94-648: Mass Rapid Transit in general refers to a fully grade separated heavy-rail metro system. The term may also specifically refer to: Passenger rail terminology#Heavy rail Various terms are used for passenger railway lines and equipment; the usage of these terms differs substantially between areas: A rapid transit system is an electric railway characterized by high speed (~80 km/h (50 mph)) and rapid acceleration. It uses passenger railcars operating singly or in multiple unit trains on fixed rails. It operates on separate rights-of-way from which all other vehicular and foot traffic are excluded (i.e.
188-547: A cable railway , the subway was later electrified , but the double-track circular line was never expanded. The line was originally known as the Glasgow District Subway , and was thus the first mass transit system to be known as a "subway"; it was later renamed Glasgow Subway Railway. In 1936 it was renamed the Glasgow Underground . Despite this rebranding, many Glaswegians continued to refer to
282-496: A heavy rail metro line. Although the use of heavy rail also refers to rapid transit as with American parlance, it is characterized as electrified passenger rail services that use 8- or 10-car trains. This is then distinguished from light rail used to describe medium-capacity rail systems such as the LRT Line 1 and MRT Line 3 , and medium rail which is a regular rapid transit system operated with fewer train cars such as
376-580: A third rail , via sub-stations at five locations on the circle: Broomloan Depot, Byres Road (Hillhead), Dundasvale (Cowcaddens), Bridge Street and Cornwall Street (Kinning Park). In the event of maintenance or repair work, the system can operate a full service (six trains per circle) with one of the sub-stations inoperative. The system is owned and operated by the Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT), formerly Strathclyde Passenger Transport, and carried 12.7 million passengers in
470-616: A Glasgow Metro. This would involve repurposing or reopening existing heavy rail lines, the creation of additional light rail metro, and the construction of an airport rail link. In 2022, Transport Scotland published its final version of the Strategic Transport Projects Review 2, which outlines proposals for the Clyde Metro . The Clyde Metro proposals retain the Subway, and also note the potential for
564-575: A bowling green to the south of Merkland Street station . The resulting explosion caused damage to both tunnels, leading to closure of part of the system until repairs were completed in January 1941. The system suffered no other damage during the conflict. It did lose staff who were called up to participate in the war effort. After the Beeching Axe of the 1960s, both St Enoch and Buchanan Street mainline stations were closed and demolished; there
658-581: A full-scale replica of part of a subway station, complete with different rolling stock of the pre-modernisation era. By the 1970s, use of the Subway had declined significantly. This was caused partly by the closure of some of the dockyards and by widescale demolition of tenements south of the River Clyde . The original carriages, mostly dating back to 1896, were still in use, though adapted for electric traction in 1935. Breakdowns were becoming increasingly frequent; because trains could only be removed from
752-648: A mainly above-ground suburban rail network serving Greater London , the London Overground , which took over Silverlink Metro routes. Confusingly, the term overground is also used to refer to National Rail networks within London generally, or any non-London Underground rail service in everyday speech The term metro is not usually used to describe metro systems in German-speaking areas (Germany, Austria and parts of Switzerland), instead using
846-473: A major refurbishment and modernisation; the date was brought forward because of the appearance of more cracks in the Govan Cross roof. Badly deteriorated tunnels were repaired; stations were rebuilt and enlarged, with additional platforms at Buchanan Street, Partick, Govan, Ibrox, Hillhead and St Enoch. The surface building of St George's Cross had already been rebuilt in 1971 as part of the construction of
940-691: A metro system, is nonetheless officially classified as being heavy rail . In North America, the American Public Transportation Association defines a heavy-rail system as an electric railway with the capacity to handle a heavy volume of traffic. The term is often used to distinguish it from light rail systems, which usually handle a smaller volume of passengers. In North America, heavy rail can also refer to rapid transit , when referring to systems with heavier passenger loadings than light rail systems, but distinct from commuter rail and intercity rail systems. It
1034-411: A new station at West Street. Before the 1970s modernisation, the Subway offered no formal connections to other transport at ground level, although in practice two stations, Merkland Street and Buchanan Street, were only a short walk from British Rail stations. These links were improved at this modernisation: The first rolling stock was largely built in 1896, with additional trailer carriages added over
