97-570: Trambesòs ( Catalan pronunciation: [ˌtrambəˈzɔs] ) is a tram – light rail system in the Spanish autonomous community of Catalonia that links the Barcelona district of Sant Martí with Badalona and Sant Adrià de Besòs . Its name comes from the union of the words "tram", an abbreviation of the Catalan word for "tram" ( tramvia ), and "Besòs", the name of an area in the north of
194-637: A demonstration in favour of the union of the two tram networks in late September 2005. That same year, and after the announcement by the Generalitat of Catalonia to study the project, the Barcelona City Council announced its opposition, even after the publication of two studies that positively assessed the linkage through Diagonal. In 2008, the Mayor of Barcelona Jordi Hereu announced the refurbishment of Avinguda Diagonal, which included
291-516: A streetcar or trolley in the United States) is a type of urban rail transit consisting of either individual railcars or self-propelled multiple unit trains that run on tramway tracks on urban public streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way . The tramlines or tram networks operated as public transport are called tramways or simply trams/streetcars. Because of their close similarities, trams are commonly included in
388-622: A tram engine in the UK) at the head of a line of one or more carriages, similar to a small train. Systems with such steam trams included Christchurch , New Zealand; Sydney, Australia; other city systems in New South Wales ; Munich , Germany (from August 1883 on), British India (from 1885) and the Dublin & Blessington Steam Tramway (from 1888) in Ireland. Steam tramways also were used on
485-520: A Vermont blacksmith, had invented a battery-powered electric motor which he later patented. The following year he used it to operate a small model electric car on a short section of track four feet in diameter. Attempts to use batteries as a source of electricity were made from the 1880s and 1890s, with unsuccessful trials conducted in among other places Bendigo and Adelaide in Australia, and for about 14 years as The Hague accutram of HTM in
582-420: A common design that has a discrete look to them, dominated by metallic materials and panes of glass. Facilities for passengers include one or two shelters equipped with an intercom , a PA system , a passenger information display (PID), a CCTV system, a noticeboard and ticket vending machines . The shelters were designed by architects Antoni Roselló and Rafael Cáceres, who were awarded in the design section of
679-463: A completion of projects beyond 2020. Trambesòs is one of the public transport networks in Barcelona metropolitan area with one of the highest rates of fraud , incivility and vandalism This results in €275,000 per year in added expenses for TRAM. It is estimated that one in three Trambesòs users travel without paying, being the final section of routes T5 and T6 where more cases involving fraud in
776-454: A hyphen ("T-") before a distinct name. There currently exist about 80 types of fare-integrated cards, depending on the number of fare zones permitted to cross, their validity period as well as the existence of fare reductions. Non-personalised fare-integrated cards can be purchased at railway and bus stations, at tram stops, at customer service points of the integrated companies, at CaixaBank cash machines , as well as at newsagent's shops and
873-428: A machine by the door of the tram although underground stops have ticket barriers so there is no need to validate the ticket on the tram. The system currently comprises 27 stops, each following the same design and technical characteristics as Trambaix stops. Almost all stops have 60-metre-long (200 ft) low platforms (35 centimetres or 14 inches above rail level) with a 6-metre-long (20 ft) ramp at each end of
970-600: A number of small shops. The eight basic fare-integrated cards have the following features: The regular fare-integrated cards are not valid in the Berguedà and Ripollès comarques due to the limitations of magnetic stripe-based technology. Dedicated multiple-time tickets can be purchased for use on trips between Berguedà and Bages , Berguedà and Barcelona, and Ripollès and Barcelona. Fares on such trips are calculated as if these comarques formed an outer seventh fare zone. A T-10 multiple-time ticket for use within fare zone 1
1067-726: A similar technology, Pirotsky put into service the first public electric tramway in St. Petersburg, which operated only during September 1880. The second demonstration tramway was presented by Siemens & Halske at the 1879 Berlin Industrial Exposition. The first public electric tramway used for permanent service was the Gross-Lichterfelde tramway in Lichterfelde near Berlin in Germany, which opened in 1881. It
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#17327880277781164-549: A sort of "shuttle tram" for tourists between Sagrada Família and La Pedrera , while the other one would mostly pass through Gran Via . However, this was never realised, with Trambaix and Trambesòs remaining unconnected upon the departure of Trias' government in 2015. Mayor Ada Colau continued promoting the connection of the TRAM along the Avinguda Diagonal, however was defeated by opposition parties when she presented
1261-401: A transfer to Barcelona Metro network while only Estació de Sant Adrià stop offers a transfer to Rodalies de Catalunya commuter rail services, becoming the only stop of the whole network that offers a transfer to some kind of heavy rail services. Design and facilities of the stops are meant to provide universal access as one of the goals of the network since its planning. The stops follow
1358-464: A transfer to all Trambesòs routes. The routes were reorganized in October 2024 to accommodate the network's expansion along Avinguda Diagonal . Routes are generally displayed by a teal square with a white "T" followed by the route number in it (e.g. [REDACTED] ). Trambaix routes are also displayed with a "T" to stand out those are also tram services so the difference between the two networks
1455-946: A well-known tourist attraction . A single cable line also survives in Wellington (rebuilt in 1979 as a funicular but still called the " Wellington Cable Car "). Another system, with two separate cable lines and a shared power station in the middle, operates from the Welsh town of Llandudno up to the top of the Great Orme hill in North Wales , UK. Hastings and some other tramways, for example Stockholms Spårvägar in Sweden and some lines in Karachi , used petrol trams. Galveston Island Trolley in Texas operated diesel trams due to
1552-598: Is a public consortium intended to coordinate the operation and project the expansion of the public transport system in the Barcelona metropolitan area . It is made up of the Government of Catalonia and local administrations. It has been known as ATM Àrea de Barcelona since 2003 to differentiate it from the other existing Catalan public transport authorities in the Girona , Camp de Tarragona and Lleida areas, which are also identified as ATM . As of January 2015 ,
1649-492: Is also included with the dedicated card. A one- or two-zone T-10 card can be used on trips within each of the comarques , though interchanges between transport modes are not permitted. The fares for each type of card are calculated according to the number of fare zones crossed. Regarding unlimited passes, the first fare zone in which the pass is validated will determine the number of fare zones permitted to cross with that pass. Since fares are updated on 1 January of each year,
1746-481: Is on the numbering: Trambaix uses numbers 1–3, while Trambesòs uses numbers 4–6. The original project about the introduction of a modern tram system in Barcelona comprised the creation of a new tram route covering the whole Avinguda Diagonal , between Zona Universitària and Diagonal Mar shopping mall. With the opening of Trambaix and Trambesòs, the possibility of creating a new tram line through Avinguda Diagonal connecting both networks became more popular, and even saw
1843-456: Is operated by TRAM . It complements the Trambaix that runs to the south-west of the city. The networks are slated to be interconnected through Avinguda Diagonal in the final construction phase. The system comprises 29 stops and has a total length of 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) whereby three different routes are run. The network is configured as a double-track electrified tramline built to
1940-425: Is sometimes grass-covered or simply covered in concrete or asphalt concrete like the road surface . In order to supply electric power to the overhead line, six substations were built along the line, providing a voltage of 750 V DC . The contact wire has a cross-section of 150 mm (0.23 in) supported by several metallic utility poles positioned along the railway tracks. The rolling stock operated on
2037-640: Is still in operation in modernised form. The earliest tram system in Canada was built by John Joseph Wright , brother of the famous mining entrepreneur Whitaker Wright , in Toronto in 1883, introducing electric trams in 1892. In the US, multiple experimental electric trams were exhibited at the 1884 World Cotton Centennial World's Fair in New Orleans, Louisiana , but they were not deemed good enough to replace
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#17327880277782134-451: Is the fare zone-based ticketing system run by the ATM allowing unified public transport fare integration throughout the Barcelona metropolitan area and beyond. The STI consists of six concentric fare zones centered in Barcelona , numbered 1–6, which are further divided into sectors lettered A–H. The overall system virtually reaches the entire province of Barcelona , as well as adjacent parts of
2231-734: Is the sole survivor of the fleet). In Italy, in Trieste , the Trieste–Opicina tramway was opened in 1902, with the steepest section of the route being negotiated with the help of a funicular and its cables. Cable cars suffered from high infrastructure costs, since an expensive system of cables , pulleys , stationary engines and lengthy underground vault structures beneath the rails had to be provided. They also required physical strength and skill to operate, and alert operators to avoid obstructions and other cable cars. The cable had to be disconnected ("dropped") at designated locations to allow
2328-543: Is the transport authority responsible for fares and ticketing , and for marketing the network. Trambesòs is part of the integrated fare system within Barcelona metropolitan area and is entirely within ATM fare zone 1. Fares are the same as the ones applied on Trambaix as well as the ticket system. Single tickets can be purchased at stops by using ticket machines and allow you to transfer between other Trambesòs routes for 30 minutes without having to buy another ticket. All tickets or other transportation cards must be validated in
