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Trams and Trolleybuses
From the horse-drawn trams of the nineteenth century to the larger electric models of the early twentieth, this reliable form of public transport revolutionised town travel by making it affordable enough for working people to use. From the 1930s, the rise of the trolleybus, which also picked up power from overhead cables but ran without expensive tracks, looked set to supersede the tram – but ultimately, by the 1950s, both fell victim to motor buses and private cars. However, since the 1980s the environmental benefits of light rail have encouraged a growing comeback for trams on our crowded and polluted city streets. Using beautiful contemporary photographs, this is the fascinating story of the rise, fall and revival of this everyday, yet sometimes controversial, mode of urban transport.
93 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 22, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
June 10, 2019
Finally, a book that has more information than Wikipedia. The data is valuable. The pictures are nice. The text quality is very low. I would have loved to give it five stars.
> In the early 1880s the future route of tram mechanisation remained uncertain, but it seemed possible that harnessing the power of electricity for transport was a more likely way forward for the urban street railway than using steam. The German electrical engineer Werner von Siemens demonstrated the world’s first miniature electric railway to visitors attending a Berlin Trade Exhibition in 1879.
And there follows a description of the Siemens project. It was unusable, mostly because the battery technology of the time was execrable. Okay. What other shortcomings were there? Nothing. What advantages were to the Siemens proposal? I mean there should have been some or why else should have Siemens built the thing. Yet, the empty space is left to be filled by the wild imagination of the reader.
Anyway, just ignoring the missing data and working with the data provided by Green: if the batteries under the seats give out toxic fumes, how come "it seemed possible"?
Below that there is a picture and its caption says:
> Manchester developed the second largest electric tram system in the UK after London in the early 1900s, soon linking the city with every neighbouring town.
But there aren't any details of why Manchester chose the electric tram.
There are some accidental insights, such as this caption:
> A local in memoriam postcard for the steam trams of Accrington, Lancashire, introduced in 1884 and closed down in 1907 when the local authority built its own electric tram system.
which marks the toxicity of the government intervention. In Accrington there is no extra offer from the town corporation. Instead the people get the same service, and the public is left with the bill.
Or, taking the first example, how the first builder of an electric tram is still one of the few makes in the World, a legacy of how governments can stunt development in any field. Yet Green can't articulate any idea. Green seems to only be able to stitch the data based on chronology, or, if needed, on keywords.
> In the early 1880s the future route of tram mechanisation remained uncertain, but it seemed possible that harnessing the power of electricity for transport was a more likely way forward for the urban street railway than using steam. The German electrical engineer Werner von Siemens demonstrated the world’s first miniature electric railway to visitors attending a Berlin Trade Exhibition in 1879.
And there follows a description of the Siemens project. It was unusable, mostly because the battery technology of the time was execrable. Okay. What other shortcomings were there? Nothing. What advantages were to the Siemens proposal? I mean there should have been some or why else should have Siemens built the thing. Yet, the empty space is left to be filled by the wild imagination of the reader.
Anyway, just ignoring the missing data and working with the data provided by Green: if the batteries under the seats give out toxic fumes, how come "it seemed possible"?
Below that there is a picture and its caption says:
> Manchester developed the second largest electric tram system in the UK after London in the early 1900s, soon linking the city with every neighbouring town.
But there aren't any details of why Manchester chose the electric tram.
There are some accidental insights, such as this caption:
> A local in memoriam postcard for the steam trams of Accrington, Lancashire, introduced in 1884 and closed down in 1907 when the local authority built its own electric tram system.
which marks the toxicity of the government intervention. In Accrington there is no extra offer from the town corporation. Instead the people get the same service, and the public is left with the bill.
Or, taking the first example, how the first builder of an electric tram is still one of the few makes in the World, a legacy of how governments can stunt development in any field. Yet Green can't articulate any idea. Green seems to only be able to stitch the data based on chronology, or, if needed, on keywords.
January 25, 2021
A nice little book covering the rise & fall, and to some extent rise again of Trams & Light Rail vehicles in the UK (although the book also touches on other countries' Light Rail systems as comparisons.)
Trams were once a familiar and numerous sight in many major cities across the UK (my own city used to have it's own Tramway network many moons ago, not covered in this book however. Now all that remains is a few rails still in situ and the former Tram depot, it's all very sad really...) before the rise and dominance of rail vehicles' worst enemy... the motor car!.
The book albeit short is very informative, detailing the early stages of trams - first pulled by Horses before numerous technological breakthroughs emerged (not all of them good or successful either.)
It was interesting reading about Trolleybuses (which I didn't even know were a thing in the UK) which were the final form of Trams in a way, before even they were outdone by Buses and other road vehicles.
The accompanying pictures are very nice, but the layout is not so nice in my opinion.
I thought that the addition of the list of Museums/Collections/Tramways still housing and operating Trams and Trolleybuses was a nice little touch, as their not as well documented or quite as well known as Railway Museums or Collections are.
All in all a great book, I'd recommend it to those interested in History, Historic vehicle enthusiasts and of course Tram/Trolley enthusiasts.
Trams were once a familiar and numerous sight in many major cities across the UK (my own city used to have it's own Tramway network many moons ago, not covered in this book however. Now all that remains is a few rails still in situ and the former Tram depot, it's all very sad really...) before the rise and dominance of rail vehicles' worst enemy... the motor car!.
The book albeit short is very informative, detailing the early stages of trams - first pulled by Horses before numerous technological breakthroughs emerged (not all of them good or successful either.)
It was interesting reading about Trolleybuses (which I didn't even know were a thing in the UK) which were the final form of Trams in a way, before even they were outdone by Buses and other road vehicles.
The accompanying pictures are very nice, but the layout is not so nice in my opinion.
I thought that the addition of the list of Museums/Collections/Tramways still housing and operating Trams and Trolleybuses was a nice little touch, as their not as well documented or quite as well known as Railway Museums or Collections are.
All in all a great book, I'd recommend it to those interested in History, Historic vehicle enthusiasts and of course Tram/Trolley enthusiasts.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews