View source for Tram

{{Short description|Street-running rail transit}}
{{Redirect|Streetcar|other uses|Tram (disambiguation)|and|Streetcar (disambiguation)}}
{{Distinguish|trackless train}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2020}}
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{{multiple image
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| image1            = Muzeum MHD, tramvaje T3 8084 a 6149, zepředu.jpg
| image2            = Alstom Citadis 100 nr 800 Katowice.JPG
| image3            = 11 Cable Car on Powell St crop, SF, CA, jjron 25.03.2012.jpg
| image4            = Zurich tramwaj 2023-2416.jpg
| image5            = Tramlink - geograph.org.uk - 6742691.jpg
| footer            = From top, left to right: Several [[Tatra T3|Tatra T3s]], which, with over 14,000 units, is the most-produced type in history;<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-11-16 |title=60 years since iconic Tatra T3 tram began roaming streets |url=https://english.radio.cz/60-years-iconic-tatra-t3-tram-began-roaming-streets-8767147 |access-date=2025-01-08 |website=Radio Prague International |language=en}}</ref> an [[Alstom Citadis 100|Citadis 100]] of the [[Silesian Interurbans]]; a historic [[Cable car (railway)|Cable tram]] of the [[San Francisco cable car system]]; [[Zürich tram]] with [[multiple-unit train control]]; a Tram 2558 of the [[Tramlink]] road to [[West Croydon station|West Croydon]].}}

A '''tram''' (also known as a '''streetcar''' or '''trolley''' in Canada and the United States, or a '''Tramcar''') is an [[urban rail transit]] type in which [[Rolling stock|vehicles]], whether individual [[railcar]]s or [[multiple-unit]] [[train]]s, run on [[tramway track]]s on urban public streets; some include segments on segregated [[Right-of-way (property access)|right-of-way]].<ref>{{cite web |title=tram |url=https://www.thefreedictionary.com/tram |access-date=19 February 2018 |work=The Free Dictionary}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=tram |url=http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tram |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150409061036/http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tram |archive-date=9 April 2015 |publisher=[[Merriam Webster]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=1 January 2018 |title=Streetcars vs LRT |url=http://www.edmonton-radial-railway.ab.ca/learn/streetcarsversuslrt/ |access-date=17 June 2022 |website=Edmonton Radial Railway Society}}</ref> Trams are a variant of [[light rail]]<ref name="CED">Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014</ref><ref name="ORR">{{cite web|url=https://www.orr.gov.uk/about/who-we-work-with/railway-networks/light-rail-tramways|title=Light rail and tramways|access-date=2025-10-11|publisher=Office of Rail and Road}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.uitp.org/sites/default/files/cck-focus-papers-files/UITP_Statistic_Brief_4p-Light%20rail-Web.pdf |format=pdf |page=2 |title=Light rail in figures |publisher=UITP |access-date=2018-04-29 |archive-date=2016-03-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304185907/http://www.uitp.org/sites/default/files/cck-focus-papers-files/UITP_Statistic_Brief_4p-Light%20rail-Web.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> and are included within this broader category. However, they differ from it in their frequent integration into urban streets, lower traffic signal priority, coexistence with other vehicles, and lower capacity.<ref name="ORR"/> Their units are capable of forming [[Motor coach (rail)|motor coaches or motorcars]], which allows for the operation of longer trains.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://railway-news.com/skoda-group-produces-worlds-longest-tram-for-germany/|title=Škoda Group Produces World’s Longest Tram for Germany|date=2025-03-19|publisher=Rail-way News}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://scantv.al/english/scan-life/tramvaji-i-ri-i-gjermanise-thyen-rekordin-boteror-me-gjatesi-58-metra-i20184|title=Germany's new tram broke the world record with a length of 58 meters!|date=2024-12-01|publisher=Scan TV}}</ref>

Trams are usually lighter and shorter than [[Main line (railway)|main line]] and [[rapid transit]] trains. Most trams use electrical power, usually fed by a [[Pantograph (transport)|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 (rail)|freight]]. Tramlines or tram networks operated as [[public transport]] are called ''tramways'', or simply ''trams'' or ''streetcars'', including systems separated from other traffic. Some trams, known as [[tram-train]]s, 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 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 [[bus]]es led to decline of trams in early to mid 20th century. However, trams have seen resurgence since the 1980s.
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==Etymology and terminology==
{{Train topics}}
[[File:Go by Streetcar sign - Portland Oregon.jpg|thumb|A sign in [[Portland, Oregon|Portland]] that reads "go by streetcar". Trams are often called streetcars in North America.]]
The English terms ''tram'' and ''tramway'' are derived from the [[Scots language|Scots]] word {{lang|sco|tram}},<ref>{{cite web|url = https://dsl.ac.uk/entry/dost/tram_n_2 |title = tram, n.<sup>2</sup> |work = A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (up to 1700)|publisher = Dictionary of the Scots Language}}</ref> referring respectively to a type of truck ([[goods wagon]] or freight [[railroad car]]) used in [[coal mining|coal mines]] and the tracks on which they ran. The word ''tram'' probably derived from [[Middle Dutch|Middle Flemish]] {{lang |dum|trame}} ("beam, handle of a barrow, bar, rung"). The identical word {{lang|fr|trame}} with the meaning "crossbeam" is also used in the [[French language]]. Etymologists believe that the word ''tram'' refers to the wooden beams the railway tracks were initially made of before the railroad pioneers switched to the much more wear-resistant tracks made of iron and, later, steel.<ref>{{harvnb|Duden|2001|p=859}}</ref> The word ''tram-car'' is attested from 1873.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=tram |title=Online Etymology Dictionary |publisher=Etymonline.com |access-date=8 March 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150510061427/http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=tram |archive-date=10 May 2015}}</ref>

===Alternatives===
[[File:Boarding train at desert of maine.jpg|thumb|A trackless train is also called tram in U.S. English.]]
Although the terms ''tram'' and ''tramway'' have been adopted by many languages, they are not used universally in English; North Americans prefer ''streetcar'', ''trolley'', or ''trolleycar''. The term ''streetcar'' is first recorded in 1840, and originally referred to [[horsecar]]s.

The terms ''streetcar'' and ''trolley'' are often used interchangeably in the [[United States]], with ''trolley'' being the preferred term in the eastern US and ''streetcar'' in the western US. ''Streetcar'' is preferred in [[English Canada]], while ''tramway'' is preferred in [[Quebec]]. In parts of the United States, internally powered [[bus]]es made to resemble a streetcar are often referred to as "trolleys". To avoid further confusion with [[trolley bus]]es, the [[American Public Transportation Association]] (APTA) refers to them as "[[trolley-replica bus]]es". In the United States, the term ''tram'' has sometimes been used for rubber-tired [[trackless train]]s, which are unrelated to other kinds of trams.

A widely held belief holds the word trolley to derive from the ''troller'' (said to derive from the words ''traveler'' and ''roller''), a four-wheeled device that was dragged along dual overhead wires by a cable that connected the troller to the top of the car and collected electrical power from the [[overhead wire]]s;<ref>{{harvnb|Post|2007|p=43}}</ref> this [[portmanteau word|portmanteau derivation]] is, however, most likely [[folk etymology]]. "Trolley" and variants refer to the verb ''troll'', meaning "roll" and probably derived from [[Old French]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=trolley|title=Online Etymology Dictionary|work=etymonline.com|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150912101708/http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=trolley|archive-date=12 September 2015}}</ref> and cognate uses of the word were well established for handcarts and horse drayage, as well as for nautical uses.<ref>{{harvnb|Middleton|1967|p=60}}</ref>

The alternative North American term 'trolley' may strictly speaking be considered incorrect, as the term can also be applied to cable cars, or [[conduit car]]s that instead draw power from an underground supply. Conventional diesel [[bus|tourist buses]] decorated to look like streetcars are sometimes called ''trolleys'' in the US ([[tourist trolley]]). Furthering confusion, the term ''tram'' has instead been applied to open-sided, low-speed [[trackless train|segmented vehicles on rubber tires]] generally used to ferry tourists short distances, for example on the [[Universal Studios Backlot Tour|Universal Studios backlot tour]] and, in many countries, as tourist transport to major destinations. The term may also apply to an aerial ropeway, e.g. the [[Roosevelt Island Tramway]].

===Trolleybus===
Although the use of the term ''trolley'' for tram was not adopted in Europe, the term was later associated with the ''[[trolleybus]]'', a rubber-tired vehicle running on hard pavement, which draws its power from pairs of overhead wires. These electric buses, which use twin trolley poles, are also called ''trackless trolleys'' (particularly in the northeastern US), or sometimes simply ''trolleys'' (in the UK, as well as the [[Pacific Northwest]], including [[Seattle]], and [[Vancouver]]).

==History==
{{Main|History of trams}}{{Duplication|date=July 2024|dupe=History of trams|discuss=Talk:Tram#Article_Division?|section}}

===Creation===
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 [[wagonway]]s that were used in central Europe to transport [[mine cart]]s with unflanged wheels since the 1500s, and the paved limestone trackways designed by the Romans for heavy horse and ox-drawn transportation. By the 1700s, paved [[plateway]]s with [[cast iron]] rails were introduced in England for transporting coal, stone or iron ore from the mines to the urban factories and docks.

===Horse-drawn===
{{Main|Horsecar}}
[[File:Horsetrain 1870.jpg|thumb|A horse-drawn tram operated by [[Swansea and Mumbles Railway]], 1870. Established in 1804, the railway service was the world's first.]]
[[File:Milano inauguraz tram Monza.jpg|thumb|Inauguration of the [[Milan]]–[[Monza]] tramway, 1876.]]
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.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.welshwales.co.uk/mumbles_railway_swansea.htm |title=The Swansea and Mumbles Railway – the world's first railway service |publisher=Welshwales.co.uk |access-date=8 March 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070626140319/http://www.welshwales.co.uk/mumbles_railway_swansea.htm |archive-date=26 June 2007}}</ref> The service closed in 1827, but was restarted in 1860, again using horses.{{sfn|Dunbar|1967|p=15}} It was worked by steam from 1877, and then, from 1929, by very large (106-seat) electric tramcars, until closure in 1960.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Turner |first=Robin |date=26 March 2015 |title=Could the Mumbles Railway make a come back? |url=http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/could-mumbles-train-make-come-8929957 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220813192046/https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/could-mumbles-train-make-come-8929957 |archive-date=13 August 2022 |access-date=13 August 2022 |website=[[Media Wales#WalesOnline|WalesOnline]] |language=en}}</ref> 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 Corporation Tramways|Birkenhead]] by the American [[George Francis Train]].{{sfn|Dunbar|1967|p=23}}

Street railways developed in America before Europe, due to the poor [[Road surface|paving]] of the streets in American cities which made them unsuitable for [[horsebus]]es, 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 the Irish coach builder [[John Stephenson (coachbuilder)|John Stephenson]], in New York City which began service in the year 1832.{{sfn|Dunbar|1967|pp=16–17}}<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.midcontinent.org/rollingstock/builders/stephenson1.htm |title=The John Stephenson Car Co |access-date=25 February 2009 |publisher=[[Mid-Continent Railway Museum]] }}</ref> The New York and Harlem Railroad's [[Fourth Avenue Line (Manhattan surface)|Fourth Avenue Line]] ran along the [[Bowery]] and [[Fourth Avenue (Manhattan)|Fourth Avenue]] in New York City. It was followed in 1835 by the [[New Orleans and Carrollton Railroad]] in [[New Orleans, Louisiana]],{{sfn|Dunbar|1967|p=18}} which still operates as the [[St. Charles Streetcar Line]]. Other American cities did not follow until the 1850s, after which the "animal railway" became an increasingly common feature in the larger towns.{{sfn|Dunbar|1967|p=18}}

<!-- The first tram in Continental Europe opened in France in 1839 between [[Montbrison, Loire|Montbrison]] and [[Montrond-les-Bains|Montrond]], on the streets inside the towns, and on the roadside outside town. It had permission for steam traction, but was entirely run with horse traction. In 1848, it was closed down after repeated economic failure..........No reference given for this claim, and it is contradicted by many sources but please unhide this if a suitable reference is found --> 
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.{{sfn|Dunbar|1967|p=21}} The tram was developed in numerous cities of Europe (some of the most extensive systems were found in Berlin, [[Budapest]], [[Birmingham Corporation Tramways|Birmingham]], [[Saint Petersburg]], [[Lisbon]], [[London County Council Tramways|London]], [[Manchester Corporation Tramways|Manchester]], [[Tramways in Paris#History|Paris]], [[Trams in Kyiv|Kyiv]]).
The first tram in South America opened in 1858 in [[List of town tramway systems in Chile|Santiago, Chile]]. The first trams in Australia opened in 1860 in [[Trams in Sydney|Sydney]]. Africa's first tram service started in [[Trams in Alexandria|Alexandria]] on 8 January 1863. The first trams in Asia opened in 1869 in [[Trams in Asia|Batavia (Jakarta), Netherlands East Indies (Indonesia)]].