2425-599: The Barcelonès region dominated by the Besòs River . The first section of Trambesòs was opened on 8 May 2004 as part of route T4 and since its opening it has undergone several extensions. The most recent extension opened on November 10, 2024. It was the first step to connect the network to the Trambaix along the Avinguda Diagonal , with a three station extension from Glòries to Verdaguer . Trambesòs
2522-713: The Bleecker Street Line until its closure in 1917. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania , had its Sarah Street line drawn by horses until 1923. The last regular mule-drawn cars in the US ran in Sulphur Rock, Arkansas , until 1926 and were commemorated by a U.S. postage stamp issued in 1983. The last mule tram service in Mexico City ended in 1932, and a mule tram in Celaya, Mexico , survived until 1954. The last horse-drawn tram to be withdrawn from public service in
2619-537: The Girona and Tarragona provinces, serving a total number of 15 comarques (counties) and 346 municipalities , that is a population of over 5.7 million. Although the Berguedà and Ripollès comarques were incorporated in the STI on 1 January 2015, they do not appear on official maps because of their distinct operation. The STI uses magnetic stripe -based technology. Almost all public transport services within
2716-933: The Lamm fireless engines then propelling the St. Charles Avenue Streetcar in that city. The first commercial installation of an electric streetcar in the United States was built in 1884 in Cleveland, Ohio , and operated for a period of one year by the East Cleveland Street Railway Company. The first city-wide electric streetcar system was implemented in 1886 in Montgomery, Alabama , by the Capital City Street Railway Company, and ran for 50 years. In 1888,
2813-715: The Richmond Union Passenger Railway began to operate trams in Richmond, Virginia , that Frank J. Sprague had built. Sprague later developed multiple unit control, first demonstrated in Chicago in 1897, allowing multiple cars to be coupled together and operated by a single motorman. This gave rise to the modern subway train. Following the improvement of an overhead "trolley" system on streetcars for collecting electricity from overhead wires by Sprague, electric tram systems were rapidly adopted across
2910-824: The West Midlands Metro in Birmingham , England adopted battery-powered trams on sections through the city centre close to Grade I listed Birmingham Town Hall . Paris and Berne (Switzerland) operated trams that were powered by compressed air using the Mekarski system . Trials on street tramways in Britain, including by the North Metropolitan Tramway Company between Kings Cross and Holloway, London (1883), achieved acceptable results but were found not to be economic because of
3007-627: The driving cab , being unable to avoid punches . After this controversial aggression, TRAM decided to strengthen security on the network, mainly at Gorg, Estació de Sant Adrià and Ciutadella – Vila Olímpica stops. It was also decided to rely on popular mediators who are natives from the affected area and selected by the Federation of Gypsy Associations in Catalonia (Fagic) to minimize vandalism, making possible to solve several conflicts. [REDACTED] Tram A tram (also known as
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3104-515: The standard track gauge that starts near Parc de la Ciutadella in the Barcelona district of Sant Martí and continues towards Badalona and Sant Adrià de Besòs through Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes and Avinguda Diagonal , the system's two main arterial corridors to enter Barcelona. There is also another branch that crosses the La Rambla de la Mina street in Sant Adrià and connects
3201-1241: The 1850s, after which the "animal railway" became an increasingly common feature in the larger towns. The first permanent tram line in continental Europe was opened in Paris in 1855 by Alphonse Loubat who had previously worked on American streetcar lines. The tram was developed in numerous cities of Europe (some of the most extensive systems were found in Berlin, Budapest , Birmingham , Saint Petersburg , Lisbon , London , Manchester , Paris , Kyiv ). The first tram in South America opened in 1858 in Santiago, Chile . The first trams in Australia opened in 1860 in Sydney . Africa's first tram service started in Alexandria on 8 January 1863. The first trams in Asia opened in 1869 in Batavia (Jakarta), Netherlands East Indies (Indonesia) . Limitations of horsecars included
3298-713: The 1894-built horse tram at Victor Harbor in South Australia . New horse-drawn systems have been established at the Hokkaidō Museum in Japan and also in Disneyland . A horse-tram route in Polish gmina Mrozy , first built in 1902, was reopened in 2012. The first mechanical trams were powered by steam . Generally, there were two types of steam tram. The first and most common had a small steam locomotive (called
3395-420: The 1980s. The history of passenger trams, streetcars and trolley systems, began in the early nineteenth century. It can be divided into several distinct periods defined by the principal means of power used. Precursors to the tramway included the wooden or stone wagonways that were used in central Europe to transport mine carts with unflanged wheels since the 1500s, and the paved limestone trackways designed by
3492-532: The 2004 City of Barcelona Awards for this design. Three east–west routes currently make up the Trambesòs system. The Gran Via section is used by both routes T5 and T6, while the Avinguda Diagonal section and the branch in the La Mina neighbourhood are only used by routes T4 and T6, respectively. All routes converge at Plaça de les Glòries Catalanes , making it the only station in the whole network that provides