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#17327653271321128-412: A newer system, issuing magnetic stripe card tickets. The modernised system uses automatic train operation with the driver only responsible for closing the doors pressing a "start" button in normal operation. While the system was closed a replacement bus service was introduced by GGPTE in a bid to retain customers. Service 66 covered the inner circle route, while service 99 covered the route taken by
1222-571: A report published in 2018 summarised various extension plans from 1937 onwards. In early 2005, SPT announced that they would employ consultants to look into extending the system in the West End, East End, South Side and Glasgow Harbour areas of the city. The extension would take advantage of existing unused tunnels underneath the city, and there is a possibility that roads would be dug up to install tunnels before being replaced and resurfaced ( cut-and-cover tunnelling). On 14 March 2007, SPT announced
1316-467: A report that showed huge support for a Subway extension. Councillor Alistair Watson of the SPT stated: We want what you want. This city needs a world-class Subway system. That's what our passengers deserve. I realise an extension won't come cheap and we still have lots of hurdles to overcome but, in my view, what the public wants, the public should get. This is a ringing endorsement from the people who would use
1410-446: A system devised by Frank J. Sprague , in which a spring-loaded trolley pole pushed a small trolley wheel up against an overhead wire to collect electricity for the motors. Although not the first overhead collection system, it was far more reliable than its predecessors, and eventually became used by almost all streetcars. Some authorities believe that the vehicle became known as a trolley car because it reminded people (particularly on
1504-792: A transit sense refers to a rapid transit heavy rail system that goes underground. The term may refer only to the underground parts of the system, or to the full system. Subway is most commonly used in the United States and the English-speaking parts of Canada , though the term is also used elsewhere, such as to describe the Glasgow Subway in Scotland, and in translation of system names or descriptions in some Asian and Latin American cities. In some cities where subway
1598-561: A trial period between April 2011 and 2012 when the subway was open from 09:00–18:30. Glasgow Corporation took over the company in 1923 at a cost of £385,000 (equivalent to £27,736,099 in 2023). In 1935, the existing trains were converted to electric power delivered by a third rail at 600 volts , direct current. From March until December 1935, clockwise trains were cable-hauled, while anti-clockwise ones were electric. The conversion to electric traction cost £120,000 (equivalent to £10,521,927 in 2023). The last cable drawn car service
1692-604: A tunnel under the city centre between High Street and west of Charing Cross . Another major section of underground suburban railway line in Glasgow is the Argyle Line , which was formerly part of the Glasgow Central Railway . The subway system was constructed as a circular loop almost 6 + 1 ⁄ 2 miles (10.5 kilometres) long and extends both north and south of the River Clyde . The tracks have
1786-556: Is a British English term referring to a railway built at lower costs and to lower standards than typical "heavy rail". These lighter standards allow lower costs of operation at the price of slower operating speeds and lower vehicle capacity. They were permitted under the Light Railways Act 1896 and intended to bring railways to rural areas. The London Docklands Light Railway , has more rapid transit style features than would be typical of light rail systems, but fits within
1880-553: Is a growing desire to push the Federal Transit Administration to help fund these startup lines as well. Light rail is generally powered by electricity, usually by means of overhead wires , but sometimes by a live rail , also called third rail (a high voltage bar alongside the track), requiring safety measures and warnings to the public not to touch it. In some cases, particularly when initial funds are limited, diesel -powered versions have been used, but it
1974-426: Is an American term for streetcar systems that use vehicles that were built before 1960, or modern replicas of such vehicles. Cable car is an American word for a passenger rail vehicle attached to a moving cable located below the street surface and powered by engines or motors at a central location, not on board the vehicle. There are cable cars operating in numerous cities, such as San Francisco . A light railway
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#17327653271322068-567: Is characterized by high-speed, passenger rail cars running in separate rights-of-way from which all other vehicular and foot traffic are excluded. Such passenger rail cars are almost always electrically driven , with power either drawn from an overhead line or an electrified third rail . In the Philippines , the North–South Commuter Railway has been described by Philippine National Railways general manager Junn Magno as
2162-468: Is fully grade-separated from other traffic). The APTA definition also includes the use sophisticated signaling systems , and high platform loading . Originally, the term rapid transit was used in the 1800s to describe new forms of quick urban public transportation that had a right-of-way separated from street traffic. This set rapid transit apart from horsecars , trams , streetcars , omnibuses , and other forms of public transport. A variant of
2256-683: Is named to distinguish it from heavy rail , which refers to rapid transit systems as well as heavier regional rail / intercity rail . A few systems such as people movers and personal rapid transit could be considered as even "lighter", at least in terms of how many passengers are moved per vehicle and the speed at which they travel. Monorails are a separate technology. Light rail systems can typically handle steeper inclines than heavy rail, and curves sharp enough to fit within street intersections . They are typically built in urban areas, providing frequent service with multiple-unit trains or single cars. The most difficult distinction to draw
2350-545: Is not a preferred option. Some systems, such as AirTrain JFK in New York City, are automatic, dispensing with the need for a driver; however, such systems are not what is generally thought of as light rail, crossing over into rapid transit . Automatic operation is more common in smaller people mover systems than in light rail systems, where the possibility of grade crossings and street running make driverless operation of
2444-440: Is often less expensive by a factor of two or more. Despite the increased cost, the more modern variation (which can be considered as "heavier" than old streetcar systems, even though it's called light rail ) is the dominant form of new urban rail transit in the United States . The Federal Transit Administration helps to fund many projects, but as of 2004, the rules to determine which projects will be funded are unfavorable toward
2538-431: Is regardless the general term for both types of system. Bus subways are uncommon but do exist, though in these cases the non-underground portions of route are not called subways. Until March 2019, Seattle had a downtown bus subway in which diesel-electric hybrid buses and light rail trains operated in a shared tunnel. The hybrid buses ran in electrical-only mode while traveling through the tunnel and overhead wires power
2632-425: Is that between light rail and streetcar / tram systems. There is a significant amount of overlap between the technologies, and it is common to classify streetcars/trams as a subtype of light rail rather than as a distinct type of transportation. The two general versions are: Many light rail systems – even fairly old ones – have a combination of the two, with both on-road and off-road sections. In some countries, only
2726-487: Is used, it refers to the entire system; in others, only to the portions that actually are underground. Naming practices often select one type of placement in a system where several are used; there are many subways with above-ground components, and on the other hand, the Vancouver SkyTrain and Chicago "L" include underground sections. Historic posters referred to Chicago's Red & Blue lines (then called
2820-623: The Berlin S-Bahn . The Frankfurt U-Bahn is an important exception, the system being really a light rail transit system with underground sections. Hamburg S-Bahn fulfills all criteria for heavy rail inside the state and city of Hamburg, but some lines go beyond the state border into the state of Niedersachsen and there the S-Bahn runs with lower train frequency. The same applies also to the S-Bahn and U-Bahn in Copenhagen, Denmark, with
2914-497: The Glasgow Inner Ring Road , and therefore was merely re-clad in the new corporate style. The entrance to Kelvinbridge was reversed, with a new entrance and car park built at South Woodside Road, an escalator to Great Western Road and stairs down to the west end of the platform; the former entrance and stairway at the east end became an emergency exit, and the lift was withdrawn from service. Merkland Street station
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3008-455: The Govan and Ibrox stations) is above ground, as was the earlier depot, also at Govan . Prior to modernisation, trains used to be lifted by crane onto and off the tracks. Modernisation brought the installation of points and an access ramp between Govan and Ibrox where trains can exit the tunnel system for maintenance, cleaning or storage. Power is supplied to the trains at 600 V DC , using
3102-508: The International Association of Public Transport ( L'Union Internationale des Transports Publics , or UITP) as urban guided transport systems "operated on their own right of way and segregated from general road and pedestrian traffic. They are consequently designed for operations in tunnel, viaducts or on surface level but with physical separation in such a way that inadvertent access is not possible. In different parts of
3196-534: The LRT Line 2 . Heavy rail term according International Union of Railways (UIC) refers to both freight rail and passenger rail (commuter, regional, intercity and high-speed) other than large-capacity metro. The terms tram , streetcar , and trolley refer to most forms of common carrier rail transit that run entirely or partly on streets, providing a local service and picking up and discharging passengers at any street corner, unless otherwise marked. While tram or tramway are widely used worldwide,
3290-660: The Newark City Subway , each about half underground, originated from fully surface streetcar lines. Also, the Buffalo Metro Rail is referred to as "the subway", while it uses light rail equipment and operates in a pedestrian mall downtown for half of its route and underground for the remaining section. Sometimes the term is qualified, such as in Philadelphia , where trolleys operate in an actual subway for part of their route and on city streets for