Limitations of horsecars included 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 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 [[Farmworker|potato pickers]]".<ref>{{cite news |title=Near and far |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0001634/19050823/112/0006 |access-date=11 November 2021 |work=Newcastle Daily Chronicle |agency=British Newspaper Archive |url-access=subscription |date=23 August 1905 |page=6 col.5}}</ref>
[[File:The last of the Horse Drawn Carriages.JPG|thumb|Horse-drawn trams continued to be used in [[New York City]] until 1917.]]
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 the [[Bleecker Street Line]] until its closure in 1917.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cable-car-guy.com/html/ccmiscnpart.html#nylasthc|title=The Cable Car Home Page – Miscellaneous Newspaper Articles|website=www.cable-car-guy.com}}</ref> [[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.<ref name="encyclopediaofarkansas">{{cite web |url=http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=3727 |title=Sulphur Rock Street Car |website=Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture |access-date=23 December 2008}}</ref> The last mule tram service in [[Mexico City]] ended in 1932, and a mule tram in [[Celaya, Mexico]], survived until 1954.<ref name="morrison_celaya">{{cite web |url=http://www.tramz.com/mx/ce/ce.html |title=The Indomitable Tramways of Celaya |first=Allen |last=Morrison |access-date=22 December 2008}}</ref> The last horse-drawn tram to be withdrawn from public service in 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 the 1894-built [[Victor Harbor Horse Drawn Tram|horse tram]] at [[Victor Harbor, South Australia|Victor Harbor]] in [[South Australia]]. New horse-drawn systems have been established at the [[Hokkaido]] Museum in Japan and also in [[Disneyland]]. A horse-tram route in [[Poland|Polish]] [[gmina Mrozy]], first built in 1902, was reopened in 2012.

===Steam===
{{Main|Tram engine|Steam dummy}}
[[File:Bruehl Feuriger Elias.jpg|thumb|left|A steam [[tram engine]] from the [[Cologne Stadtbahn|Cologne-Bonn Railway]], pulling a train through [[Brühl (Rhineland)|Brühl]] marketplace, c. 1900]]
The first mechanical trams were powered by [[steam engine|steam]].<ref>{{cite web |title=History of trams, light rail |url=https://bathtrams.uk/history-of-trams/ |website=Bath & Bristol Trams |date=19 February 2017 |access-date=2 January 2021}}</ref> Generally, there were two types of steam tram. The first and most common had a small [[steam locomotive]] 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),<ref name="Muenchen1964">{{cite news| url = http://www.tram-muenchen.de/geschichte/chronik-vor1964.html| title = 1876 – 1964 (Überblick)| archive-url = https://archive.today/20110224053241/http://www.tram-muenchen.de/geschichte/chronik-vor1964.html| archive-date = 24 February 2011| access-date = 8 March 2015| url-status = dead}}</ref> [[Mohamedali Tramways Company|British India]] (from 1885) and the Dublin & Blessington Steam Tramway (from 1888) in Ireland. Steam tramways also were used on the suburban tramway lines around [[Milan]] and [[Padua]]; the last ''Gamba de Legn'' ("Peg-Leg") tramway ran on the Milan-[[Magenta, Lombardy|Magenta]]-Castano Primo route in late 1957.<ref name="Milan1957">{{cite news| url = http://www.ilgiornale.it/news/cinquant-anni-fa-milano-diceva-addio-gamba-de-legn.html| title = Cinquant'anni fa Milano diceva addio al "Gamba de legn"| access-date = 10 February 2019}}</ref>

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 [[Trams in Rockhampton|Rockhampton]], in 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 the engines from emitting visible smoke or steam. Usually the engines used [[coke (fuel)|coke]] rather than coal as fuel to avoid emitting smoke; [[Condensing steam locomotive|condensers]] or [[Superheater|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.

===Cable-hauled===
{{Main|Cable car (railway)}}
[[File:Minories stationLBR.jpg|thumb|Winding drums of the [[London and Blackwall Railway|London and Blackwall]] cable-operated railway]]
Another motive system for trams was the cable car, which was pulled along a [[rail track|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.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Robertson|first=Andrew|date=March 1848|title=Blackwall Railway Machinery|journal=The Civil Engineer and Architect's Journal|publisher=Wiley & Putnam|location=New York|volume=11}}</ref>

The first practical cable car line was tested in [[San Francisco cable car system|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 cable tramway system|Dunedin]], from 1881 to 1957.<ref>{{cite web |title=Dunedin Cable Car |url=http://www.dunedincablecars.co.nz/history.html |website=www.dunedincablecars.co.nz |publisher=Dunedin Cable Car |access-date=2 January 2021}}</ref>

The most extensive cable system in the US was built in [[Cable cars in Chicago|Chicago]] in stages between 1859 and 1892. New York City developed multiple cable car lines, that operated from 1883 to 1909.<ref>{{harvnb|Young|Meyers|2016|page=179}}</ref> Los Angeles also had several cable car lines, including the Second Street Cable Railroad, which operated from 1885 to 1889,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Second Street Cable Railroad (1885) |url=https://www.erha.org/sscr.htm |access-date=December 19, 2024 |website=erha.org}}</ref> and the Temple Street Cable Railway, which operated from 1886 to 1898.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Temple Street Cable Railway (1886) |url=https://www.erha.org/tscr.htm |access-date=December 19, 2024 |website=erha.org}}</ref>
[[File:Melbourne’s first cable tram.jpg|thumb|The first [[Melbourne cable tramway system|cable car service in Melbourne]], 1885. Melbourne operated one of the largest cable car networks in the world.]]
From 1885 to 1940, the city of [[Melbourne cable tramway system|Melbourne]], Victoria, Australia operated one of the largest cable systems in the world, at its peak running 592 trams on {{convert|75|km|mi}} of track. There were also two isolated cable lines in [[Sydney]], New South Wales, Australia; the North Sydney line from 1886 to 1900, and the King Street line from 1892 to 1905.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Melbourne Tram Museum: Melbourne Cable Tramways |url=https://www.trammuseum.org.au/papers/macmeikan/macmeikan5.htm |access-date=2025-10-15 |website=www.trammuseum.org.au}}</ref>

In [[Dresden]], Germany, in 1901 an elevated [[suspension railway|suspended]] cable car following the ''Eugen Langen one-railed floating tram system'' started operating. [[Highgate Hill Cable Tramway|Cable cars]] operated on Highgate Hill in North London and [[Kennington]] to [[Brixton]] Hill in South London.{{when|date=March 2013}} They also worked around "Upper Douglas" in the [[Isle of Man]] from 1897 to 1929 (cable car 72/73 is the sole survivor of the fleet).<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-05-09 |title=120 years in service: Dresden's historic suspension railway |url=https://www.urban-transport-magazine.com/en/120-years-in-service-dresdens-historic-suspension-railway/ |access-date=2025-10-15 |website=Urban Transport Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref>

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.<ref>{{Cite web |title=1902: il tram di Opicina {{!}} Trieste Trasporti |url=https://www.triestetrasporti.it/index.php/it/storie-bianco-nero/1902-il-tram |access-date=2025-10-15 |website=www.triestetrasporti.it}}</ref>

Cable cars suffered from high [[infrastructure]] costs, since an expensive system of [[Wire rope|cables]], [[pulley]]s, [[stationary engine]]s 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 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, 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.{{citation needed|date = August 2024}}
[[File:San Francisco Cable Car MC.jpg|thumb|The [[San Francisco cable car system|San Francisco cable car]]'s effectiveness on hills partially explains its continued use.]]
Cable cars remained especially effective in hilly cities, since their nondriven wheels did not [[rail adhesion|lose traction]] as they climbed or descended a steep hill. The moving cable pulled 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 brake]]s, 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.{{citation needed|date = August 2024}}

The [[San Francisco cable car system|San Francisco cable cars]], though significantly reduced in number, continue to provide regular transportation service, in addition to being 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.{{citation needed|date = August 2024}}

===Internal combustion===
[[File:Bensinmotorvagn. Trafikerade linjen 19, Karlaplan - Frihamnen 1924 - 1929.JPG|thumb|The only petrol-driven tram of [[Stockholms Spårvägar (1915)|Stockholms Spårvägar]], on line 19, in the 1920s]]
[[Hastings]] and some other tramways, for example [[Stockholms Spårvägar (1915)|Stockholms Spårvägar]] in Sweden and some lines in [[Karachi]], used [[Petrol engine|petrol]] trams. [[Galveston Island Trolley]] in Texas operated [[Galveston Island Trolley|diesel trams]] due to the city's hurricane-prone location, which would have resulted in frequent damage to an electrical supply system. Although [[Portland, Victoria]] promotes its [[Portland Cable Tram|tourist tram]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://portlandcabletrams.com.au/ |title=Portland Cable Tram website|website=portlandcabletrams.com.au|access-date=17 March 2021}}</ref> as being a cable car it actually operates using a diesel engine. 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 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, Victoria|Alphington]] and [[Clifton Hill, Victoria|Clifton Hill]] in the northern suburbs of [[Melbourne]], Australia (1886–1888); in Berlin and [[Dresden]], Germany; in [[Estonia]] (1921–1951); between Hirschberg and Hermsdorf, Germany, from 1897 (now [[Jelenia Góra]], [[Jelenia Góra|Cieplice]], and [[Sobieszów]] in Poland); and in the UK at [[Lytham St Annes]], [[Trafford Park]], Manchester (1897–1908) and [[Neath Corporation Tramways|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.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.timetable.org.au/|title=Australian Timetable Association |publisher=austta.org.au |date=10 August 2012 |access-date=8 December 2012}}</ref><ref name="Ceti">{{cite news |url=http://www.ceti.pl/js29a/ciepl/en,ecal.html |title=Cieplice lšskie Zdrój is one of the best known Silesian towns |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060929211328/http://www.ceti.pl/js29a/ciepl/en%2Cecal.html |archive-date=29 September 2006 |access-date=8 March 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

[[File:First electric tram- Siemens 1881 in Lichterfelde.jpg|thumb|[[Gross-Lichterfelde Tramway|Gross-Lichterfelde Tram]] in [[Berlin]] in 1882. First lacking [[overhead wire]]s, it became the first tram with those in 1883.]]

===Electric===
{{main|List of tram systems by gauge and electrification}}
The world's first electric tram line operated in [[Sestroretsk]] near [[Saint Petersburg]] invented and tested by inventor [[Fyodor Pirotsky]] in 1875.<ref>{{harvnb|Pyrgidis|2016|p=156}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Petrova|2003|p=12}}</ref> Later, using a similar technology, Pirotsky put into service the first public electric tramway in St. Petersburg, which operated only during September 1880.<ref name="guarnieri 1">{{Cite journal|last=Guarnieri|first=M.|year=2020|title=Electric tramways of the 19th century|journal=IEEE Industrial Electronics Magazine|volume=14|issue=1|pages=71–77|doi=10.1109/MIE.2020.2966810|bibcode=2020IIEM...14a..71G |hdl=11577/3340486 |s2cid=214624057|hdl-access=free}}</ref>
The [[Siemens locomotive of 1879|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 (Berlin)|Lichterfelde]] near Berlin in Germany, which opened in 1881. It 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 line|overhead wire]] being installed in 1883.<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=Popular Mechanics|author=Hearst Magazines|title=Popular Mechanics|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wN4DAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA750|date=May 1929|publisher=Hearst Magazines|page=750}}</ref>

[[File:Blackpool + zoo 1979 to 1980 (32963118752).jpg|thumb|Between 1962 and 1992 [[Blackpool]] had the only urban tramway in the UK.]]
In Britain, [[Volk's Electric Railway]] was opened in 1883 in Brighton. This two kilometer line along the seafront, [[Track gauge conversion|re-gauged]] to {{Track gauge|2ft8.5in|lk=on}} in 1884, remains in service as 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 (transport)|pantograph]] [[current collector]]s. The [[Blackpool Tramway]] was opened in Blackpool, UK on 29 September 1885 using conduit collection along Blackpool Promenade. This system is still in operation in modernised form.<ref>{{cite web | title = Blackpool Trams | publisher = Fylde Tramway Society | date = 3 September 2004 | url = http://www.tramway.com/fts/fts_bct.html | access-date = 19 November 2010 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110717090431/http://www.tramway.com/fts/fts_bct.html | archive-date = 17 July 2011}}</ref>

The earliest tram system in Canada was built by [[John Joseph Wright (engineer)|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|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 the [[Emile Lamm|Lamm]] fireless engines then propelling the [[St. Charles Streetcar Line]] 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.<ref name="mileston">{{cite web|last=American Public Transportation Association |title=Milestones in U.S. Public Transportation History |url=http://apta.com/research/stats/history/mileston.cfm |access-date=20 March 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090303212350/http://apta.com/research/stats/history/mileston.cfm |archive-date=3 March 2009 }}</ref> 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.<ref name="mileston" />

[[File:Zuerich-vbz-tram-2-swpsigbbc-880755.jpg|thumb|[[Trams in Zürich|Zürich tram]] [[multiple-unit train]]]]
In 1888, 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 [[rapid transit|subway]] train. Following the improvement of an overhead "trolley" system on streetcars for collecting electricity from [[overhead wire]]s by Sprague, electric tram systems were rapidly adopted across the world.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Robbins |first=Michael |date=2000 |title=The Early Years of Electric Traction: Invention, Development, Exploitation |url=http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.7227/TJTH.21.1.6 |journal=The Journal of Transport History |language=en |volume=21 |issue=1 |pages=92–101 |doi=10.7227/TJTH.21.1.6 |s2cid=109210400 |issn=0022-5266|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

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.<ref name="guarnieri 1" /> 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 shock]]s to people and animals crossing the tracks.<ref>{{cite web|last = Wood|first = E. Thomas|title = Nashville now and then: From here to there|url = http://www.nashvillepost.com/news/2007/4/27/nashville_now_and_then_from_here_to_there|access-date = 7 August 2007|url-status = live|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070928011259/http://www.nashvillepost.com/news/2007/4/27/nashville_now_and_then_from_here_to_there|archive-date = 28 September 2007}}</ref> 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 the winter when [[hydroelectricity]] was not available. It continued in service in its original form into the 1950s.{{citation needed|date = February 2018}}