3589-489: The ATM-managed public transport system comprises 50 different operating companies and serves 346 municipalities , accounting for a population of over 5.7 million. Created in 1997, the ATM has since developed an Integrated Fare System ( Catalan : Sistema Tarifari Integrat , STI) based on concentric fare zones. There currently exist about 80 different types of multiple-time tickets or unlimited passes for use on
3686-481: The Australian state of Queensland between 1909 and 1939. Stockholm , Sweden, had a steam tram line at the island of Södermalm between 1887 and 1901. Tram engines usually had modifications to make them suitable for street running in residential areas. The wheels, and other moving parts of the machinery, were usually enclosed for safety reasons and to make the engines quieter. Measures were often taken to prevent
3783-462: The British newspaper Newcastle Daily Chronicle reported that, "A large number of London's discarded horse tramcars have been sent to Lincolnshire where they are used as sleeping rooms for potato pickers ". Horses continued to be used for light shunting well into the 20th century, and many large metropolitan lines lasted into the early 20th century. New York City had a regular horsecar service on
3880-535: The City Council, and many of the points of the reform such as the construction of the new tram line were called into question. The referendum was officially announced in December and was planned to be held on 10–16 May 2010 with two projects to be chosen and an option to dismiss them. The voting process would take place at several municipal offices used as polling places by voting using touchscreens , though it
3977-774: The Entertainment Centre, and work is progressing on further extensions. Sydney re-introduced trams (or light rail) on 31 August 1997. A completely new system, known as G:link , was introduced on the Gold Coast, Queensland , on 20 July 2014. The Newcastle Light Rail opened in February 2019, while the Canberra light rail opened on 20 April 2019. This is the first time that there have been trams in Canberra, even though Walter Burley Griffin 's 1914–1920 plans for
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4074-579: The Gran Via section with the Avinguda Diagonal one. The Avinguda Diagonal branch was extended to Verdaguer in November 2024. Trambesòs uses exclusive infrastructure such as a reserved platform for its circulation along all its route and dedicated signaling. The exclusive use of the reserved platform by the tram is meant to provide greater regularity, speed and safety, and it only has contact with other vehicles at several existing at-grade intersections with
4171-583: The Irish coach builder John Stephenson , in New York City which began service in the year 1832. The New York and Harlem Railroad's Fourth Avenue Line ran along the Bowery and Fourth Avenue in New York City. It was followed in 1835 by the New Orleans and Carrollton Railroad in New Orleans, Louisiana , which still operates as the St. Charles Streetcar Line . Other American cities did not follow until
4268-545: The Netherlands. The first trams in Bendigo, Australia, in 1892, were battery-powered, but within as little as three months they were replaced with horse-drawn trams. In New York City some minor lines also used storage batteries. Then, more recently during the 1950s, a longer battery-operated tramway line ran from Milan to Bergamo . In China there is a Nanjing battery Tram line and has been running since 2014. In 2019,
4365-789: The North Sydney line from 1886 to 1900, and the King Street line from 1892 to 1905. In Dresden , Germany, in 1901 an elevated suspended cable car following the Eugen Langen one-railed floating tram system started operating. Cable cars operated on Highgate Hill in North London and Kennington to Brixton Hill in South London. They also worked around "Upper Douglas" in the Isle of Man from 1897 to 1929 (cable car 72/73
4462-463: The Romans for heavy horse and ox-drawn transportation. By the 1700s, paved plateways with cast iron rails were introduced in England for transporting coal, stone or iron ore from the mines to the urban factories and docks. The world's first passenger train or tram was the Swansea and Mumbles Railway , in Wales , UK. The British Parliament passed the Mumbles Railway Act in 1804, and horse-drawn service started in 1807. The service closed in 1827, but
4559-469: The STI are fare-integrated, with the exceptions of tourist-oriented services such as the Aerobús express bus to Barcelona–El Prat Airport , the Tramvia Blau or the Montserrat Rack Railway and its associated funiculars. All major railway systems in the Barcelona area are fare-integrated, including the Barcelona Metro , the Trambaix and Trambesòs light rail–tram systems, the Rodalies de Catalunya -operated Barcelona commuter rail service, as well as
4656-416: The STI, all of which allow free-of-charge interchange between transport modes in a single trip. In 2012, it was announced that the ATM was planning to upgrade the current magnetic stripe -based technology used on the STI to a contactless smart card validation system known as T-mobilitat , reducing all the existing ATM cards to one. The Integrated Fare System ( Catalan : Sistema Tarifari Integrat , STI)
4753-413: The Second Street Cable Railroad, which operated from 1885 to 1889, and the Temple Street Cable Railway, which operated from 1886 to 1898. From 1885 to 1940, the city of Melbourne , Victoria, Australia operated one of the largest cable systems in the world, at its peak running 592 trams on 75 kilometres (47 mi) of track. There were also two isolated cable lines in Sydney , New South Wales, Australia;