3384-540: The Scottish Government in March 2011, and changes to be brought in included: The first station to be modernised was Hillhead . This began in 2011 and finished in 2012. The work included the retiling of all the walls and floors, the replacement of escalators, a new ticket office, better way finding and also a piece of public art. Further plans were announced to modernise Ibrox and Kelvinhall stations before
3478-466: The West Coast ) of a boat trolling for fish . Others believe it derived from a dialect word for a wheeled cart. In the U.S. the word tram frequently refers to a special-purpose bus used as a shuttle (and often not designed for use on public roads), such as for parking lot shuttles at theme parks and major events or transportation within theme parks. Other common North American English meanings of
3572-490: The "shafts of a wheelbarrow ". From this the term "tram" was used in the coal mines of Scotland and Northern England for a coal cart running on rails, and by extension to any similar system of trackway. Streetcar is an American word derived from "street" + "car", where "car" is used in the sense of a vehicle running on rails, i.e. railway car. The first American streetcars, introduced around 1830, were horsecars , and this type of streetcar became ubiquitous because very few of
3666-420: The 1990s, ongoing renovation work has resulted in most stations adopting individual colour schemes. The trains' initial orange livery of 1980 (with a white stripe) was soon replaced by a darker, more durable shade of orange, later being replaced by SPT's carmine-red and cream livery. The system was resignalled using Vital Processor Interlocking in 1996 and subsequently an upgraded Supervisory & Control System
3760-469: The 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. Furthermore, all other stations were planned to receive updated branding prior to modernisation work being carried out on them, so as to achieve unity in design. In March 2016, Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT) awarded contracts to Stadler and Ansaldo STS for the supply of 17 new driverless trains for the Subway. The first was delivered in May 2019. Testing on
3854-495: The State Street & Milwaukee/Dearborn lines) as "the subway lines". Medium-capacity system (MCS), also known as light rapid transit or light metro, is a rail transport system with a capacity greater than light rail, but less than typical heavy-rail rapid transit. Some light rail / street car lines that have underground sections that are referred to as subway are often sub surface subways. Notably, Boston's Green Line and
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3948-425: The Subway started on 5 December 2021. The first new trains were previously expected to operate in 2022. The first passenger service with the new trains operated on 11 December 2023, with the third generation trains fully replacing the second generation after their withdrawal on 28 June 2024. The Glasgow Subway system is the only metro system never to have been expanded from its original route in 125 years, although
4042-500: The Subway until 19 January 1897. The 20 original wooden bodied carriages were built by the Oldbury Railway Carriage and Wagon Company, of Oldbury , Worcestershire. Many continued in service until 1977 in an upgraded form. A further 10 were delivered by the same manufacturer in 1897. From 1898, second four axle (trailer) carriages without a cable gripper mechanism were added, though they were considerably shorter than
4136-440: The U.K. light railway definition. A light rail transit (LRT) system is an urban rail transit system with a "light" passenger capacity compared to heavy rail and metro systems. Its operating characteristics are that it uses railcars , called light rail vehicles (LRVs), operating singly or in short multiple unit trains on fixed rails in a right-of-way that is not necessarily grade-separated from other traffic for much of
4230-418: The double track, having trains running clockwise and anticlockwise respectively around the same route in separate tunnels. Stations use a variety of platform layouts including single island platforms, opposing side platforms and in some stations such as Hillhead one side and one island platform. The subway's running lines are entirely underground, although the maintenance depot at Broomloan Road (located between
4324-486: The electricity but changed to skids at electrification. The trains remained cable-hauled until 1935, though the anachronistic way of supplying power for the lighting continued until 1977. The lighting circuit was also part of the operation of the signalling system. Opening times of the Glasgow Subway have varied through the years, now open 06:30 to 23:40 Monday to Saturday and 10:00 to 18:12 on Sunday following
4418-454: The ends; many were converted to air-operated sliding doors in the 1960s, but a few retained the gates until 1977. All 15 stations were built with island platforms . The trains were thus built with doors on one side only . Power for the electric lighting in the trains was supplied by two parallel wall-mounted rails (known as "T-irons") at window level on the non-platform side of the trains; trains were originally equipped with wheels to pick up