[[Sidney Howe Short]] designed and produced the first [[electric motor]] that operated a streetcar without gears. The motor had its [[armature (electrical engineering)|armature]] direct-connected to the [[streetcar]]'s [[axle]] for the driving force.{{sfn|Martin|1924|pages=122–123}}{{sfn|Hammond|2011|p=142}}<ref name="FtWorth1894">{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title= Professor Sidney Howe Short experiments with motors |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/9450242// | work=Fort Worth Daily Gazette |location=Fort Worth, Texas |date= 11 November 1894 |via=[[Newspapers.com]] {{open access}} }}</ref><ref name="Grace">{{cite web |url=http://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Sidney_Howe_Short |title=Sidney Howe Short |work=Grace's Guide to British Industrial History |publisher=Grace's Guide Ltd. |access-date=10 March 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170312062123/http://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Sidney_Howe_Short |archive-date=12 March 2017}}</ref><ref name="Topeka1894">{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title= Street Railways his hobby |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/9450668// | work=[[Topeka Daily Capital]] |location=Topeka, Kansas |date=14 November 1894 |via=[[newspapers.com]] {{open access}}}}</ref> Short pioneered "use of a conduit system of concealed feed" thereby eliminating the necessity of [[Overhead line|overhead wire]] and a [[trolley pole]] for street cars and railways.{{sfn|Malone|1928|p=128}}{{sfn|Martin|1924|pages=122–123}}{{sfn|Hammond|2011|p=142}} 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.{{sfn|Martin|1924|pages=122–123}}{{sfn|Hammond|2011|p=142}}
[[File:09870-Budapest-1908-Kettenbrücke mit Straßenbahn-Brück & Sohn Kunstverlag.jpg|thumb|A [[Trams in Budapest|tram in Budapest]] in 1908. The city established a network of electric trams in 1894.]]
Electric tramways spread to many European cities in the 1890s, such as:
* Prague, Bohemia (then in the Austro-Hungarian Empire), in 1891;
*[[Trams in Kyiv|Kyiv, Ukraine]], in 1892;
* Dresden, Germany; Lyon, France; and Milan and Genoa, Italy, [[Manx Electric Railway|Douglas, Isle of Man]] in 1893;
* Rome, Italy: Plauen, Germany; Bucharest, Romania;<ref>{{Cite web |title=STB SA {{!}} Societatea de Transport Bucuresti STB SA |url=https://www.stbsa.ro/eng/istoric_eng |access-date=20 March 2024 |website=www.stbsa.ro}}</ref> [[Trams in Lviv|Lviv, Ukraine]]; Belgrade, Serbia in 1894;
* Bristol, United Kingdom; and Munich, Germany in 1895;
* Bilbao, Spain, in 1896;
* Copenhagen, Denmark; and Vienna, Austria, in 1897<ref>{{Cite web |title=Wiener Linien - Tram Travels |url=https://tramtravels.com/company/wiener-linien |access-date=2025-09-14 |website=tramtravels.com |date=11 June 1999 }}</ref>;
* Florence and Turin, Italy, in 1898;
* Helsinki, Finland; and Madrid and Barcelona, Spain, [[Glasgow Corporation Tramways|Glasgow, Scotland]],in 1899.<ref name="guarnieri 1" /><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.glasgowlive.co.uk/news/history/looking-back-glasgows-first-electric-25905125|title=Looking back at Glasgow's first electric tram that the city welcomed 124 years ago today|publication-date=5 January 2023|access-date=1 July 2025|publisher=Glasgow Live}}</ref>

[[Sarajevo]] built a citywide system of electric trams in 1895.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sarajevo.ba/en/stream.php?kat=79 |title=Sarajevo Official Web Site : Sarajevo through history |publisher=Sarajevo.ba |date=29 June 1914 |access-date=8 March 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141023042858/http://www.sarajevo.ba/en/stream.php?kat=79 |archive-date=23 October 2014}}</ref> [[Budapesti Közlekedési Zrt.|Budapest]] established [[Trams in Budapest|its tramway system]] in 1887, and its ring line has grown to be the busiest tram line in Europe, with a tram running once per minute at rush hour. [[Bucharest]] and [[Belgrade]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.beograd.org.rs/cms/view.php?id=201239 |title=City of Belgrade – Important Years in City History |publisher=Beograd.org.rs |date=5 October 2000 |access-date=8 March 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150111233244/http://www.beograd.org.rs/cms/view.php?id=201239 |archive-date=11 January 2015}}</ref> ran a regular service from 1894.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://hampage.hu/trams/e_index.html |title=Trams of Hungary and much more |publisher=Hampage.hu |access-date=8 March 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150302131306/http://hampage.hu/trams/e_index.html |archive-date=2 March 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ratb.ro/index.php?page=meniu&id_rubrica_meniu=13 |title=RATB – Regia Autonoma de Transport Bucureşti |publisher=Ratb.ro |access-date=8 March 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150318064322/http://www.ratb.ro/index.php?page=meniu&id_rubrica_meniu=13 |archive-date=18 March 2015}}</ref> [[Ljubljana]] introduced [[Ljubljana tram system|its tram system]] in 1901&nbsp;– it closed in 1958.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jhl.si/en/lpp/?m=51&k=1605 |title=Historical Highlights |publisher=Ljubljanski potniški promet [Ljubljana Passenger Transport] |access-date=25 April 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120304092909/http://www.jhl.si/en/lpp/?m=51&k=1605 |archive-date=4 March 2012 }}</ref> [[Oslo]] had the first tramway in [[Scandinavia]], starting operation on 2 March 1894.<ref>Fasting, Kåre: ''Sporveier i Oslo gjennom 100 år''. AS Oslo Sporveier, Oslo 1975, pp. 49–50.</ref>

The first electric tramway in Australia was a Sprague system demonstrated at the 1888 [[Melbourne Centennial Exhibition]] in [[Trams in Melbourne|Melbourne]]; afterwards, this was installed as a commercial venture operating between the outer Melbourne suburb of [[Box Hill, Victoria|Box Hill]] and the then tourist-oriented country town [[Doncaster, Victoria|Doncaster]] from 1889 to 1896.<ref>{{harvnb|Green|1989}}{{page needed|date=June 2024}}</ref> Electric systems were also built in [[Trams in Adelaide|Adelaide]], [[Trams in Ballarat|Ballarat]], [[Trams in Bendigo|Bendigo]], [[Trams in Brisbane|Brisbane]], [[Trams in Fremantle|Fremantle]], [[Trams in Geelong|Geelong]], [[Trams in Hobart|Hobart]], [[Trams in Kalgoorlie|Kalgoorlie]], [[Trams in Launceston|Launceston]], [[Leonora, Western Australia|Leonora]], [[Trams in Newcastle, New South Wales|Newcastle]], [[Trams in Perth|Perth]], and [[Trams in Sydney|Sydney]].

[[File:Art work of Toledo, Ohio - DPLA - 0a107364e8d8eb430ebc183d28c46463 (page 31) (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|Streetcar in [[Toledo, Ohio]], 1895]]
By the 1970s, the only full tramway system remaining in Australia 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, South Australia|Glenelg]], and tourist trams in the Victorian [[Goldfields region of Victoria|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.<ref>[https://www.railexpress.com.au/innovation-in-the-worlds-largest-tram-network/ Innovation in the world's largest tram network] ''Rail Express'' 5 May 2020</ref> The Adelaide line has been extended to the Entertainment Centre, and work is progressing on further extensions.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://dpti.sa.gov.au/infrastructure/public_transport_projects/city_tram_extension|title=City Tram Extension|first=Infrastructure|last=Division|website=dpti.sa.gov.au|access-date=22 July 2019}}</ref> [[Light rail in Sydney|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 [[Light rail in Canberra|Canberra light rail]] opened on 20 April 2019.<ref>[https://transportnsw.info/news/2019/light-rail-in-newcastle-opening-from-monday-18-february Light rail in Newcastle opening from Monday 18 February] Transport for NSW 3 February 2019</ref> This is the first time that there have been trams in Canberra, even though [[Walter Burley Griffin]]'s 1914–1920 plans for the capital then in the planning stage did propose a Canberra tram system.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.actlightrail.info/p/routes-for-light-rail.html|title=Routes for Light Rail|access-date=22 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190402162522/https://www.actlightrail.info/p/routes-for-light-rail.html|archive-date=2 April 2019|url-status=dead}}</ref>
[[File:Ventura County Railway Locomotive No. 2 and Pacific Electric No. 498 at the Orange Empire Railway Museum.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Southern California Railway Museum]] in [[Perris, California|Perris]] has the largest collection of [[Pacific Electric Railway]] streetcars (known as the Red Cars).]]

In Japan, the Kyoto Electric railroad was the first tram system, starting operation in 1895.<ref>[http://www.city.kyoto.jp/koho/eng/historical/first/04.html Kyoto Tram from Kyoto City Web]. Retrieved 12 February 2009.</ref> By 1932, the network had grown to 82 railway companies in 65 cities, with a total network length of {{convert|1479|km|mi|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite newsletter |url=http://www.japanfs.org/en/mailmagazine/newsletter/pages/027840.html |title=The Rebirth of Trams |magazine=JFS Newsletter |date=December 2007 |access-date=12 February 2009}}</ref> By the 1960s the tram had generally died out in Japan.<ref>{{harvnb|Freedman|2011|p=6}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.japanfs.org/en/news/archives/news_id027840.html|title=The Rebirth of Trams: The Promise of Light Railway Transit (LRT)|access-date=19 April 2020}}</ref>

Two rare but significant alternatives were [[conduit current collection]], which was widely used in London, Washington, D.C., and New York City, and the [[Stud contact system|surface contact collection]] method, used in [[Wolverhampton]] (the Lorain system), [[Torquay Tramways|Torquay]] and [[Hastings]] in the UK (the Dolter stud system), and in [[Tramway de Bordeaux|Bordeaux]], France (the [[ground-level power supply]] system). {{citation needed|date = February 2018}}

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 the late 19th and early 20th centuries.{{citation needed|date = February 2018}}

[[File:SOCIMI Colosseo.jpg|thumb|right|Tram line 3 [[Socimi]] in front of [[Colosseum]] in [[Rome]].]]
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 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 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 the tram, the water providing a conducting bridge between the tram and the rails.{{citation needed|date = February 2018}} With improved technology, this ceased to be a 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<ref>[http://www.thetransportpolitic.wordpress.com/2009/01/22/bombardier-presents-new-catenary-free-streetcar/ Wordpress.com] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090129082418/http://thetransportpolitic.wordpress.com/2009/01/22/bombardier-presents-new-catenary-free-streetcar/ |date=29 January 2009 }}, "The transport politic"</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.spanishrailwaysnews.com/noticias.asp?not=30|title = Caf's ACR for catenary-free trams}}</ref>

===Battery===
[[File:Recharge d'un tram à accumulateur TPDS à Pont de Puteaux.jpg|thumb|Recharging battery-powered trams of {{ill|Paris and Seine Tramway Company|fr|Compagnie des tramways de Paris et du département de la Seine|vertical-align=sup}}, Paris, late 1890s.]]
As early as 1834, [[Thomas Davenport (inventor)|Thomas Davenport]], 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.<ref>{{harvnb|Nye|1992|p=86}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://chem.ch.huji.ac.il/history/davenport.html |title=Thomas Davenport |publisher=the Hebrew University of Jerusalem |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081016141835/http://chem.ch.huji.ac.il/history/davenport.html |archive-date=16 October 2008|access-date=14 February 2009}}</ref>

Attempts to use [[Lead-acid battery|batteries]] as a source of electricity were made from the 1880s and 1890s, with unsuccessful trials conducted in among other places [[Trams in Bendigo|Bendigo]] and [[Trams in Adelaide|Adelaide]] in Australia, and for about 14 years as [[The Hague]] ''accutram'' of [[HTM Personenvervoer|HTM]] in 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 [[Trams in Nanjing|Nanjing battery Tram line]] and has been running since 2014.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/urban/single-view/view/battery-trams-running-in-nanjing.html?sword_list%255B%255D=nanjing&sword_list%255B%255D=tram&no_cache=1|title=Battery trams running in Nanjing|last=UK|first=DVV Media|website=Railway Gazette|access-date=2 June 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180114232814/http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/urban/single-view/view/battery-trams-running-in-nanjing.html?sword_list%255B%255D=nanjing&sword_list%255B%255D=tram&no_cache=1|archive-date=14 January 2018}}</ref> In 2019, the [[West Midlands Metro]] in [[Birmingham]], England adopted battery-powered trams on sections through the city centre close to [[Listed building|Grade I listed]] [[Birmingham Town Hall]].

===Compressed air===
Paris and Berne (Switzerland) operated trams that were powered by [[Pneumatics|compressed air]] using the [[Mekarski system]].<ref>{{cite news |title=The Mekarski Compressed Air Tramway at Berne, Switzerland |work=Engineering News & American Railway Journal|date=20 April 1893 |volume=34|page=380|location=New York}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Compressed Air as a Street Car Motor |work=[[Scientific American]] |date=5 August 1876 |page=82}}</ref>
Trials on street tramways in Britain, including by the [[London County Council Tramways#Acquisition of tramways|North Metropolitan Tramway Company]] between Kings Cross and Holloway, London (1883), achieved acceptable results but were found not to be economic because of the combined coal consumption of the stationary compressor and the onboard steam boiler.<ref>{{cite news |title=Compressed Air on Tramways |work=[[The Star (1788)|The Star (London)]] |date=7 July 1883 |page=3}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Compressed Air for Street Car Motors |work=The Street Railway Journal |issue=10 |volume=2|date=August 1886 |location=Chicago |page=384}}</ref>

===Hybrid system===
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 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.