4850-562: The UK at Lytham St Annes , Trafford Park , Manchester (1897–1908) and Neath , Wales (1896–1920). Comparatively little has been published about gas trams. However, research on the subject was carried out for an article in the October 2011 edition of "The Times", the historical journal of the Australian Association of Timetable Collectors, later renamed the Australian Timetable Association. The world's first electric tram line operated in Sestroretsk near Saint Petersburg invented and tested by inventor Fyodor Pirotsky in 1875. Later, using
4947-410: The UK took passengers from Fintona railway station to Fintona Junction one mile away on the main Omagh to Enniskillen railway in Northern Ireland. The tram made its last journey on 30 September 1957 when the Omagh to Enniskillen line closed. The "van" is preserved at the Ulster Transport Museum . Horse-drawn trams still operate on the 1876-built Douglas Bay Horse Tramway on the Isle of Man , and at
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#17327880277785044-508: The advantages over earlier forms of transit was the low rolling resistance of metal wheels on steel rails, allowing the trams to haul a greater load for a given effort. Another factor which contributed to the rise of trams was the high total cost of ownership of horses. Electric trams largely replaced animal power in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Improvements in other vehicles such as buses led to decline of trams in early to mid 20th century. However, trams have seen resurgence since
5141-460: The busiest tram line in Europe, with a tram running once per minute at rush hour. Bucharest and Belgrade ran a regular service from 1894. Ljubljana introduced its tram system in 1901 – it closed in 1958. Oslo had the first tramway in Scandinavia , starting operation on 2 March 1894. The first electric tramway in Australia was a Sprague system demonstrated at the 1888 Melbourne Centennial Exhibition in Melbourne ; afterwards, this
5238-439: The capital then in the planning stage did propose a Canberra tram system. In Japan, the Kyoto Electric railroad was the first tram system, starting operation in 1895. By 1932, the network had grown to 82 railway companies in 65 cities, with a total network length of 1,479 km (919 mi). By the 1960s the tram had generally died out in Japan. Two rare but significant alternatives were conduit current collection , which
5335-458: The car up the hill at a steady pace, unlike a low-powered steam or horse-drawn car. Cable cars do have wheel brakes and track brakes , but the cable also helps restrain the car to going downhill at a constant speed. Performance in steep terrain partially explains the survival of cable cars in San Francisco. The San Francisco cable cars , though significantly reduced in number, continue to provide regular transportation service, in addition to being
5432-402: The cars to coast by inertia, for example when crossing another cable line. The cable then had to be "picked up" to resume progress, the whole operation requiring precise timing to avoid damage to the cable and the grip mechanism. Breaks and frays in the cable, which occurred frequently, required the complete cessation of services over a cable route while the cable was repaired. Due to overall wear,
5529-409: The city's hurricane-prone location, which would have resulted in frequent damage to an electrical supply system. Although Portland, Victoria promotes its tourist tram as being a cable car it actually operates using a diesel motor. The tram, which runs on a circular route around the town of Portland, uses dummies and salons formerly used on the Melbourne cable tramway system and since restored. In
5626-549: The classic tramway built in the early 20th century with the tram system operating in mixed traffic, and the later type which is most often associated with the tram system having its own right of way. Tram systems that have their own right of way are often called light rail but this does not always hold true. Though these two systems differ in their operation, their equipment is much the same. Autoritat del Transport Metropolit%C3%A0 The Metropolitan Transport Authority ( Catalan : Autoritat del Transport Metropolità , ATM )
5723-416: The combined coal consumption of the stationary compressor and the onboard steam boiler. The Trieste–Opicina tramway in Trieste operates a hybrid funicular tramway system. Conventional electric trams are operated in street running and on reserved track for most of their route. However, on one steep segment of track, they are assisted by cable tractors, which push the trams uphill and act as brakes for
5820-487: The construction of the new tram line. The creation of a new office to carry out the "Diagonal Project" was also announced and because of opposition demand, a referendum would be held among other actions to enhance citizen participation, the first referendum proclaimed by the City Council ever to be held in Barcelona. During the participatory and technical process involved in the refurbishment of Avinguda Diagonal throughout 2009, various questions and suggestions were raised to
5917-430: The downhill run. For safety, the cable tractors are always deployed on the downhill side of the tram vehicle. Similar systems were used elsewhere in the past, notably on the Queen Anne Counterbalance in Seattle and the Darling Street wharf line in Sydney. In the mid-20th century many tram systems were disbanded, replaced by buses, trolleybuses , automobiles or rapid transit . The General Motors streetcar conspiracy