4512-504: The extended Subway. The plans were expected to take twelve years , but never came to fruition. Crossrail Glasgow proposals by Glasgow City Council featured a feasibility study conducted by SPT , which included a proposed new West Street railway station which would interface with the West Street station on the Subway network. The Glasgow Connectivity Commission, established by Glasgow City Council in 2017, has also suggested
4606-411: The following 20 years. This rolling stock was converted from cable to electric traction in 1935 and finally withdrawn from service in 1977 upon the closure of the railway for modernisation. The first 33 cars of the second generation fleet were built by Metro-Cammell , Washwood Heath between 1977 and 1979. Eight additional trailer cars were built in 1992. The rolling stock entered service when
4700-604: The front (gripper) carriage. These additional carriages, eventually numbering 30, were built by Hurst Nelson & Company , Motherwell , Lanarkshire. These carriages were soon expanded to match the length of the front carriages, although carriage 41T has been restored to its original length and cut longitudinally and number 39T is preserved in the Riverside Museum . Most of the gripper carriages were subsequently converted to electric traction in 1935. All carriages were originally built with lattice gates (instead of doors) at
4794-599: The latter inappropriate. Glasgow Subway The Glasgow Subway is an underground light metro system in Glasgow , Scotland. Opened on 14 December 1896, it is the third-oldest underground rail transit system in the world after the London Underground and the Budapest Metro . It is also one of the very few railways in the world with a track running gauge of 4 ft ( 1,219 mm ). Originally
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#17327653271324888-495: The latter is described as light rail . In those places, trams running on mixed right of way are not regarded as light rail, but considered distinctly as streetcars or trams. However, the requirement for saying that a rail line is "separated" can be quite minimal – sometimes just with concrete " buttons " to discourage automobile drivers from getting onto the tracks. There is a significant difference in cost between these different classes of light rail transit. The traditional style
4982-647: The light rail trains which continue to operate in the tunnel. Bus subways are sometimes built to provide an exclusive right-of-way for bus rapid transit lines, such as the MBTA Silver Line in Boston. Subway , outside the US, and especially in Europe, often refers to an underground pedestrian passageway linking large road interconnections that are often too difficult or dangerous to cross at ground level. In Canada,
5076-424: The modernised system. A new corporate identity was introduced (following contemporary fashions of the 1970s), with trains painted bright orange, stations largely rebuilt with dark brown bricks, orange-yellow wall tiles and other surfaces in off-white, plus brown uniforms for the staff. Large, illuminated orange "U" signs were placed at station entrances (since removed, with the re-adoption of the name "Subway"). Since
5170-599: The network as "the Subway". In 2003, the name "Subway" was officially readopted by its operator, the Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT). The system is not the oldest underground railway in Glasgow: that distinction belongs to a three-mile (five-kilometre) section of the Glasgow City and District Railway opened in 1886, now part of the North Clyde Line of the suburban railway network, which runs in
5264-576: The only exception that the word "Metro" is used instead of "U-Bahn", and "S-tog" instead of "S-Bahn". (The Danish word "S-tog" applies to the trains ( tog ), rather than the tracks as in Germany; "S-tog" means "S-train".) Otherwise, the S-Bahn of Berlin and the S-tog of Copenhagen are very similar with the exception of the size. In Switzerland, where there is only one underground railway system in Lausanne,
5358-415: The only surviving example of this in the post-modernised era), and with many of these structures being destroyed during the slum clearances of the 1960s, often only the station access was left standing. Stations were marked with circular signs often attached to lampposts. This sign had a white background in the top three-quarters (containing a large red letter "U") and black in the bottom quarter (containing
5452-569: The outer circle. The modernised Subway (alongside the rebuilt Argyle Line ) was inaugurated by Queen Elizabeth II on 1 November 1979, who rode the train along with Prince Philip from Buchanan Street to St Enoch. Rebuilding work was however still incomplete, and the actual reopening to passengers did not occur until 16 April 1980. Thirty-three new carriages were built by Metro-Cammell at its Washwood Heath works in Birmingham , and equipped with GEC electric motors. The exterior design of
5546-413: The period 2019–20. The Subway has been policed by British Transport Police since 2007. The Glasgow District Subway Company began construction of the underground in 1891 and it opened on 14 December 1896. The subway was powered by a clutch-and-cable system, with one cable for each direction. The cable was driven from a steam-powered plant between West Street and Shields Road stations. There