===Modern development===
In the mid-20th century many tram systems were disbanded, replaced by buses, [[trolleybus]]es, automobiles or [[rapid transit]]. The [[General Motors streetcar conspiracy]] 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 tram]]s with features such as [[regenerative braking]].

In March 2015, [[CSR Corporation Limited|China South Rail Corporation]] (CSR) demonstrated 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.<ref>{{cite web |date=21 March 2015 |title=China Presents the World's First Hydrogen-Fueled Tram |work=Yibada News |url=http://en.yibada.com/articles/21142/20150321/china-worlds-first-hydrogen-fueled-tram.htm# |last1=Salvacion |first1=Manny }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=24 March 2015 |title=China Develops World's First Hydrogen-Powered Tram |url=http://www.iflscience.com/technology/china-develops-worlds-first-hydrogen-powered-tram |work=IFLScience}}</ref>

==Design==
[[File:Milano tram piazza Cavour.jpg|thumb|[[Peter Witt streetcar|Peter Witt trams]] in [[Milan]], under the [[Porta Nuova, Gate of Milan|Porta Nuova medieval gate]]. This type is also used in [[San Francisco]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.milanotoday.it/blog/t_el-see-che-a-milan/tram-milano-san-francisco.html|title=Perché a San Francisco girano (anche) i tram di Milano|access-date=25 October 2024|language=it}}</ref>]]
{{Main|Types of trams}}

Trams have been used for two main purposes: for carrying passengers and for carrying cargo. There are several types of passenger tram:
{{col div|colwidth=23em}}
* [[Articulated vehicle|Articulated]]
* [[Types of trams#Cargo Tram|Cargo trams]]
* [[Double-decker tram|Double-Decker]]
* [[Types of trams#Drop-Centre (lowered central section)|Drop-centre (or drop-center)]]
* [[Types of trams#Single-ended and Double-ended Trams|Double ended and Single ended]] 
* [[Low-floor tram|Low-floor]]
* [[Rubber-tyred tram|Rubber-tired]]
* [[Tram-train]]
{{col div end}}

==Operation==
[[File:New Flexity LR vehicles approach Spadina and King, 2016 07 21 (15).JPG - panoramio.jpg|thumb|A dedicated right of way lane in [[Toronto]]. The tram on the left is about to enter a track operating in mixed traffic.]] 
There are two main types of tramways, 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 depends on the region. Though these two systems differ in their operation, their equipment is similar.

===Headway===
A typical headway for a tram or light rail line is 5 minutes during peak hours to 15 minutes off-peak. The optimal headway for bus, tram and metro is 3 to 6 minutes. The lowest recorded interval  is 1.5 minutes for the Hong Kong tramway. In the case where coupled articulated tram vehicles have a headway of 2 minutes, the capacity is about 10,000 passenger per hour per direction.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Pyrgidis |first1=Christos N. |title=Railway Transportation Systems: Design, Construction and Operation |date=31 October 2021 |publisher=CRC Press |isbn=978-1-000-46283-8 |page=139 |language=en}}</ref>

===Controls===
Trams were traditionally operated with separate levers for applying power and brakes. More modern vehicles use a [[locomotive]]-style controller which incorporate a [[dead man's switch]]. The success of the [[PCC streetcar]] had also seen trams use automobile-style [[Automobile pedal|foot controls]] allowing hands-free operation, particularly when the driver was responsible for fare collection.

===Power supply===
[[File:Tramway graz03.jpg|thumb|[[Overhead line]]s are used for most tram and light rail systems.]]
{{main|Railway electrification|Current collector|List of tram systems by gauge and electrification}}
Electric trams use various devices to collect power from [[overhead line]]s. The most common device is the [[Pantograph (transport)|pantograph]], while some older systems use [[trolley pole]]s or [[bow collector]]s. [[Ground-level power supply]] has become a more recent innovation. Another technology uses [[supercapacitor]]s; when an [[insulator (electricity)|insulator]] at a track switch cuts off power from the tram for a short distance along the line, the tram can use energy stored in a large [[capacitor]] to drive the tram past the gap in the power feed.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.facstaff.bucknell.edu/mastascu/elessonshtml/lc/capac1.htm |title=An Introduction To Capacitors |publisher=Facstaff.bucknell.edu |access-date=8 March 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150309023326/http://www.facstaff.bucknell.edu/mastascu/elessonshtml/LC/Capac1.htm |archive-date=9 March 2015}}</ref>
The old tram systems in London, [[Manhattan]] (New York City), and Washington, D.C., used live rails, like those on third-rail electrified railways, but in a conduit underneath the road, from which they drew power through a [[plough]]. It was called [[conduit current collection]]. Washington's was the last of these to close, in 1962. No commercial tramway uses this system anymore. More recently, an equivalent to these systems has been developed which allows for the safe installation of a [[third rail]] on city streets, known as surface current collection or [[ground-level power supply]]; the main example of this is the new tramway in [[Bordeaux]].

====Ground-level power supply====
[[File:Bordeaux-aps+isolation&joint.jpg|thumb|A section of [[Ground-level power supply|APS]] track in [[Bordeaux]] with powered and neutral sections.]]
{{Main|Ground-level power supply}}
A ground-level power supply system, also called surface current collection or {{Lang|fr|alimentation par le sol}} (APS), is an updated version of the original stud type system. APS uses a third rail placed between the running rails, divided electrically into eight-metre powered segments with three-metre neutral sections between. Each tram has two power collection skates, next to which are antennas that send radio signals to energize the power rail segments as the tram passes over them.

Older systems required mechanical switching systems which were susceptible to environmental problems. At any one time no more than two consecutive segments under the tram should be live. Wireless and solid state switching eliminate mechanical problems.

[[Alstom]] developed the system primarily to avoid intrusive power supply cables in the sensitive area of the old city of old [[Bordeaux]].<ref>[http://www.railway-technology.com/features/feature1096/ Allez le Tram from Railway-Technology.com]. Retrieved 15 February 2009.</ref>

===Routes===
[[File:Île-de-France - plan des tramways.png|thumb|A map of the tram routes of Paris.]]
Route patterns vary greatly among the world's tram systems, leading to different [[Transport topology|network topologies]]. 
* Most systems start by building up a strongly nucleated radial pattern of routes linking the city centre with residential suburbs and traffic hubs such as railway stations and hospitals, usually following main roads. Some of these, such as those in [[Hong Kong Tramways|Hong Kong]], [[Blackpool tramway|Blackpool]] and [[Bergen Light Rail|Bergen]], still essentially comprise a single route. Some suburbs may be served by loop lines connecting two adjacent radial roads. Some modern systems have started by reusing existing radial railway tracks, as in [[Nottingham Express Transit|Nottingham]] and [[West Midlands Metro|Birmingham]], sometimes [[Cross-city route|joining them together]] by a section of street track through the city centre, as in [[Manchester Metrolink|Manchester]]. Later developments often include tangential routes linking adjacent suburbs directly, or multiple routes through the town centre to avoid congestion (as in Manchester's [[Manchester Metrolink#Phase 2CC – Second City Crossing|Second City Crossing]]).
* Other new systems, particularly those in large cities which already have well-developed metro and suburban railway systems, such as [[Tramlink|London]] and [[Tramways in Île-de-France|Paris]], have started by building isolated suburban lines feeding into railway or metro stations. In Paris these have then been linked by [[Circle route|ring lines]].
* A third, weakly nucleated, route pattern may grow up where a number of nearby small settlements are linked, such as in the coal-mining areas served by [[BOGESTRA]] or the [[Silesian Interurbans]].
* A fourth starting point may be a loop in the city centre, sometimes called a [[downtown circulator]], as in [[Portland Streetcar|Portland]] or [[El Paso Streetcar|El Paso]].
* Occasionally a modern tramway system may grow from a preserved heritage line, as in [[Trams in Stockholm|Stockholm]].

The resulting route patterns are very different. Some have a rational structure, covering their catchment area as efficiently as possible, with new suburbs being planned with tramlines integral to their layout – such is the case in [[Trams in Amsterdam|Amsterdam]]. [[Bordeaux Tramway|Bordeaux]] and [[Montpellier tramway|Montpellier]] have built comprehensive networks, based on radial routes with numerous interconnections, within the last two decades. Some systems serve only parts of their cities, with [[Trams in Berlin|Berlin]] being the prime example, as trams survived the city's political division only in the Eastern part. Other systems have ended up with a rather random route map, for instance when some previous operating companies have ceased operation (as with the ''tramways vicinaux/buurtspoorwegen'' in [[Trams in Brussels|Brussels]]) or where isolated outlying lines have been preserved (as on the eastern fringe of Berlin). In [[Trams in Rome|Rome]], the remnant of the system comprises three isolated radial routes, not connecting in the ancient city centre, but linked by a ring route. Some apparently anomalous lines continue in operation where a new line would not on rational grounds be built, because it is much more costly to build a new line than to continue operating an existing one.

In some places, the opportunity is taken when roads are being repaved to lay tramlines (though without erecting overhead cables) even though no service is immediately planned: such is the case in [[Leipziger Straße|Leipzigerstraße]] in Berlin, the Haarlemmer Houttuinen in Amsterdam, and Botermarkt in Ghent.

====Cross-border routes====
Tram systems operate across national borders in [[Trams in Basel#Cross-border routes|Basel]] (from Switzerland into France and Germany), [[Trams in Geneva|Geneva]] (from Switzerland into France) and [[Strasbourg tramway#Future extensions|Strasbourg]] (from France into Germany).

In 2012, plans were made to connect the Polish town of [[Słubice]] to the tram network of [[Trams in Frankfurt (Oder)|Frankfurt an der Oder]]. These plans were cancelled when voters in Frankfurt voted down funding for the project and replaced the tram line with a bus.<ref>{{cite web |title=Dream of tram line to Słubice over|url=https://www.transport-publiczny.pl/wiadomosci/koniec-marzen-o-tramwaju-ze-slubic-do-frankfurtu-51679.html|date=29 March 2016|language=pl-PL}}</ref> Another cross-border tramway that was planned [[Hasselt – Maastricht tramway|linking Hasselt (Belgium) with Maastricht (Netherlands)]] was cancelled in June 2022.

==Track==
[[File:Szyny Głogowska RB2.JPG|thumb|upright=0.55|left|[[Rail profile#Grooved rail|Cross section]] of a grooved tram rail]]
Tramway track can have different [[rail profile]]s to accommodate the various operating environments of the vehicle. They may be embedded into [[concrete]] for street-running operation, or use standard [[Track ballast|ballasted]] track with [[railroad tie]]s on high-speed sections. A more ecological solution is to embed tracks into [[sod|grass turf]], an approach known as [[green track]].

Tramway tracks use a [[grooved rail]] with a [[groove (engineering)|groove]] designed for tramway or railway track in [[Road surface|pavement]] or grassed surfaces, also called grassed track or track in a lawn. The rail has the railhead on one side and the guard on the other. The guard provides accommodation for the flange. The guard carries no weight, but may act as a checkrail. Grooved rail was invented in 1852 by [[Alphonse Loubat]], a French inventor who developed improvements in tram and rail equipment, and helped develop tram lines in New York City and Paris. The invention of grooved rail enabled tramways to be laid without causing a nuisance to other road users, except unsuspecting cyclists, who could get their wheels caught in the groove. The grooves may become filled with gravel and dirt (particularly if infrequently used or after a period of idleness) and need clearing from time to time, this being done by a "scrubber" tram. Failure to clear the grooves can lead to a bumpy ride for the passengers, damage to either wheel or rail and possibly derailing.

In narrow situations double-track tram lines sometimes reduce to single track, or, to avoid [[railroad switch|switches]], have the tracks interlaced.

[[File:2022 09 14 Hannings & Kahl point-setting system, Amsterdam CS (cropped).jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|A 3-way point-setting system in [[Amsterdam Centraal station|Amsterdam]]. The indicator on the right displays "Lijn 24, Spoor 4". The points are set to automatically send the next tram (route 24 to ''De Boelelaan/VU'') to platform 4 on the left.]]

===Switches===
On many tram systems where tracks diverge, the driver chooses the route, usually either by flicking a switch on the dashboard or by use of the power pedal – generally if power is applied the tram goes straight on, whereas if no power is applied the tram turns. Some systems use automatic point-setting systems, where the route for each journey is downloaded from a central computer, and an onboard computer actuates each point as it comes to it via an [[induction loop]]. Such is the case at [[Manchester Metrolink]].<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Bickell |first=David |date=2 December 2014 |title=Signalling Metrolink |url=https://www.railengineer.co.uk/signalling-metrolink/ |magazine=Rail Engineer |number=122}}</ref> If the powered system breaks down, most points may be operated manually, by inserting a metal lever ('point iron') into the [[point machine]].

===Track gauge===
{{main|List of tram systems by gauge and electrification}}
Historically, the [[track gauge]] has had considerable variations, with [[narrow gauge railways|narrow gauge]] common in many early systems. However, most light rail systems are now [[standard gauge]]. An important advantage of standard gauge is that standard railway maintenance equipment can be used on it, rather than custom-built machinery. Using standard gauge also allows light rail vehicles to be delivered and relocated conveniently using freight railways and locomotives.

Another factor favoring standard gauge is that low-floor vehicles are becoming popular, and there is generally insufficient space for wheelchairs to move between the wheels in a narrow gauge layout. Standard gauge also enables – at least in theory – a larger choice of manufacturers and thus lower procurement costs for new vehicles. However, other factors such as electrification or [[loading gauge]] for which there is more variation may require costly custom built units regardless.