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#17327880277786014-446: The engines from emitting visible smoke or steam. Usually the engines used coke rather than coal as fuel to avoid emitting smoke; condensers or superheating were used to avoid emitting visible steam. A major drawback of this style of tram was the limited space for the engine, so that these trams were usually underpowered. Steam trams faded out around the 1890s to 1900s, being replaced by electric trams. Another motive system for trams
6111-730: The entire Barcelona–Vallès and Llobegat–Anoia lines. The metro and the light rail–tram systems are entirely within fare zone 1. Nevertheless, there are the following exceptions: There are eight basic types of fare-integrated cards—the T-10 , T-50/30 , T-70/30 , T-Mes , T-Jove , T-Trimestre , T-Dia and T-16 —, all of which are multiple-time tickets or unlimited passes allowing free-of-charge interchange between transport modes in 1 hour and 25 minutes within one fare zone (plus 15 minutes for each additional zone). Single tickets are not fare-integrated and thus they do not allow interchange between transport modes or operating companies. All fare-integrated cards are identified with letter T followed by
6208-429: The entire length of cable (typically several kilometres) had to be replaced on a regular schedule. After the development of reliable electrically powered trams, the costly high-maintenance cable car systems were rapidly replaced in most locations. Cable cars remained especially effective in hilly cities, since their nondriven wheels did not lose traction as they climbed or descended a steep hill. The moving cable pulled
6305-439: The fact that any given animal could only work so many hours on a given day, had to be housed, groomed, fed and cared for day in and day out, and produced prodigious amounts of manure, which the streetcar company was charged with storing and then disposing. Since a typical horse pulled a streetcar for about a dozen miles a day and worked for four or five hours, many systems needed ten or more horses in stable for each horsecar. In 1905
6402-432: The final connection of the tram lines only if the City's and Catalan budgets were passed. On 13 November, 3 days after the public opening of the new tram extension from Glòries to Verdaguer it was reported that Mayor Collboni planned to split the final 2 km in two stages: the first up to Passeig de Gràcia (1 station) and the second to Francesc Macià (3 remaining stations), with the City Council government focusing "in
6499-450: The first stage for now" and "not the latter". Before the splitting was announced, works for the whole final 2 km were expected to finish in 2028. The Infrastructure Master Plan (PDI) 2011–2020 by the Autoritat del Transport Metropolità (ATM) for Barcelona metropolitan area includes various proposals to extend the existing tram network. In general, it is about extension projects on existing routes following major arterial corridors and with
6596-444: The late 19th and early 20th centuries a number of systems in various parts of the world employed trams powered by gas, naphtha gas or coal gas in particular. Gas trams are known to have operated between Alphington and Clifton Hill in the northern suburbs of Melbourne , Australia (1886–1888); in Berlin and Dresden , Germany; in Estonia (1921–1951); between Jelenia Góra , Cieplice , and Sobieszów in Poland (from 1897); and in
6693-402: The late 19th and early 20th centuries. There was one particular hazard associated with trams powered from a trolley pole off an overhead line on the early electrified systems. Since the tram relies on contact with the rails for the current return path, a problem arises if the tram is derailed or (more usually) if it halts on a section of track that has been heavily sanded by a previous tram, and
6790-411: The local street system. These intersections are regulated by traffic lights , which do not have the traffic signal preemption system fully operational, what would allow the tram to reach 20 km/h (12 mph). The reserved platform houses the tracks, the overhead contact system , the dedicated signaling and the railway platforms . In addition, it is level with the sidewalks in most of its path and
6887-475: The necessity of overhead wire and a trolley pole for street cars and railways. While at the University of Denver he conducted experiments which established that multiple unit powered cars were a better way to operate trains and trolleys. Electric tramways spread to many European cities in the 1890s, such as: Sarajevo built a citywide system of electric trams in 1895. Budapest established its tramway system in 1887, and its ring line has grown to be
6984-683: The network is composed of 18 Citadis 302 low-floor trams built in its variation "Barcelona" ( teal and white colors) by Alstom at its manufacturing plant in Santa Perpètua de Mogoda . Tram units are parked and maintained at the only depot of Trambesòs located next to Central Tèrmica del Besòs stop, on a triangular piece of land between the Ronda Litoral coastal beltway and the Barcelona–Mataró–Maçanet-Massanes railway . Autoritat del Transport Metropolità (ATM)