5640-415: The plans that the consultants had recommended. These included major refurbishment of the existing rolling stock and stations, at an overall cost of £270 million. The expansion of the existing network was also considered at a cost of £2.3 billion, including a new East End Circle, with seven new stations at St Mungo's , Onslow, Duke Street , Celtic Park , Dalmarnock , Newhall and Gorbals . The aim
5734-579: The remainder. This is locally styled subway-surface . When the Boston subway was originally built, the subway label was only used for sections into which streetcars (trams) operated, and the rapid transit sections were called tunnels . Also, in some countries, subway refers to systems built under roads and the informal term tube is used for the deep-underground tunnelled systems (such as London's Piccadilly line ) – in this usage, somewhat technical nowadays and not used much in London, underground
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#17327653271325828-512: The same fixed-guideway principles as steel wheel systems. Paris , Rome , Madrid , Barcelona , Lisbon , Copenhagen , Helsinki , Warsaw , Saint Petersburg , Amsterdam , Rotterdam , Prague and Moscow all have metro (from the word metropolitan where "metro" means "mother" and "politan" means "city") systems which are called metro in French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Danish, Finnish, Polish, Dutch, Czech and Russian. Subway used in
5922-521: The seats themselves were attached); passengers were rocked forward and backward while the carriage ' shoogled ' them around. Passengers always entered at the middle of the train ("Q Here" signs were painted on the platforms), leaving by the front door of the front carriage or the rear door of the rear carriage. By the 1970s, the stations were very dilapidated. Surface access to most stations had been largely built into existing buildings and their entrances often formed part of shop frontages ( Kelvinhall being
6016-514: The simpler streetcar systems (partly because the vehicles tend to be somewhat slower). Some places in the country have set about building the less expensive streetcar lines themselves or with only minimal federal support. Most of these lines have been "heritage" railways , using refurbished or replica streetcars harkening back to the first half of the 20th century. However, a few, such as the Portland Streetcar , use modern vehicles. There
6110-487: The station, which hosts a railway station, a subway station and a bus terminal on the outside. In April 2010, Strathclyde Partnership for Transport approved outline plans for a £290 million upgrade of the Subway—the first since the comprehensive modernisation of the late 1970s. Plans included additional safety measures, improved accessibility and smart technology such as electronic tickets. The proposals were approved by
6204-407: The stations had a distinctive earthy odour. The trains (mostly dating back to 1896) were always formed with two carriages—the front (motor) carriage with red leather seats and the rear (trailer) carriage with brown leather seats. Smoking was permitted in the rear carriage only. The backs of the seats were attached to the sides of the carriages, which moved semi-independently from the floor (to which
6298-473: The streets in American cities were paved. Mechanical versions, pulled by cables , were introduced around 1870. Electric streetcars were introduced in the 1880s and soon replaced the horse-drawn streetcar in cities across the United States. Trolley is an American word derived from the electric current pickup mechanism in early systems. The first successful electric streetcars in the United States used
6392-509: The surface by 'cut-and-cover' methods. The Glasgow metro system is known as the Glasgow Subway or colloquial as "the subway". The word metro is not usually used in London or Glasgow to refer to those cities' metros, but it is used in and around Newcastle upon Tyne to refer to the Tyne and Wear Metro . In the UK, the term overground was created in 2007 by Transport for London to refer to
6486-401: The system, with one of the two circles continuing to run while the other was upgraded. This idea was abandoned as expert advice suggested a safety risk. On 24 March 1977, cracks were noticed in the roof of Govan Cross station , leading to suspension of services until 2 May. The service resumed with only four trains per circle. On 21 May 1977, the system was shut down eight days prematurely for
6580-616: The term U-Bahn – a shortening of Untergrundbahn , meaning "underground railway" – and S-Bahn – an abbreviation for the German Stadtschnellbahn or just Schnellbahn (fast city train, fast train) the more common English translation, suburban train. So for example in Berlin, the mostly underground system is known as the Berlin U-Bahn and it is integrated with the mostly above-ground system, known as
6674-592: The term subway may be used in either sense. The usage of underground is very similar to that of subway, describing an underground train system. In London the colloquial term tube now refers to the London Underground , and is the most common word used for the underground system; and it is used by Transport for London , the local government body responsible for most aspects of the transport system throughout Greater London. However, strictly speaking, it should only refer to those deep lines which run in bored circular tunnels as opposed to those constructed near to