{{multiple image
| align             = right
| direction         = horizontal
| image1            = Tram lyon 04.jpg
| width1            = 200
| footer            = Tram stops can range from purpose-built, tram-exclusive facilities (left), to simple stops within a public road (right).
| image2            = Straßenbahnlinie 14, Oppenheimer Landstraße.jpg
| width2            = 180
}}

===Tram stop===
{{Main|Tram stop}}
Tram stops may be similar to [[bus stop]]s in design and use, particularly in street-running sections, where in some cases other vehicles are legally required to stop clear of the tram doors. Some stops may have [[railway platform]]s, particularly in private right-of-way sections and where trams are boarded at standard [[railway platform height]], as opposed to using steps at the doorway or [[low-floor tram]]s.

==Manufacturing==
[[File:BLT 4204.jpg|thumb|A [[Baselland Transport|BLT]] [[Stadler TINA|TINA]] tram in 2024.]]
[[File:Tram in Almada pic-007.jpg|thumb|Siemens [[Avenio]] tram in [[Almada]] near [[Lisbon]].]]
{{See also|List of tram builders}}
Many independent companies started making trams in the 19th and early 20th century. In the last several decades most of them have merged with or into larger ones. The biggest changes in the period after 2010 were the mergers of [[AnsaldoBreda]] into [[Hitachi Rail]] in 2015 and [[Bombardier Transportation|Bombardier]] into [[Alstom]] in 2020.
Approximately 5,000 new trams are manufactured each year.

As of February 2017, 4,478 new trams were on order from their makers, with a further 1,092 options being open:<ref>Mike Taplin, ''Tramways and Urban Transit'' no. 952, April 2017, 0. 131</ref>
[[File:1-es villamos (2105).jpg|thumb|[[Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles|CAF]] [[CAF Urbos|Urbos 3]] tram in [[Trams in Budapest|Budapest.]]

Longest tram sets in the world from 2016 to 2025.]]
{|class="wikitable"
|+Trams on order as  February 2017
|- style="text-align:left;"
! Manufacturer
! Firm orders
! Options
|-
| Bombardier || 962 || 296
|-
| Alstom || 650 || 202
|-
| Siemens || 557 || 205
|-
| CAF || 411 || 112
|-
| CRRC || 370 || 30
|-
| PKTS/Metrovagonmash || 316 || –
|-
| Kinkisharyo || 155 || 97
|-
| Stadler-Vossloh || 189 || 25
|-
| Stadler || 182 || 28
|-
| Škoda Transtech || 104 || 47
|-
| Škoda || 110 || –
|-
| Durmazlar || 90 || –
|}

==Debate==
{{More citations needed|section|talk=Talk:Tram#Debate_Section_Needs_Sources!|date=July 2024}}
{{Disputed|what=section|date=July 2024|discuss=Talk:Tram#Debate_Section_Needs_Sources!}}

=== Advantages ===
[[File:Streetcar in New Orleans, USA1.jpg|thumb|Produced in 1923–24, 900 Series trams are still use in [[Streetcars in New Orleans|New Orleans]]. Trams typically have longer service life than internal combustion buses.]]
[[File:Flickr - IngolfBLN - Nantes - Tramway - Ligne 3 - Orvault (17).jpg|thumb|A tram running down [[green track|tracks embedded in grass]] in [[Nantes]].]]
[[File:Fiat Cityway Messina T11.jpg|thumb|[[Trams in Messina|Tramway system in Messina]], opened in 2003]]

<!-- DO NOT add more advantages or disadvantages without reliable sources. -->
* Trams (and road public transport in general) can be much more efficient in terms of road usage than cars – one vehicle replaces about 40 cars (which take up a far larger area of road space).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.humantransit.org/2012/09/the-photo-that-explains-almost-everything.html|title=Human Transit|date=21 September 2012|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150331233137/http://www.humantransit.org/2012/09/the-photo-that-explains-almost-everything.html|archive-date=31 March 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://onlinepubs.trb.org/onlinepubs/sr/sr257.pdf|title=Special Report 257: Making Transit Work<!-- Bot generated title -->|access-date=12 March 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170808042854/http://onlinepubs.trb.org/onlinepubs/sr/sr257.pdf|archive-date=8 August 2017}}</ref>
* Vehicles run more [[Fuel efficiency in transportation|efficiently]] compared to similar vehicles that use rubber tyres, since the [[rolling resistance]] of steel on steel is lower than rubber on asphalt.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bathtram.org/tfb/tQ24.htm |title=Why are trams different from buses from Trams for Bath |publisher=Bathtram.org |access-date=8 December 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130608062642/http://www.bathtram.org/tfb/tQ24.htm |archive-date=8 June 2013}}</ref>
* Trams and light rail transit use sustainable technologies like electric propulsion and support limiting urban sprawl which in return lowers the carbon footprint.<ref>{{cite book |last1=van der Bijl |last2=van Oort |title=Light Rail explained: Better public transport & more public transport |date=2014 |publisher=European Metropolitan Transport Authority |pages=17–19 |url=https://research.tudelft.nl/en/publications/light-rail-explained-better-public-transport-and-more-than-public |ref=LRE14}}</ref>
* There is a well studied effect that the installation of a tram service – even if service frequency, speed and price all remain constant – leads to higher ridership and mode shift away from cars compared to buses.<ref>{{cite book |last1=European Conference of Ministers of Transport |title=Scope for the Use of Certain Old-Established Urban Transport Techniques (Trams and Trolley-Buses) |date=1977 |publisher=OECD Publications and Information Center |location=Washington, D.C. |page=63 |url=https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/transport/scope-for-the-use-of-certain-old-established-urban-transport-techniques-trams-and-trolley-buses_9789282105740-en}}</ref> Conversely, the abandonment of tram service leads to measurable declines in ridership.
* Being guided by rails means that even very long tram units can navigate tight, winding city streets that are inaccessible to long buses.
* Tram vehicles are very durable, with some being in continuous revenue service for more than fifty years. This is especially true compared to internal combustion buses, which tend to require high amounts of maintenance and break down after less than 20 years, mostly due to the vibrations of the engine.
* In many cases tram networks have a higher capacity than similar buses. This has been cited as a reason for the replacement of one of Europe's busiest bus lines (with three-minute headways in peak times) with a tram by [[Dresdner Verkehrsbetriebe]].
* Due to the above-mentioned capacity advantage, labor costs (which form the biggest share of operating costs of many public transit systems) per passenger can be significantly lower compared to buses.
* Trams and light rail systems can be cheaper to install than subways or other forms of [[heavy rail]]. In Berlin the commonly cited figure is that one kilometer of subway costs as much as ten kilometers of tramway.
* Tramways can take advantage of old [[heavy rail]] alignments. Some examples include the [[Manchester Metrolink]] of which the [[Bury Line]] was part of the [[East Lancashire Railway]], the [[Altrincham Line]] was part of the [[Manchester South Junction and Altrincham Railway]], and the [[Oldham and Rochdale Line]] was the [[Oldham Loop Line]]. Other examples can be found in [[Paris Tramway Line 2|Paris]], [[London]], [[Boston]], [[Trams in Melbourne|Melbourne]] and [[Sydney]]. They hence sometimes take advantage of high speed track while on train tracks.
*As tram lines are permanent this allows local authorities to redevelop and revitalise their towns and cities provided suitable planning changes are made.<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01957503|title=The renaissance of tramways and urban redevelopment in France <!-- Bot generated title -->|year=2017|doi=10.1515/mgrsd-2017-0005|access-date=|last1=Boquet|first1=Yves|journal=Miscellanea Geographica|volume=21|issue=1 |pages=5–18|s2cid=54004937|doi-access=free|bibcode=2017MiscG..21....5B }}</ref> Melbourne will allow higher buildings (5 to 6 story) along tram routes leaving the existing suburbs behind unchanged whilst doubling the cities density.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.transformingaustraliancities.com.au/wp-content/uploads/Transforming-Australian-Cities-Report.pdf|title=Transforming Australian Cities : Urban corridors <!-- Bot generated title -->|access-date=}}</ref>
* Trams produce less air pollution than rubber tyred transport which produce tyre, asphalt and brake based pollutants. The use of regenerative electric motor braking in trams lowers mechanical brake use. Steel wheel and rail particulates are produced but regular wheel alignment and flexible track mounting can reduce emissions.
* Tram networks can link to other operational heavy rail and rapid transit systems, allowing vehicles to move directly from one to the other without passengers needing to alight. Trams that are compatible with heavy rail systems are called [[tram-trains]], while those that can use subway tunnels are called [[pre-metro]] or [[Stadtbahn|U-Stadtbahn]].
* Trams can integrate more effectively with pedestrian heavy environments than other forms of transport due to compactness and predictable movement. Passengers can reach surface stations quicker than underground stations. Subjective safety at surface stations is often seen to be higher.
* Trams can be tourist attractions in ways buses usually are not.
* Many modern tram systems plant low growing vegetation – mostly grasses – between the tracks which has a psychological effect on perceived noise levels and the benefits of [[Urban open space|greenspace]]. This is not possible for buses as they deviate too much from an "ideal" track in daily operations.

===Disadvantages===
[[File:Midland Metro - Cyclist dismount sign - Andy Mabbett.jpg|thumb|Tram tracks pose a hazard for cyclists, as their wheels may get caught in the track.]]
* Installing rails for tram tracks and overhead lines for power means a higher up-front cost than using buses which require no modifications to streets to begin operations. 
* Tram tracks can be hazardous for cyclists, as bikes, particularly those with narrow tyres, may get their wheels caught in the track grooves.<ref name="bv.com.au">{{cite web|url=https://www.bv.com.au/general/bikes-and-riding/10429/ |title=Crossing tram tracks – Bicycle Network |publisher=Bv.com.au |date=14 July 2004 |access-date=8 December 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120331204418/https://www.bv.com.au/general/bikes-and-riding/10429/ |archive-date=31 March 2012 }}</ref> It is possible to close the grooves of the tracks on critical sections by rubber profiles that are pressed down by the wheelflanges of the passing tram but that cannot be lowered by the weight of a cyclist.<ref>{{cite web |title=Novel highly durable rubber safety profiles for rail-based traffic systems such as tram lines which make cycling safer in inner cities by closing gaps to prevent bike accidents |url=https://een.ec.europa.eu/partners/novel-highly-durable-rubber-safety-profiles-rail-based-traffic-systems-such-tram-lines |publisher=[[Enterprise Europe Network]] |access-date=18 January 2022 |language=en}}</ref> If not well-maintained, however, these lose their effectiveness over time.{{Citation needed|date=May 2014}}
* When wet, tram tracks tend to become slippery and thus dangerous for bicycles and motorcycles, especially in traffic.<ref name="bv.com.au" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rulesoftheroad.ie/rules-for-driving/traffic-signs-road-markings/trams-lightrail.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071129222601/http://www.rulesoftheroad.ie/rules-for-driving/traffic-signs-road-markings/trams-lightrail.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=29 November 2007 |title=Trams/Light Rail – Road Safety Authority Rules of the Road |publisher=Rulesoftheroad.ie |access-date=8 December 2012}}</ref> In some cases, even cars can be affected.<ref>{{cite web |author=Andrew Heasley |url=http://smh.drive.com.au/motor-news/slippery-issue-on-track-20100824-13kvf.html |title=Slippery issue on track |work=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]].drive.com.au |date=29 April 2004 |access-date=8 December 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121108212756/http://smh.drive.com.au/motor-news/slippery-issue-on-track-20100824-13kvf.html |archive-date=8 November 2012}}</ref>
* The opening of new tram and light rail systems has sometimes been accompanied by a marked increase in car accidents, as a result of drivers' unfamiliarity with the physics and [[Track geometry|geometry]] of trams.<ref>{{harvnb|McCaleb|1994|p=67}} Besides recounting statistics and anecdotes, this source also reprints a ''[[San Jose Mercury News]]'' cartoon of one such accident, in which a bemused tow truck driver quips, "Dang! [[Rod Diridon, Sr.|Rod Diridon]] was right! The trolley does reduce the number of vehicles on the road!"</ref> Though such increases may be temporary, long-term conflicts between motorists and light rail operations can be alleviated by segregating their respective rights-of-way and installing appropriate signage and warning systems.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://trb.org/news/blurb_detail.asp?id=2536 |title=Light Rail Service: Pedestrian and Vehicular Safety &#124; Blurbs &#124; Main |publisher=Trb.org |date=30 March 2014 |access-date=8 March 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080601181812/http://trb.org/news/blurb_detail.asp?id=2536 |archive-date=1 June 2008}}</ref>
* Rail transport can expose neighbouring populations to moderate levels of low-frequency noise. However, transportation planners use [[noise mitigation]] strategies to minimise these effects.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://trb.org/news/blurb_detail.asp?id=2593 |title=Wheel/Rail Noise Control Manual &#124; Blurbs &#124; Main |publisher=Trb.org |access-date=8 March 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080601181818/http://trb.org/news/blurb_detail.asp?id=2593 |archive-date=1 June 2008}}</ref> Most of all, the potential for decreased private motor vehicle operations along the tram's service line because of the service provision could result in lower [[ambient noise level]]s than without.
* The overhead power lines and supporting poles utilized by trams (except for those using a third rail) can be unsightly and contribute to [[visual pollution]].<ref name="Shodorf_1973">{{cite thesis |last=Schodorf |first=Robert J. |date=1973 |title=A Study of Visual Pollution from Overhead Wires and Associated Structures |url=https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses/2719 |degree=MA  |chapter=1, 2 |publisher=ScholarWorks at WMU |oclc=22870575 |access-date=30 January 2024}}</ref>

==By region==
{{Main|Tram and light rail transit systems|List of tram and light rail transit systems|List of town tramway systems}}
[[File:The driver's seat in the tram of the Russian model "Lionok".jpg|thumb|The driver's seat in the Russian [[71-911|"Lvionok" ("Lionet")]] tram]]
[[File:World Tram Systems.svg|320px|thumb|Tram networks around the world:<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.urbanrail.net |title=Home |website=urbanrail.net |access-date=22 April 2022}}</ref>
{{Legend|#008000|Countries with tram networks}}
{{Legend|#c0c0c0|Countries without tram networks}}
]]
Trams are in a period of growth, with about 400 tram systems operating around the world, several new systems being opened each year, and many being gradually extended.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Claydon |first=Geoffry |title=80 Years of the LRTA |magazine=Tramways and Urban Transit |number=956 |date=August 2017 |page=301}}</ref> Some of these systems date from the late 19th or early 20th centuries. In the past 20 years their numbers have been augmented by modern tramway or light rail systems in cities that had abandoned this form of transport. There have also been some new tram systems in cities that never previously had them.

''Tramways with trams'' ([[British English]]) or ''street railways with streetcars'' ([[North American English]]) were common throughout the industrialised world in the late 19th and early 20th centuries but they had disappeared from most British, Canadian, French and US cities by the mid-20th century.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://lda.ucdavis.edu/LDA191/Course%20Handouts%20&%20Readings/08-ULI_Streetcars.pdf |first=Jeffrey |last=Spivak |title=Streetcars are back |magazine=Urban Land |date=January 2008 |pages=108–110 |via=Landscape Architecture Department, UC Davis |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090225095245/http://lda.ucdavis.edu/LDA191/Course%20Handouts%20%26%20Readings/08-ULI_Streetcars.pdf |archive-date=25 February 2009 |access-date=10 February 2009}}</ref> After World War II most Australian cities also began to replace their trams with buses, but [[Melbourne]] defied the trend, opening new tram lines even in the mid-1950s. By the 1970s Melbourne was the only Australian city with a major tram network.<ref>Keenan, David R. "Melbourne's Tramways in 1974." (Transit Press, 1974)</ref>

By contrast, [[Trams in Europe|trams in parts of continental Europe]] continued to be used by many cities, although there were declines in some countries, including the Netherlands.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.amtuir.org/03_index_htu_gale.htm |title=Musée des Transports Urbains – Histoire – Histoire Générale des Transports Urbains |publisher=Amtuir.org |access-date=8 March 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150319193228/http://www.amtuir.org/03_index_htu_gale.htm |archive-date=19 March 2015}}</ref>

Since 1980 trams have returned to favour in many places, partly because their tendency to dominate the roadway, formerly seen as a disadvantage, is considered to be a merit since it raises the visibility of public transport (encouraging car users to change their mode of travel), and enables streets to be reconfigured to give more space to pedestrians, making cites more pleasant places to live. New systems have been built in the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, Italy, France, Australia and many other countries.

In Milan, Italy, the old "[[Peter Witt streetcar|Ventotto]]" trams are considered a "symbol" of the city. The same can be said of [[trams in Melbourne]] in general, but particularly the iconic [[W-class Melbourne tram|W class]]. The [[Toronto streetcar system]] had similarly become an iconic symbol of the city, operating the largest network in the Americas as well as the only large-scale tram system in Canada (not including light rail systems, or heritage lines).<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2015/09/14/streetcars-are-our-neglected-stars-keenan.html|title=Streetcars are our neglected stars|work=The Toronto Star|last=Keenan|first=Edward|date=14 September 2015|publisher=Torstar Corporation|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150915120009/http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2015/09/14/streetcars-are-our-neglected-stars-keenan.html|archive-date=15 September 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2014/09/01/toronto_rides_new_streetcars_to_its_urban_future_hume.html|title=Toronto rides new streetcars to its urban future|work=The Toronto Star|first=Christopher|last=Hume|date=14 September 2015|publisher=Torstar Corporation|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140909021538/http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2014/09/01/toronto_rides_new_streetcars_to_its_urban_future_hume.html|archive-date=9 September 2014}}</ref>

===Major tram and light rail systems===
{{main|List of largest currently operating tram and light rail transit systems}}

====Existing systems====
[[File:Melbourne trams map.gif|alt=Map of the Melbourne tram network.|thumb|Map of [[Trams in Melbourne|Melbourne tram system]] in 2011, the largest in the world.]]
The largest tram (classic tram, [[streetcar]], ''straßenbahn'') and [[fast tram]] ([[light rail]], [[stadtbahn]]) networks in the world by route length as of 2016<ref name="tundria.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.tundria.com/trams/tramways-index.shtml|title=World Tramways<!-- Bot generated title -->|website=tundria.com|url-status=live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160505135200/http://www.tundria.com/trams/tramways-index.shtml |archive-date=5 May 2016}}</ref> are:
{{col div}}
* [[Trams in Melbourne|Melbourne]] ({{convert|256 |km|mi|abbr=on|disp=semicolon}})<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.tundria.com/trams/AUS/Melbourne-2014.shtml |title=Melbourne 2014|first=Gabor|last= Sandi|access-date=12 March 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170425110945/http://www.tundria.com/trams/AUS/Melbourne-2014.shtml |archive-date=25 April 2017}}</ref> 
*[[Trams in Kyiv|Kyiv]] ({{convert|231 |km|mi|abbr=on|disp=semicolon}})<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.korpmet.org.ua/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/%D0%9E%D0%B1%D1%94%D0%BA%D1%82%D0%B8-%D0%BC%D1%96%D1%81%D1%8C%D0%BA%D0%BE%D0%B3%D0%BE-%D0%B5%D0%BB%D0%B5%D0%BA%D1%82%D1%80%D0%BE%D1%82%D1%80%D0%B0%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%BF%D0%BE%D1%80%D1%82%D1%83-%D0%A3%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%B0%D1%97%D0%BD%D0%B8-%D1%81%D1%82%D0%B0%D0%BD%D0%BE%D0%BC-%D0%BD%D0%B0-01.01.2024-%D1%80..xls|title= CORPORATIONS OF ENTERPRISES OF URBAN ELECTRIC TRANSPORT OF UKRAINE}} </ref>
* [[Tramways in Saint Petersburg|Saint Petersburg]] ({{convert|205.5|km|mi|abbr= on|disp=semicolon}})<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.urbanrail.net/eu/ru/pet/tram/petersburg-tram.htm|title=UrbanRail.Net > Europe > Russia> St. Petersburg Tram|access-date=12 March 2017|url-status=live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170223055602/http://www.urbanrail.net/eu/ru/pet/tram/petersburg-tram.htm |archive-date=23 February 2017}}</ref>
* [[Cologne Stadtbahn|Cologne]] ({{convert|194.8|km|mi|abbr=on|disp=semicolon}})<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.urbanrail.net/eu/de/k/koeln.htm |title=Köln (Cologne) Underground Tram Network |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160818234951/http://www.urbanrail.net/eu/de/k/koeln.htm |archive-date=18 August 2016|website = UrbanRail.net}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.kvb-koeln.de/german/unternehmen/leistungsdaten/bahn.html |title=Kölner Verkehrs-Betriebe AG |access-date=14 September 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130531145531/http://www.kvb-koeln.de/german/unternehmen/leistungsdaten/bahn.html |archive-date=31 May 2013}}</ref> 
* [[Berlin tram|Berlin]] ({{convert|191.6|km|mi|abbr=on|disp=semicolon}})<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tundria.com/trams/DEU/Berlin-2016.shtml|title=BERLIN POTSDAM 2016|first= Gabor|last=Sandi|access-date=12 March 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170706163300/http://www.tundria.com/trams/DEU/Berlin-2016.shtml |archive-date=6 July 2017}}</ref> 
* [[Trams in Moscow|Moscow]] ({{convert|183|km|mi|abbr=on|disp=semicolon}})<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tundria.com/trams/RUS/Moscow-2016.shtml|title=Moscow 2016|first=Gabor|last=Sandi|access-date=12 March 2017|url-status=live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170820162823/http://www.tundria.com/trams/RUS/Moscow-2016.shtml |archive-date=20 August 2017}}</ref> 
* [[Trams in Milan|Milan]] ({{convert|181.8|km|mi |abbr=on|disp=semicolon}})<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.atm.it/it/IlGruppo/ChiSiamo/Documents/carta%20mobilit%C3%A0%202017.pdf |title=Carta della mobilità ATM 2017 |publisher=Azienda Trasporti Milanesi S.p.A. |language=it |trans-title=ATM Mobility Charter 2017 |date=2017 |access-date=5 June 2019 |archive-date=2 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190702164512/https://www.atm.it/it/IlGruppo/ChiSiamo/Documents/carta%20mobilit%C3%A0%202017.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> 
* [[Trams in Budapest|Budapest]] ({{convert|172|km|mi |abbr= on|disp=semicolon}})<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tundria.com/trams/HUN/Budapest-2016.shtml |title= Budapest 2016|first=Gabor|last=Sandi|access-date=12 March 2017|url-status=live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170820162134/http://www.tundria.com/trams/HUN/Budapest-2016.shtml |archive-date=20 August 2017}}</ref>
* [[Silesian Interurbans]] ({{convert|171|km|mi|abbr= on|disp=semicolon}})<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.urbanrail.net/eu/pl/katow/katowice.htm |website=UrbanRail.Net |title= Katowice Tram|url-status= live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170208093035/http://urbanrail.net/eu/pl/katow/katowice.htm|archive-date= 8 February 2017}}</ref>
* [[Trams in Vienna|Vienna]] ({{convert|170|km|mi|abbr= on|disp=semicolon}}).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.urbanrail.net/eu/at/vienna/tram/wien-tram.htm |title=UrbanRail.Net > Europe > Austria > WIEN (Vienna) Straßenbahn – Tram |access-date=12 March 2017 |url-status=live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170121161300/http://urbanrail.net/eu/at/vienna/tram/wien-tram.htm |archive-date=21 January 2017}}</ref>
{{col div end}}
Other large transit networks that operate streetcar and light rail systems include:
{{col div}}
* [[DART light rail]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.urbanrail.net/am/dall/dallas.htm|title=UrbanRail.Net > USA > Dallas Light Rail & Streetcar (DART)|first=Robert|last=Schwandl|access-date=12 March 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170313133716/http://urbanrail.net/am/dall/dallas.htm|archive-date=13 March 2017}}</ref> [[Dallas Streetcar|modern streetcar]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.urbanrail.net/am/dall/dallas.htm#top|title=UrbanRail.Net > USA > Dallas Light Rail & Streetcar (DART)|first=Robert|last=Schwandl|access-date=12 March 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170313133716/http://urbanrail.net/am/dall/dallas.htm#top|archive-date=13 March 2017}}</ref> and [[M-Line Trolley|heritage streetcar]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jtbell.net/transit/Dallas/MLine|title=Dallas M-Line (McKinney Avenue Streetcar)|access-date=12 March 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170310032044/http://www.jtbell.net/transit/Dallas/MLine/|archive-date=10 March 2017}}</ref> in [[Dallas, Texas]] ({{convert|155|km|mi|abbr=on|disp=semicolon}})
* [[Sofia Tramway|Sofia]] ({{convert|153.6|km|mi|abbr=on|disp=semicolon}})<ref name="tundria.com" /> 
*[[Warsaw Tramways|Warsaw]] ({{convert|150|km|mi|abbr=on|disp=semicolon}})
* [[Trams in Leipzig|Leipzig]] ({{convert|148.3|km|mi|abbr=on|disp=semicolon}})<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tundria.com/trams/DEU/Leipzig-2015.shtml|title=Leipzig 2015|first=Gabor|last=Sandi|access-date=12 March 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170706163730/http://www.tundria.com/trams/DEU/Leipzig-2015.shtml|archive-date=6 July 2017}}</ref> 
* [[Brussels trams|Brussels]] ({{convert|147.1|km|mi|abbr=on|disp=semicolon}})<ref>{{cite web|url=http://2018.stib-activityreports.brussels/file/statistics_2018_fr.pdf |title=Stastiques 2018 |access-date=19 May 2020}}</ref>
* [[Tramways in Łódź|Łódź]] ({{convert|145|km|mi|abbr=on|disp=semicolon}})<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.urbanrail.net/eu/pl/lodz/lodz.htm |title=UrbanRail.Net > Europe > Poland > Łódź Tram |access-date=12 March 2017|url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170301104531/http://urbanrail.net/eu/pl/lodz/lodz.htm |archive-date=1 March 2017}}</ref>
*[[Transport in Bucharest|Bucharest]] ({{convert|143|km|mi|abbr=on|disp=semicolon}})<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.urbanrail.net/eu/ro/buc/bucuresti-tram.htm|title=UrbanRail.Net > Europe > Romania > BUCHAREST Tram|access-date=12 March 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170323043922/http://www.urbanrail.net/eu/ro/buc/bucuresti-tram.htm|archive-date=23 March 2017}}</ref> 
*[[Prague tram system|Prague]] ({{convert|142.4|km|mi|abbr=on|disp=semicolon}})<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dpp.cz/en/company-profile|title=dpp.cz > Company Profile – Dopravní podnik hlavního města Prahy|publisher=Dopravní podnik hlavního města Prahy, WDF – Web Design Factory, s. r. o.|access-date=12 March 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170219082911/http://www.dpp.cz/en/company-profile/|archive-date=19 February 2017}}</ref> 
*[[Trams in Dresden|Dresden]] ({{convert|134|km|mi|abbr=on|disp=semicolon}})
*[[Los Angeles Metro Rail|Los Angeles]] ({{convert|133.1|km|mi|abbr=on|disp=semicolon}})<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tundria.com/trams/USA/LosAngeles-2016.shtml|title=Los Angeles 2016|first=Gabor|last=Sandi|access-date=12 March 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170319063124/http://www.tundria.com/trams/USA/LosAngeles-2016.shtml|archive-date=19 March 2017}}</ref> 
{{col div end}}
[[File:Saint Petersburg Tram System Map.svg|thumb|Map of [[Trams in Saint Petersburg|Saint Petersburg's tram system]] in 2024. The system was the world's largest, before it was surpassed by Melbourne's system.]]

====Statistics====
{{Update section|date=January 2018}}
* Tram and light rail systems operate in 403 cities across the world, 210 of which are in Europe;<ref name="UITP-2023">{{cite web |last1=UITP Secretariat |title=Light rail transit: Data shows reliable, attractive mode is advancing worldwide |url=https://www.uitp.org/news/light-rail-transit-data-shows-reliable-attractive-mode-is-advancing-worldwide/ |access-date=19 October 2024}}</ref>
* The longest single tram line and route in the world is the {{convert|68|km|mi|abbr=on}} interurban [[Kusttram|Belgian Coast Tram (Kusttram)]], which runs almost the entire length of the Belgian coast. Another fairly long interurban line is the [[Valley Metro Rail]] agglomeration of [[Phoenix, Arizona]], with its {{convert|42|km|mi|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite web|title=Providing Public Transportation Alternatives for the Greater Phoenix Metro Area – Valley Metro – Press Releases|url=http://www.valleymetro.org/pressreleases/detail/valley-metro-rail-mesa-open-new-extension|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170226141908/http://www.valleymetro.org/pressreleases/detail/valley-metro-rail-mesa-open-new-extension|archive-date=26 February 2017|access-date=12 March 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Phoenix 2005|url=http://www.tundria.com/trams/USA/Phoenix-2016.shtml|last=Sandi|first=Gabor|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170319063151/http://www.tundria.com/trams/USA/Phoenix-2016.shtml|archive-date=19 March 2017|access-date=12 March 2017}}</ref> The world's longest urban intracity tram line is {{convert|33|km|mi|abbr=on}} counter-ring routes 5/5a in [[Kazan]] ([[Tatarstan]], Russia).
[[File:Kazan Circle Tram 2021.jpg|thumb|[[71-911|City Star]] tram at longest urban intracity tram route in [[Kazan]]]]
* Since 1985, 108 light rail systems have opened;<ref name="UITP-2020">{{cite web |title=Light rail and tram: The European outlook |url=https://www.uitp.org/publications/light-rail-and-tram-the-european-outlook/ |publisher=UITP Secretariat |access-date=19 October 2024}}</ref>
* Since 2000, 78 systems have opened while 13 have closed. The countries that have opened the most systems since 2000 are the US (23), France (20), Spain (16), and Turkey (8);
* {{convert|15812|km|abbr=on}} of track is in operation,<ref name="UITP-2023" /> with {{convert|850|km|abbr=on}} in construction and a further {{convert|2350|km|abbr=on}} planned;
* All networks together have 28,593 stops;<ref name="UITP-2023" />
* They carry 13.5&nbsp;billion passengers a year, 3% of all public transport passengers. The highest-volume systems are Budapest (396&nbsp;million passengers a year), Prague (372&nbsp;m),<ref name="dpp.cz">{{cite web|url=https://www.dpp.cz/dpp-v-datech/|title = DPP v datech}}</ref> Bucharest (322&nbsp;m), Saint Petersburg (312&nbsp;m), and Vienna (305&nbsp;m);
* The most busy networks (passengers per km, per year) are: Istanbul, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Sarajevo.
* Some 36,864 trams and light rail vehicles are in operation.<ref name="UITP-2023" /> The largest fleets are in Prague (788), Vienna (782), Warsaw (756), Saint-Petersburg (750), Moscow (632)
* Between 1997 and 2014, 400–450 vehicles were built each year.
* As of October 2015, Hong Kong has the world's only exclusively double-decker tramway system.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.uitp.org/sites/default/files/cck-focus-papers-files/UITP_Statistic_Brief_4p-Light%20rail-Web.pdf |title=Light Rail in Figures |publisher=[[International Association of Public Transport]] (UITP) |date=2014 |access-date=27 September 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304185907/http://www.uitp.org/sites/default/files/cck-focus-papers-files/UITP_Statistic_Brief_4p-Light%20rail-Web.pdf |archive-date=4 March 2016}}</ref>
* The busiest junction in any tram network is the Lazarská x Spálená junction in Prague with appx. 150 vehicles passing through per hour.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://prazsky.denik.cz/zpravy_region/je-to-nejzatizenejsi-tramvajova-krizovatka-na-svete-haji-dpp-opravy-v-centru-20181104.html|title=Je to nejzatíženější tramvajová křižovatka na světě, hájí DPP opravy v centru|first=Michael|last=Bereň|newspaper=Pražský Deník|date=4 November 2018|access-date=22 July 2019|via=prazsky.denik.cz}}</ref>
* World's longest 9-sectioned {{convert|56|m|ft}}-meter articulated tram vehicle [[CAF Urbos|CAF Urbos 3/9]] started operation [[Budapest tram|in Budapest]] in 2016. [[Škoda 15 T|Škoda ForCity]] vehicles family allows expansion of length up to {{convert|72|m|ft}} with 539 passengers.

====Historical====
[[File:Cormault 136 - PARIS - Panorama du Carrefour du Chatelet et la Seine.JPG|thumb|At its peak, the [[Tramways in Île-de-France|Paris tram system]] was the world's largest, with over {{convert|1111|km|mi}} of track in 1925.]] 
Historically, the [[Tramways in Île-de-France|Paris Tram System]] was, at its peak, the world's largest system, with {{convert|1111|km|mi|abbr=on}} of track in 1925<ref>{{Cite web |title=1902: il tram di Opicina {{!}} Trieste Trasporti |url=https://www.triestetrasporti.it/index.php/it/storie-bianco-nero/1902-il-tram |access-date=2025-10-15 |website=www.triestetrasporti.it}}</ref> (according to other sources, ca. {{convert|640|km|abbr=on}} of route length in 1930). However it was completely closed in 1938.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tundria.com/trams/FRA/Paris-1930.shtml|title=Paris 1930|first=Gabor|last=Sandi|access-date=12 March 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170806062045/http://www.tundria.com/trams/FRA/Paris-1930.shtml|archive-date=6 August 2017}}</ref> The next largest system appears to have been {{convert|857|km|abbr=on}}, in [[#South America|Buenos Aires]] before 19 February 1963. The third largest was Chicago, with over {{convert|850|km|abbr=on}} of track,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.shore-line.org/CSL.html|title=Welcome to the Shore Line Interurban Historical Society &#124; Chicago Surface Lines|publisher=Shore-line.org|access-date=8 March 2015|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402094714/http://www.shore-line.org/CSL.html|archive-date=2 April 2015}}</ref> but it was all converted to [[trolleybus]] and bus services by 21 June 1958. Before its decline, the [[Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe|BVG]] in Berlin operated a very large network with {{convert|634|km|abbr=on}} of route. Before its system was converted to trolleybus (and later bus) services in the 1930s (last tramway closed 6 July 1952), the first-generation London network had {{convert|555|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} of route in 1931.<ref>{{Cite report |publisher=London Passenger Transport Board |title=Annual Report |date=1938}}</ref> In 1958 trams in Rio de Jainero were employed on ({{convert|433|km|mi|abbr=on|disp=semicolon}}) of track. The final line, the [[Santa Teresa Tram|Santa Teresa route]] was closed in 1968.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tundria.com/trams/BRA/Rio-1958.shtml|title=Rio de Janeiro 1958|first=Gabor|last=Sandi|access-date=12 March 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170806064020/http://www.tundria.com/trams/BRA/Rio-1958.shtml|archive-date=6 August 2017}}</ref> During a period in the 1980s, the world's largest tram system was in [[Trams in Saint Petersburg|Leningrad]] (St. Petersburg) with {{convert|350|km|mi|abbr=on}}, USSR, and was included as such in the [[Guinness World Records]];{{citation needed|date=December 2019}} however Saint Petersburg's tram system has declined in size since the fall of the Soviet Union. [[Vienna]] in 1960 had {{convert|340|km|mi|0|abbr=on}}, before the expansion of bus services and the opening of a subway (1976). Substituting subway services for tram routes continues. {{convert|320|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} was in [[Minneapolis–Saint Paul]] in 1947: There streetcars ended 31 October 1953 in Minneapolis and 19 June 1954 in St. Paul.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tundria.com/trams/USA/Minneapolis-St.Paul-1947.shtml|title=Minneapolis – St. Paul 1947|first=Gabor|last=Sandi|access-date=12 March 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170319062538/http://www.tundria.com/trams/USA/Minneapolis-St.Paul-1947.shtml|archive-date=19 March 2017}}</ref> The [[Trams in Sydney|Sydney tram network]], before it was closed on 25 February 1961, had {{convert|291|km|abbr=on}} of route, and was thus the largest in Australia. Since 1961, the Melbourne system (recognised as the world's largest) has assumed Sydney's title as the largest network in Australia.

==Tram modelling==
{{see also|Rail transport modelling}}
[[File:Blackburn and East Lancs MRS - 44th annual exhibition - DSC03803.JPG|thumb|A model of a town with a [[Rail transport modelling|tram model]] built into it]]
Model trams are popular in [[HO scale]] (1:87) and [[O scale]] (1:48 in the US and generally 1:43,5 and 1:45 in Europe and Asia). They are typically powered and will accept plastic figures inside. Common manufacturers are [[Roco (model railroads)|Roco]] and [[Lima (models)|Lima]], with many custom models being made as well. The German firm Hödl<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hoedl-linie8.de/ |title=Auto-Modellbahn-Welt Hödl Straßenbahn und Oldtimertram Modelle |publisher=Hoedl-linie8.de |access-date=8 March 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150222055641/http://www.hoedl-linie8.de/ |archive-date=22 February 2015}}</ref> and the Austrian Halling<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.halling.at/ |title=Straßenbahnmodelle, Eisenbahnmodelle, Werkzeugbau und Konstruktionsbüro Leopold Halling |publisher=Halling.at |date=25 February 2015 |access-date=8 March 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402173653/http://www.halling.at/ |archive-date=2 April 2015}}</ref> specialise in 1:87 scale.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.strassenbahnfreunde-hemer.de/strassenbahnen/marktuebersicht/ |title=Marktübersicht – Straßenbahnen – Straßenbahnfreunde Hemer |publisher=Strassenbahnfreunde-hemer.de |access-date=8 March 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402130411/http://www.strassenbahnfreunde-hemer.de/strassenbahnen/marktuebersicht/ |archive-date=2 April 2015}}</ref>

In the US, [[Bachmann Industries]] is a mass supplier of HO streetcars and kits. [[Bowser Manufacturing]] has produced white metal models for over 50 years.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bowser-trains.com/misc/history/history.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020612092457/http://www.bowser-trains.com/misc/history/history.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=12 June 2002 |title=Home HO O N S New Products Price List Miscellaneous Join Email List Dealer Orders Retail Orders Contact |publisher=Bowser-trains.com |date=1 May 1961 |access-date=8 March 2015}}</ref> There are many boutique vendors offering limited run epoxy and wood models. At the high end are highly detailed brass models which are usually imported from Japan or Korea and can cost in excess of $500. Many of these run on {{RailGauge|16.5mm}} gauge track, which is correct for the representation of {{RailGauge|ussg}} (standard gauge) in HO scale as in US and Japan, but incorrect in 4&nbsp;mm (1:76.2) scale, as it represents {{RailGauge|4ft8.5in}}. This scale/gauge hybrid is called OO scale.
O scale trams are also very popular among tram modellers because the increased size allows for more detail and easier crafting of overhead wiring. In the US these models are usually purchased in epoxy or wood kits and some as brass models. The Saint Petersburg Tram Company<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sptc.spb.ru |title=St.-Petersburg Tram Collection |publisher=Sptc.spb.ru |access-date=8 March 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141218190917/http://sptc.spb.ru/ |archive-date=18 December 2014}}</ref> produces highly detailed polyurethane non-powered O Scale models from around the world which can easily be powered by trucks from vendors like Q-Car.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.qcarcompany.com/ |title=Main |publisher=Q-Car Company |access-date=8 March 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150313054511/http://www.qcarcompany.com/ |archive-date=13 March 2015}}</ref>

== In popular culture ==
* ''[[A Streetcar Named Desire (play)|A Streetcar Named Desire]]'' was written by [[Tennessee Williams]] in 1947.
* The [[W. V. Awdry|Rev W. Awdry]] wrote about [[GER Class C53]] called ''[[List of The Railway Series characters|Toby the Tram Engine]]'', which starred in his ''[[The Railway Series]]'' with his faithful coach, Henrietta.
* "[[The Trolley Song]]" in the film ''[[Meet Me in St. Louis]]'' received an Academy Award nomination.
* Trams feature in the opening titles of the world's longest running TV soap opera [[Coronation Street]], set in a fictional suburb of [[Greater Manchester]], and produced by [[Granada Television]]. A [[Blackpool]] tram killed one of the main characters in 1989 and the most recent faked accident involved a tram (modelled on the [[Manchester Metrolink]]) careering off a viaduct into the set in 2009.
* The 1986 Australian film ''[[Malcolm (film)|Malcolm]]'' is centred on an autistic tram enthusiast who builds his own tram and becomes involved with a pair of bank robbers.
* ''[[Toonerville Folks]]'' comic strip (1908–55) by [[Fontaine Fox]] featured the "Toonerville Trolley that met all the trains".
* The predominance of trams (trolleys) in the borough of [[Brooklyn]] in New York City gave rise to the disparaging term [[trolley dodger]] for residents of the borough. That term, shortened to "Dodger" became the nickname for the [[Brooklyn Dodgers]] (now the Los Angeles Dodgers).
* The ''[[Red Car Trolley]]'' is a transportation attraction at [[Disney California Adventure]] at the [[Disneyland Resort]] in [[Anaheim, California|Anaheim]], [[California]].
*  Since 2012 the [[World Tramdriver Championship]] (Tram-WΜ) (formerly, the European Tram Driver Championships (Tram EM)) have taken place annually in various cities and has also been streamed live for multiple years.

