom. The name is that of the main author of The Reshaping of British Railways, Dr Richard...
in the 1960s. Not all passengers transferred to the expanding network of buses, as car ownership continued to increase.
In the UK, tram systems were mainly dismantled between 1920 and 1960, and after the closure of Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
's once extensive network in 1962 only Blackpool's survived (see Blackpool tramway
Blackpool tramway
The Blackpool tramway runs from Blackpool to Fleetwood on the Fylde Coast in Lancashire, England, and is the only surviving first-generation tramway in the United Kingdom. The tramway dates back to 1885 and is one of the oldest electric tramways in the world. It is run by Blackpool Transport as...
), although a funicular
Funicular
A funicular, also known as an inclined plane or cliff railway, is a cable railway in which a cable attached to a pair of tram-like vehicles on rails moves them up and down a steep slope; the ascending and descending vehicles counterbalance each other.-Operation:The basic principle of funicular...
line continued to operate up the Great Orme
Great Orme
The Great Orme is a prominent limestone headland on the north coast of Wales situated in Llandudno. It is referred to as Cyngreawdr Fynydd in a poem by the 12th century poet Gwalchmai ap Meilyr...
in Llandudno
Llandudno
Llandudno is a seaside resort and town in Conwy County Borough, Wales. In the 2001 UK census it had a population of 20,090 including that of Penrhyn Bay and Penrhynside, which are within the Llandudno Community...
. However in recent years new lines have been opened in:
- ManchesterManchesterManchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
(MetrolinkManchester MetrolinkMetrolink is a light rail system in Greater Manchester, England. It consists of four lines which converge in Manchester city centre and terminate in Bury, Altrincham, Eccles and Chorlton-cum-Hardy. The system is owned by Transport for Greater Manchester and operated under contract by RATP Group...
), - SheffieldSheffieldSheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
(SupertramSheffield SupertramThe Supertram, officially called the Stagecoach Supertram, is a light rail tram system in the City of Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England...
), - The West MidlandsWest Midlands (county)The West Midlands is a metropolitan county in western central England with a 2009 estimated population of 2,638,700. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972, formed from parts of Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire. The...
(Midland MetroMidland MetroThe Midland Metro is a light-rail or tram line in the West Midlands of England between the cities of Birmingham and Wolverhampton via West Bromwich and Wednesbury. It is owned and promoted by Centro, and operated by West Midlands Travel Limited, a subsidiary of the National Express Group , under...
), - CroydonCroydonCroydon is a town in South London, England, located within the London Borough of Croydon to which it gives its name. It is situated south of Charing Cross...
(TramlinkTramlinkTramlink is a tramway system in south London in the United Kingdom which began operation in May 2000...
) - NottinghamNottinghamNottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
(NETNottingham Express TransitNottingham Express Transit is a light-rail tramway in the Nottingham area in England. The first line opened to the public on 9 March 2004, having cost £200 million to construct. The scheme took sixteen years from conception to implementation...
),
Several others are under consideration, and extensions are authorised or under construction in Manchester, Nottingham and the West Midlands. New tram lines currently under construction in the United Kingdom include the Edinburgh tram network
Edinburgh Tram Network
Edinburgh Trams is a tramway system which has been under construction in Edinburgh, Scotland, since 2008.There have been several delays and cost over-runs in the construction of the tramway. The new tram system was originally scheduled to enter revenue service in February 2011...
which was expected to be open by 2011, though this has now been pushed back to 2014.
Former USSR/Russia and CIS
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
, in Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
, Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
and Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
tramways have been facing difficulties since the disintegration of the USSR. Tramways of Shakhty
Shakhty
Shakhty is a city in Rostov Oblast, Russia, located on the southeastern spur of Donetsk mountain ridge, northeast of Rostov-on-Don. Its population was 240,152 per the preliminary results of the 2010 Census; up from 222,592 recorded in the 2002 Census....
, Arkhangelsk
Arkhangelsk
Arkhangelsk , formerly known as Archangel in English, is a city and the administrative center of Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia. It lies on both banks of the Northern Dvina River near its exit into the White Sea in the north of European Russia. The city spreads for over along the banks of the river...
, Astrakhan
Astrakhan
Astrakhan is a major city in southern European Russia and the administrative center of Astrakhan Oblast. The city lies on the left bank of the Volga River, close to where it discharges into the Caspian Sea at an altitude of below the sea level. Population:...
, Grozny
Grozny
Grozny is the capital city of the Chechen Republic, Russia. The city lies on the Sunzha River. According to the preliminary results of the 2010 Census, the city had a population of 271,596; up from 210,720 recorded in the 2002 Census. but still only about two-thirds of 399,688 recorded in the 1989...
, Tbilisi
Tbilisi
Tbilisi is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Mt'k'vari River. The name is derived from an early Georgian form T'pilisi and it was officially known as Tiflis until 1936...
, Baku
Baku
Baku , sometimes spelled as Baki or Bakou, is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. It is located on the southern shore of the Absheron Peninsula, which projects into the Caspian Sea. The city consists of two principal...
and Yerevan
Yerevan
Yerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country...
have been abandoned. Some tramway systems have suffered extensive closures of vital parts of network (including Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
, Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, Kiev
Kiev tram
The Kiev Tramway is a tram network which serves the Ukrainian capital Kiev. The system was the first electric tramway in the former Russian Empire and the third one in Europe after the Berlin Straßenbahn and the Budapest tramway. The system currently consists of 139.9 km of track, including...
) and some are facing threats of closures (Nizhniy Novgorod, Tver
Tver
Tver is a city and the administrative center of Tver Oblast, Russia. Population: 403,726 ; 408,903 ;...
) or even total abandonment (Voronezh
Voronezh
Voronezh is a city in southwestern Russia, the administrative center of Voronezh Oblast. It is located on both sides of the Voronezh River, away from where it flows into the Don. It is an operating center of the Southeastern Railway , as well as the center of the Don Highway...
). Saint Petersburg's tramway network
Tramways in Saint Petersburg
The city of Saint Petersburg, Russia once had the largest tram network in the world, consisting of about 340 kilometres of unduplicated track in the late 1980s. However, since 1995 the tramway network has declined sharply in size as major portions of track were removed, particularly in the city...
, once the largest in the world, yielded its position to Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
and Leipzig
Leipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
.
See also
- List of light-rail and tramway systems in Europe
- List of town tramway systems in Europe
- TramTramA tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
- Light railLight railLight rail or light rail transit is a form of urban rail public transportation that generally has a lower capacity and lower speed than heavy rail and metro systems, but higher capacity and higher speed than traditional street-running tram systems...