The Fall and Rise of the Tram

A century ago the tram was used by people in cities and towns all around the British Isles. From London to Liverpool, Blackpool to Glasgow, the sound of steel on steel was a part of everyday life, but by the early sixties the vast majority had disappeared and the golden era of the tram seemed to be at an end.

Now a new generation of tramways has appeared, ensuring that this beautiful and efficient form of transport thrives once more.

This documentary traces the rise, fall, and rise again of the passenger street tram in Britain. It begins with the introduction of the horse tram by the American George Francis Train to Birkenhead in 1860, and then explores the story of the tram from horse, to steam, to electrified tramcar and the rapid growth of trams at the turn of the 20th century.

It charts the gradual demise of the first generation of trams after the Great War and their complete disappearance from the urban transport network in the 1960s, to their resurgence in the 1990s in Manchester. The film features the £100 million tramway system that opened in Blackpool in 2012.

Other highlights include:

00:00 Introduction
04:08 Oystermouth Passenger Tramway
05:54 Birkenhead Street Tramway
09:57 Douglas Bay Horse Tramway
15:08 Snaefell Mountain Railway
16:09 Great Orme Funicular Tramway
20:45 Blackpool Electric Tramway
22:35 Leeds Roundhay Park Tramway
24:34 Manx Electric Railway
29:10 Kingsway Tram Tunnel
32:23 World War I
33:43 Feltham Tram
35:42 Trolleybus
36:40 Political Pressures
37:06 Illuminated Trams
39:33 Tramway Closures
40:26 Walter Luff Balloon Cars
42:12 Tram Evolution & Abandonment
49:18 Crich Tram Museum & Preservation
53:49 Tram Modern Revival
55:08 London Tramlink
58:10 Nottingham Express Transit
58:38 Blackpool Bombardier Flexity 2

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