6768-613: The term tram include aerial cable cars and short-distance, rubber-tired people-movers (such as at certain airports). Tourist buses that have been given the appearance of a vintage streetcar (i.e. trolley-replica buses ) are most commonly referred to, ambiguously, simply as trolleys by the companies or entities operating them or selling them, but may be referred to as trams or streetcars. Specific terms for some historically important tram technologies include horsecar , heritage streetcar , and cable car . Heritage streetcar (also known as heritage trolley or vintage trolley )
6862-626: The term metro is generally used, due to the influence from the French language. In Sweden, the metro of Stockholm is called "Tunnelbana" or "T-bana" which refers to the fact that the trains often run in tunnels. The same applies to Norway and the "T-bane" of Oslo. Elevated is a shorthand for elevated railway , a railway built on supports over other rights of way, generally city streets. The term overhead tends to be used in Europe. The names of elevated railways are sometimes further abbreviate it to El or L . Some examples include: The term heavy rail has different meanings in different parts of
6956-571: The term used varies in different dialects of English , with streetcar and trolley most commonly used in North America ( streetcar being more common in the western and central part of the continent and trolley in the eastern part), while tram predominates in Europe and elsewhere. Tram is a British word, cognate with the Low German traam , and the Dutch trame , meaning
7050-633: The term, mass rapid transit (MRT) , is also used for metro systems in Southeast Asia and Taiwan . Though the term was almost always used to describe rail transportation, other forms of transit were sometimes described by their proponents as rapid transit, including local ferries in some cases. The term bus rapid transit has recently come into use to describe bus lines with features to speed their operation. These usually have more characteristics of light rail than rapid transit. Metros , short for metropolitan railways, are defined by
7144-528: The tracks to the depot by crane, a single inoperable train could cause major delays. The future of the Subway became a major issue for the Greater Glasgow Passenger Transport Executive (GGPTE), which took over responsibility for the line from Glasgow Corporation in the early 1970s. In January 1974 GGPTE announced a modernisation programme would be undertaken. The original plan would have seen trains continue to run on
7238-471: The train. From the time of being taken over by the Corporation until 1977, the staff were issued with tramway uniforms; these were dark green and had a black braid on the cuffs which had been introduced at the time of the funeral of Queen Victoria in 1901. The Glasgow Museum of Transport had an area dedicated to the subway, with models showing the operation of the clutch-and-cable system, as well as
7332-543: The trains was carried out in partnership with Glasgow School of Art , which, according to SPT publicity films of the day, was largely responsible for the trains' "cute" appearance. Eight additional centre-trailer carriages were built in 1992 (the body shells by Hunslet Gyro Mining Transport in Leeds for completion by Hunslet-Barclay in Kilmarnock ), making all trains three carriages long. Smoking has never been permitted on
7426-508: The unique 4 ft ( 1,219 mm ) gauge, the original Broomloan Depot was modernised and equipped with connecting tracks with points to replace the crane transfer, and a new electrical supply from Westinghouse Electric Corporation was installed. A new ticketing system, provided by Crouzet, with passenger-operated ticket vending machines and automatic turnstile barriers, replaced the old, perforated cinema-style tickets and conductors . The post-1980 yellow tickets have since been replaced by
7520-509: The unusual narrow gauge of 4 ft ( 1,219 mm ) and a nominal tunnel diameter of 11 ft (3.4 m), even smaller than that of the deep-level lines of the London Underground ( 11 ft 8 + 1 ⁄ 4 in or 3.56 m at their smallest); consequently, the rolling stock for the Glasgow Subway is considerably smaller. The system is described as two lines, the Outer Circle and Inner Circle, which simply refers to
7614-447: The way. Light rail vehicles are almost always electrically driven , with power usually being drawn from an overhead line rather than an electrified third rail , though a few exceptional systems use diesel multiple units (DMUs) instead as a cheaper alternative to an electrically driven light rail system. The phrase light rail was coined in the 1970s during the re-emergence of streetcars / trams with more modern technology. It
7708-494: The word "Underground" and an arrow to the station entrance). No station had an escalator ; Kelvinbridge had a lift . Each station had a ticket office (often very small, little more than a booth with a window). The ticketing system was identical to that of most cinemas of the era, with tickets emerging from slots in the counters of the station ticket offices (the words "Control Systems Ltd" or "Automaticket Ltd" were printed on all tickets). Tickets were invariably collected on leaving