==See also==
{{Portal|Transport|Trains}}

===Tram models===
See [[:Category:Tram vehicles]]

===Trams by region===
{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
* [[List of town tramway systems in Africa|Trams in Africa]]
* [[List of town tramway systems in Asia|Trams in Asia]]
* [[Trams in Australia]]
* [[Trams in Europe]]
* [[Trams in New Zealand]]
* [[Streetcars in North America]]
* [[List of town tramway systems in South America|Trams in South America]]
{{colend}}

===Tram lists===
{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
* [[Battery electric multiple unit]]
* [[Heritage streetcar]]
* [[History of tram and light rail transit systems by country]]
* [[List of largest currently operating tram and light rail transit systems]]
* [[List of largest tram and light rail transit systems ever]]
* [[List of tram accidents]]
* [[List of tram builders]]
* [[List of transport museums]]
* [[List of town tramway systems]]
* [[List of tram and light rail transit systems]]
* [[List of tram systems by gauge and electrification]]
* [[List of railway electrification systems]]
* [[Rapid transit track gauge]]
{{colend}}

===Other topics===
{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
* [[Armoured train#Armoured tram]]
* [[Comparison of train and tram tracks]]
* [[Convict tramway]]
* [[Dual-mode vehicle]]
* [[Minecart]], also known as a [[Mine railway#Motive power|tram]]
* [[Rubber-tyred tram]]
* [[Streetcar suburb]]
* [[Tramway (industrial)]]
* [[Traction current pylon]]{{colend}}

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
=== Citations ===
{{reflist}}

===General and cited references ===
{{refbegin}}
* {{Cite book |author=Duden |title=das Herkunftswörterbuch: Etymologie der deutschen Sprache |place=Mannheim |date=2001}}
* {{cite book
 | last = Dunbar
 | first = Chas. S.
 | year = 1967
 | title = Buses, Trolleys & Trams
 | url = https://archive.org/details/busestrolleystra00dunb
 | url-access = registration
 | publisher = Paul Hamlyn
 | location = London
 | isbn = 9780753709702
 | oclc = 487529500
 }}
* {{cite book |last=Freedman |first=Alisa |title=Tokyo in Transit: Japanese Culture on the Rails and Road |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=n7XKYLNupxUC&pg=PA6 |year=2011 |publisher=Stanford University Press |isbn=978-0-8047-7145-0 |page=6}}
* {{cite book |last1=Green |first1=Robert |title=The first electric road : a history of the Box Hill and Doncaster tramway |date=1989 |publisher=John Mason Press |location=East Brighton, Victoria |isbn=0731667158}}
* {{Cite book |last=Hammond |first=John Winthrop |title=Men and volts; the story of General Electric|url=https://archive.org/details/menandvoltsstory00hammrich|year=2011|location=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.; London, U.K. |publisher=General Electric Company; [[J. B. Lippincott & Co.]]; Literary Licensing, LLC|isbn=978-1-258-03284-5|orig-year=1941 |quote=He was to produce the first motor that operated without gears of any sort, having its armature direct-connected to the car axle. |via=[[Internet Archive]] }}
* {{cite book |author-link=Robert Hughes (critic) |first=Robert |last=Hughes |title=The Fatal Shore|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nKVlKHn29xcC&q=%22Convict+railway%22&pg=PA408 |access-date=5 July 2015 |year=1987 |publisher=[[Random House]] |pages=407–408 |isbn=9781407054070}}
* {{Cite book |last=Malone |first=Dumas |author-link=Dumas Malone |title=Sidney Howe Short |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fxFQAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA128 |year=1928 |publisher=[[Charles Scribner's Sons]] |work=[[Dictionary of American Biography]] |location=London, UK; New York, USA |volume=17 |access-date=31 May 2017}}
* {{cite book |first=Charles S. |last=McCaleb |title=Rails, Roads & Runways: The 20-Year Saga of Santa Clara County's Transportation Agency |place=San Jose |publisher=Santa Clara County Transportation Agency |date=1994 |isbn=978-0964446601 |page=67}}
* {{Cite book |editor-last1=Kaempffert |editor-first1=Waldemar Bernhard |editor-link=Waldemar Kaempffert|url=https://archive.org/details/popularhistoryof01kaem |first=T. Commerford |last=Martin |year=1924 |title=A Popular History of American Invention |via=[[Internet Archive]] |publisher=[[Charles Scribner's Sons]]|location=London; New York |access-date=11 March 2017 |volume=1 }}
* {{cite book |author-link=William D. Middleton |last=Middleton |first=William D. |date=1967 |title=The Time of the Trolley |place=[[Milwaukee]] |publisher=Kalmbach Publishing |isbn=0-89024-013-2}}
* {{cite book|first=David E. |last=Nye |title=Electrifying America: Social Meanings of a New Technology, 1880–1940 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dAElGDvk2yUC&pg=PA86 |year=1992 |publisher=MIT Press |isbn=978-0-262-64030-5}}
* {{cite book |first=Mark |last=Petrova |title=St. Petersburg in Focus: Photographers of the Turn of the Century; in Celebration of the Tercentenary of St. Petersburg |edition=Palac |date=2003}}
* {{cite book |first=Robert C. |last=Post |title=Urban Mass Transit: The Life Story of a Technology |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lZ6Kke0MZWwC&pg=PA43 |year=2007 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |isbn=978-0-313-33916-5}}
* {{cite book |first=C. N. |last=Pyrgidis |title=Railway Transportation Systems: Design, Construction and Operation |publisher=CRC Press |date=2016 |isbn=978-1482262155}}
* {{cite book |first1=Greg |last1=Young |first2=Tom |last2=Meyers |title=The Bowery boys : adventures in Old New York : an unconventional exploration of Manhattan's historic neighborhoods, secret spots and colorful characters |publisher=Ulysses Press |isbn=978-1612435763 |date=18 April 2016 }}
{{refend}}

===Further reading===
{{Refbegin|colwidth=30em}}
* Arrivetz, Jean. 1956. ''Les Tramways Français'' (No ISBN). Lyon: Editions Omni-Presse.
* Bett, W. C., and J. C. Gillam. 1962. ''Great British Tramway Networks'' (4th Edition), {{ISBN|0-900433-03-5}}. London: [[Light Rail Transit Association|Light Railway Transport League]].
* Bigon, Liora. 2007, "Tracking Ethno-Cultural Differences: The Lagos Steam Tramway (1902–1933)" ''Journal of Historical Geography'', 33, 3
* Brimson, Samuel. 1983. ''The Tramways of Australia'' ({{ISBN|0-949825-01-8}}). Sydney: Dreamweaver Books.
* Buckley, R. J. 1984. ''Tramways and Light Railways of Switzerland and Austria'' ({{ISBN|0-900433-96-5}}). Milton Keynes, UK: [[Light Rail Transit Association]].
* Chandler, Allison. 1963. ''Trolley Through the Countryside'' (No ISBN). Denver: Sage Books.
* Cheape, Charles W. ''Moving the masses: urban public transit in New York, Boston, and Philadelphia, 1880–1912'' (Harvard University Press, 1980)
* Davies, W. K. J. 1986. ''100 years of the Belgian vicinal: SNCV/NMVB, 1885–1985: a century of secondary rail transport in Belgium'' ({{ISBN|0-900433-97-3}}). Broxbourne, UK: Light Rail Transit Association.
* Dyer, Peter, and Peter Hodge. 1988. ''Cane Train: The Sugar-Cane Railways of Fiji'' ({{ISBN|0-908573-50-2}}). Wellington: New Zealand Railway and Locomotive Society Inc.
* Gragt, Frits van der. 1968. ''Europe's Greatest Tramway Network'' (No ISBN). Leiden, Netherlands: E.J. Brill.
* Hilton, George W. 1997. ''The Cable Car in America: A New Treatise upon Cable or Rope Traction As Applied to the Working of Street and Other Railways'', Revised Edition ({{ISBN|0-8047-3051-2}}). Stanford (CA), US: Stanford University Press.
* Howarth, W. Des. 1971. ''Tramway Systems of Southern Africa'' (No ISBN). Johannesburg: published by the author.
* King, B. R., and J. H. Price. 1995. ''The Tramways of Portugal'' (4th Edition) ({{ISBN|0-948106-19-0}}). London: [[Light Rail Transit Association]].
* McKay, John P. ''Tramways and Trolleys: The Rise of Urban Mass Transport in Europe'' (1976)
* [[William D. Middleton|Middleton, William D.]] 1967. ''The Time of the Trolley'' ({{ISBN|0-89024-013-2}}). Milwaukee (WI), US: [[Kalmbach Publishing]].
* Morrison, Allen. 1989. [http://www.tramz.com/br/tto/01.html "The Tramways of Brazil: A 130-Year Survey"] ({{ISBN|0-9622348-1-8}}). New York: Bonde Press.
* Morrison, Allen. 1992. [http://www.tramz.com/cl/tto/a.html ''The Tramways of Chile: 1858–1978''] ({{ISBN|0-9622348-2-6}}). New York: Bonde Press.
* Morrison, Allen. 1996. ''Latin America by Streetcar: A Pictorial Survey of Urban Rail Transport South of the U.S.A.'' ({{ISBN|0-9622348-3-4}}). New York: Bonde Press.
* Pabst, Martin. 1989. ''Tram & Trolley in Africa'' ({{ISBN|3-88490-152-4}}). Krefeld: Röhr Verlag GMBH.
* Peschkes, Robert. ''World Gazetteer of Tram, Trolleybus, and Rapid Transit Systems''.
:''Part One, Latin America'' ({{ISBN|1-898319-02-2}}). 1980. Exeter, UK: Quail Map Company.
:''Part Two, Asia+USSR'' / Africa / Australia ({{ISBN|0-948619-00-7}}). 1987. London: Rapid Transit Publications.
:''Part Three, Europe'' ({{ISBN|0-948619-01-5}}). 1993. London: Rapid Transit Publications.
:''Part Four, North America'' ({{ISBN|0-948619-06-6}}). 1998. London: Rapid Transit Publications.
* {{cite book |author1=City of Portland |author2=TriMet |author3=Portland Streetcar, Inc. |title=TriMet Streetcar Prototype |date=January 2015 |publisher=[[Federal Transit Administration]] |pages=30–45 |url=https://www.transit.dot.gov/sites/fta.dot.gov/files/docs/FTA_Report_No._0085_1.pdf <!-- |access-date=4 November 2021 --> |chapter=History of Streetcar Manufacturing in the U.S.}}
* Röhr, Gustav. 1986. ''Schmalspurparadies Schweiz'', Band 1: Berner Oberland, Jura, Westschweiz, Genfer See, Wallis ({{ISBN|3-921679-38-9}}). Aachen: Schweers + Wall.
* Rowsome, Frank; Stephan McGuire, tech. ed. (1956). A Trolley Car Treasury: A Century of American Streetcars—Horsecars, Cable Cars, Interurbans, and Trolleys. New York: [[McGraw-Hill]].
* Schweers, Hans. 1988. ''Schmalspurparadies Schweiz'', Band 2: Nordostschweiz, Mittelland, Zentralschweiz, Graubünden, Tessin ({{ISBN|3-921679-46-X}}). Aachen: Schweers + Wall.
* Stewart, Graham. 1985. ''When Trams Were Trumps in New Zealand'' ({{OCLC|12723934}}). Wellington: Grantham House Publishing.
* Stewart, Graham. 1993 ''The End of the Penny Section'' (revised and enlarged edition) ({{ISBN|1-86934-037-X}}). Wellington: Grantham House Publishing.
* ''Straßenbahnatlas ehem. Sowjetunion / Tramway Atlas of the former USSR'' ({{ISBN|3-926524-15-4}}). 1996. Berlin: Arbeitsgemeinschaft Blickpunkt Straßenbahn, in conjunction with Light Rail Transit Association, London.
* ''Straßenbahnatlas Rumänien'' (compiled by Andreas Günter, Sergei Tarknov and Christian Blank; {{ISBN|3-926524-23-5}}). 2004. Berlin: Arbeitsgemeinschaft Blickpunkt Straßenbahn.
* ''Tramway & Light Railway Atlas: Germany 1996'' ({{ISBN|0-948106-18-2}}). 1995. Berlin: Arbeitsgemeinschaft Blickpunkt Straßenbahn, in conjunction with Light Rail Transit Association, London.
* Turner, Kevin. 1996. ''The Directory of British Tramways: Every Passenger-Carrying Tramway, Past and Present'' ({{ISBN|1-85260-549-9}}). Somerset, UK: Haynes.
* Waller, Michael H., and Peter Walker. 1992. ''British & Irish Tramway Systems since 1945'' ({{ISBN|0-7110-1989-4}}). Shepperton (Surrey), UK: [[Ian Allan Publishing|Ian Allan Ltd.]]
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Trams}}
{{Wiktionary}}
* {{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Tramway|volume=27 |pages=159–167 |first=Emile |last=Garcke}}
* {{Cite NIE|wstitle=Street Railway|short=x}}
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9EFfD-5VHIk ''The Elephant Will Never Forget''] (British Transport Films, 1953) showing changeover from conduit to overhead power

{{Public transport}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Tram transport| ]]
[[Category:Tram vehicles| ]]
[[Category:Public transport]]
[[Category:Sustainable transport]]