7081-533: The oldest operating electric tramway in the world. Also in 1883, Mödling and Hinterbrühl Tram was opened near Vienna in Austria. It was the first tram in the world in regular service that was run with electricity served by an overhead line with pantograph current collectors . The Blackpool Tramway was opened in Blackpool, UK on 29 September 1885 using conduit collection along Blackpool Promenade. This system
7178-404: The platform. This allows wheelchairs, prams, pushchairs and the elderly to board the tram easily with no steps. The stops also have different platform layouts depending on the street section where they are located. Currently there are 8 stops with 1 island platform and 19 stops with 2 side platforms , three of which are located underground in the Gran Via section. There are also 8 stops that offer
7275-637: The poor paving of the streets in American cities which made them unsuitable for horsebuses , which were then common on the well-paved streets of European cities. Running the horsecars on rails allowed for a much smoother ride. There are records of a street railway running in Baltimore as early as 1828, however the first authenticated streetcar in America, was the New York and Harlem Railroad developed by
7372-487: The proposal of connecting Trambaix and Trambesòs through Avinguda Diagonal, though it has been agreed to reactivate the linkage project with the Generalitat. Trias stated he was committed to connecting the two tram systems through different streets in the district of Eixample and objects to the construction of a tram line through Diagonal. One of the new proposed routes would mostly pass through Provença Street, creating
7469-537: The proposal to the city council in 2018. The first part of the connection was finally passed in December 2020, with the first section reaching Verdaguer (from Glòries ) being opened in November 2024. Incumbent mayor Jaume Collboni was initially hesitant about the final swift connection, voicing his concerns with the current L8 extension works at Plaça de Francesc Macià , Avinguda Diagonal , with Catalan Minister of Territory Ester Capella coming out denying any sort of incompatibility. Later, Collboni vowed to start
7566-542: The suburban tramway lines around Milan and Padua ; the last Gamba de Legn ("Peg-Leg") tramway ran on the Milan- Magenta -Castano Primo route in late 1957. The other style of steam tram had the steam engine in the body of the tram, referred to as a tram engine (UK) or steam dummy (US). The most notable system to adopt such trams was in Paris. French-designed steam trams also operated in Rockhampton , in
7663-475: The ticket payment are reported, and whereby even incidents with ticket inspectors are also reported, sometimes involving the intervention by the police force. Attacks on tram drivers have also been reported of which one of the most controversial was when a group of 15 people were waiting at Gorg stop in Badalona at 1:00 am for the arrival of the tram to lynch the driver , who tried to shut himself inside
7760-558: The tracks. Siemens later designed his own version of overhead current collection, called the bow collector . One of the first systems to use it was in Thorold, Ontario , opened in 1887, and it was considered quite successful. While this line proved quite versatile as one of the earliest fully functional electric streetcar installations, it required horse-drawn support while climbing the Niagara Escarpment and for two months of
7857-416: The tram and completing the earth return circuit with their body could receive a serious electric shock. If "grounded", the driver was required to jump off the tram (avoiding simultaneous contact with the tram and the ground) and pull down the trolley pole, before allowing passengers off the tram. Unless derailed, the tram could usually be recovered by running water down the running rails from a point higher than
7954-466: The tram loses electrical contact with the rails. In this event, the underframe of the tram, by virtue of a circuit path through ancillary loads (such as interior lighting), is live at the full supply voltage, typically 600 volts DC. In British terminology, such a tram was said to be 'grounded'—not to be confused with the US English use of the term, which means the exact opposite. Any person stepping off
8051-427: The tram, the water providing a conducting bridge between the tram and the rails. With improved technology, this ceased to be an problem. In the 2000s, several companies introduced catenary-free designs: Alstom's Citadis line uses a third rail, Bombardier's PRIMOVE LRV is charged by contactless induction plates embedded in the trackway and CAF URBOS tram uses ultracaps technology As early as 1834, Thomas Davenport ,
8148-804: The wider term light rail , which also includes systems separated from other traffic. Tram vehicles are usually lighter and shorter than main line and rapid transit trains. Most trams use electrical power, usually fed by a pantograph sliding on an overhead line ; older systems may use a trolley pole or a bow collector . In some cases, a contact shoe on a third rail is used. If necessary, they may have dual power systems—electricity in city streets and diesel in more rural environments. Occasionally, trams also carry freight . Some trams, known as tram-trains , may have segments that run on mainline railway tracks, similar to interurban systems. The differences between these modes of rail transport are often indistinct, and systems may combine multiple features. One of
8245-409: The winter when hydroelectricity was not available. It continued in service in its original form into the 1950s. Sidney Howe Short designed and produced the first electric motor that operated a streetcar without gears. The motor had its armature direct-connected to the streetcar 's axle for the driving force. Short pioneered "use of a conduit system of concealed feed" thereby eliminating
8342-532: The world's first hydrogen fuel cell vehicle tramcar at an assembly facility in Qingdao . The chief engineer of the CSR subsidiary CSR Sifang Co Ltd. , Liang Jianying, said that the company is studying how to reduce the running costs of the tram. Trams have been used for two main purposes: for carrying passengers and for carrying cargo. There are several types of passenger tram: There are two main types of tramways,
8439-401: The world. Earlier electric trains proved difficult or unreliable and experienced limited success until the second half of the 1880s, when new types of current collectors were developed. Siemens' line, for example, provided power through a live rail and a return rail, like a model train , limiting the voltage that could be used, and delivering electric shocks to people and animals crossing
8536-682: Was a case study of the decline of trams in the United States. In the 21st century, trams have been re-introduced in cities where they had been closed down for decades (such as Tramlink in London), or kept in heritage use (such as Spårväg City in Stockholm). Most trams made since the 1990s (such as the Bombardier Flexity series and Alstom Citadis ) are articulated low-floor trams with features such as regenerative braking . In March 2015, China South Rail Corporation (CSR) demonstrated
8633-468: Was also possible to vote through the Internet . Citizens were asked about how they would prefer to reform the avenue, and if they would prefer to convert it into a boulevard or an avenue of a pedestrian walkway nature. The development of the referendum was marked by fierce controversy from day one, and specially because of continuous technical faults involving the electronic voting system. The winning option
8730-491: Was built by Werner von Siemens who contacted Pirotsky. This was the world's first commercially successful electric tram. It drew current from the rails at first, with overhead wire being installed in 1883. In Britain, Volk's Electric Railway was opened in 1883 in Brighton. This two kilometer line along the seafront, re-gauged to 2 ft 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 in ( 825 mm ) in 1884, remains in service as
8827-412: Was finally the "C" one, dismissing all of the projects with almost 80% of votes counted. After the failed referendum, there was a political crisis of the Barcelona City Council which resulted with the resignation of two politicians from the local government team, and the linking of the two tram networks appeared to have stagnated. The succeeding local government, headed by Xavier Trias in 2011, dismissed
8924-487: Was installed as a commercial venture operating between the outer Melbourne suburb of Box Hill and the then tourist-oriented country town Doncaster from 1889 to 1896. Electric systems were also built in Adelaide , Ballarat , Bendigo , Brisbane , Fremantle , Geelong , Hobart , Kalgoorlie , Launceston , Leonora , Newcastle , Perth , and Sydney . By the 1970s, the only full tramway system remaining in Australia
9021-566: Was restarted in 1860, again using horses. It was worked by steam from 1877, and then, from 1929, by very large (106-seat) electric tramcars, until closure in 1960. The Swansea and Mumbles Railway was something of a one-off however, and no street tramway appeared in Britain until 1860 when one was built in Birkenhead by the American George Francis Train . Street railways developed in America before Europe, due to
9118-628: Was tested in San Francisco , in 1873. Part of its success is attributed to the development of an effective and reliable cable grip mechanism, to grab and release the moving cable without damage. The second city to operate cable trams was Dunedin , from 1881 to 1957. The most extensive cable system in the US was built in Chicago in stages between 1859 and 1892. New York City developed multiple cable car lines, that operated from 1883 to 1909. Los Angeles also had several cable car lines, including
9215-635: Was the Melbourne tram system. However, there were also a few single lines remaining elsewhere: the Glenelg tram line , connecting Adelaide to the beachside suburb of Glenelg , and tourist trams in the Victorian Goldfields cities of Bendigo and Ballarat. In recent years the Melbourne system, generally recognised as the largest urban tram network in the world, has been considerably modernised and expanded. The Adelaide line has been extended to
9312-411: Was the cable car, which was pulled along a fixed track by a moving steel cable, the cable usually running in a slot below the street level. The power to move the cable was normally provided at a "powerhouse" site a distance away from the actual vehicle. The London and Blackwall Railway , which opened for passengers in east London, England, in 1840 used such a system. The first practical cable car line
9409-878: Was widely used in London, Washington, D.C., and New York City, and the surface contact collection method, used in Wolverhampton (the Lorain system), Torquay and Hastings in the UK (the Dolter stud system), and in Bordeaux , France (the ground-level power supply system). The convenience and economy of electricity resulted in its rapid adoption once the technical problems of production and transmission of electricity were solved. Electric trams largely replaced animal power and other forms of motive power including cable and steam, in
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