7802-584: The world, Metro systems are also known in English as the underground, the subway or the tube. Rail systems with specific construction issues operating on a segregated guideway (e.g. monorail, rack railways) are also treated as Metros as long as they are designated as part of the urban public transport network." Metropolitan railways are used for high capacity public transportation. They can operate in trains of up to 10 or more cars, carrying 1800 passengers or more. Some metro systems run on rubber tires but are based on
7896-679: The world. The German complementary term is Vollbahn and the opposite Kleinbahn . These terms were defined to distinguish different axle loads and connected construction rules. Today the term Vollbahn is not common and Kleinbahn is used for narrow-gauge lines. In the United Kingdom, heavy rail refers to conventional railways forming part of the national network, including commuter, intercity , high-speed rail , regional rail and freight services, as distinct from metro , light rail and tram lines, people movers , and similar. The London Underground , despite being described as
7990-470: The years leading up to the conflict, to the expansion of the local shipyard workforce due to the need for rearmament. Unlike its larger counterpart in London the system's stations did not make good air-raid shelters as they were much less deep. On 18 September 1940, during World War II, a German bomb, which dropped during a night raid on Glasgow and may have been intended for nearby naval facilities, landed on
8084-569: Was closed (thus becoming a ghost station ); a new station to the north was built at Partick to provide an interchange with the North Clyde Line of the suburban rail system. The site of Merkland Street can be noticed by the characteristic hump and the larger-diameter tunnel with both tracks. Many fittings from Merkland Street were used to build a replica pre-modernisation station at the Glasgow Museum of Transport which contained three preserved cars. A further interchange via moving walkway
8178-573: Was devised in 1972 by the U.S. Urban Mass Transportation Administration (UMTA; the precursor to the Federal Transit Administration ) to describe new streetcar transformations which were taking place, and was a translation of the German word Stadtbahn . However, instead of the literal translation of city rail , UMTA used light rail instead. In general, it refers to streetcar/tram systems with rapid transit-style features. It
8272-425: Was installed between Buchanan Street station and Queen Street mainline station as part of the modernisation. In August 1977, all redundant fittings and equipment from the old system were sold at a public sale at Broomloan Works. During the 1977–1980 modernisation, two Clayton battery locomotives were used by the contractors Taylor Woodrow to haul construction trains. Heavier track was installed although still at
8366-460: Was installed. A £40,000 study examining the feasibility of an expansion into the city's south side was conducted in 2005, and in 2007 Labour further committed to extend the line to the East End, but to no avail. New electronic destination signs were installed in the stations in 2008. The Partick station modernisation project was completed in 2009, and resulted in a complete redevelopment at
8460-536: Was no additional cable to allow trains to reach the depot; instead, they were transferred to and from the running lines by crane operating over a pit at the Govan workshops. This also meant that the two tracks could be completely separate, with no points anywhere. The company's headquarters were in the upper rooms at St Enoch subway station ; this distinctive ornate building still stands in St Enoch Square and
8554-422: Was no direct connection between the underground and mainline stations of Buchanan Street as they were over 500 m (550 yd) distant. The Subway had no direct passenger connection to the national railway network—a major weakness—although Buchanan Street and Merkland Street stations were a short walk from Queen Street and Partickhill British Rail stations respectively. Before the 1977–1980 modernisation,
8648-499: Was on 30 November 1935, and was driven by Robert Boyd. The trains lost their original plum and cream-coloured liveries, being painted red and white instead. From the 1950s the trains became all red—in a shade similar to that of London buses . During the early 1970s, trailer carriage number 41 was repainted in the original 1896 livery. According to Keith Anderson World War II brought an "unprecedented" level of use by passengers. Anderson attributes this, and an increase in patronage in
8742-469: Was subsequently used as a travel information office by SPT and is now a coffee shop. When the Subway first opened, single-carriage four axle (twin truck) trains were operated. Late in the evening on the opening day, after 11 pm, one car laden with 60 passengers was run into by another under the River Clyde. Four people were injured, one being taken to the infirmary. This entailed the closure of
8836-506: Was to improve transport links in an area of the city which is currently poorly served by rail, in the hope that this would aid regeneration, and the city's 2014 Commonwealth Games bid. This circle would interchange at Cowcaddens , Buchanan Street and St Enoch . Other proposals include extending the system southwards to Cathcart and further westwards to the SEC Centre and Maryhill using an older railway line. In 2007, SPT produced
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