| Lincoln Corporation Tramways | |
|---|---|
 Map of Lincoln Corporation Tramways | |
| Operation | |
| Locale | Lincoln, England |
| Open | 23 November 1905 |
| Close | 31 December 1929 |
| Status | Closed |
| Infrastructure | |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) |
| Propulsion system(s) | Electric |
| Statistics | |
| Route length | 1.84 miles (2.96 km) |
Lincoln Corporation Tramways operated an electric tramway service in Lincoln, England between 1905 and 1929. [1]
The tramway replaced the horse tram service previously provided by the Lincoln Tramways Company. The assets of this company were purchased by the Lincoln Corporation in July 1904 for the sum of £10,488 [2] (equivalent to £1,427,300in 2023). [3] It was a single route from Bracebridge, along Newark Road and High Street to Cornhill. The depot was on the corner of Newark Road and Ellison Street at SK 9688 6851 . The depot building survives to this day.
Eight Tramcars were purchased from the Brush Electric Company of Loughborough. The company livery was pale green and cream. After trial running which started on 29 October 1905, the tramway opened for public service on 23 November 1905. A council report mentions that 40,000 passengers were carried during the first eleven days.
The journey time was fifteen minutes, and this allowed a two-minute turnround. This made reasonable allowance for delays at the two level crossings. Typically, a minimum of three cars provided a scheduled ten-minute service, but at busy periods all eleven cars could be in service at the same time, and this offered a car every three minutes.
The tramway was one of very few in England operated with a Griffiths-Bedell Stud contact system in the roadway. This initial method of power provision survived until 1919 when this was replaced with overhead wires. [4] The reason for the replacement was that gas leaked from the mains which found its way into the electric power cable conduit. This appeared in a startling and dangerous manner, as the gas ignited by the arcing of the magnetic switches, with the result that the cast iron covers for the inspection boxes were blown off, and on more than one occasion, hurled into the air. To minimise the risk of explosion, an electric blower was installed at the Depot, and was started up every morning before the first car left the Depot, and this blew a current of air through the conduit, clearing it of any gas.
The other main problem with the stud system, was the requirement to have a large magnetic contact under the tramcar to activate the studs. These magnetic contacts would collect any metal based debris (horse shoes etc.) left on the road surface. This occasionally caused a dead short, actuating the circuit breakers at the Brayford Power station, and bringing all cars to a halt.
By 1919, the Corporation decided to replace the stud system with overhead wires.
The Electricity and Tramways Committee of the Corporation reported on 6 June 1908 that there had been an explosion and claim for compensation for injuries received by Mrs. Blatherwick. [5]
In 1913 a collision occurred between two cars and claims for injuries were deposited on behalf of four passengers.
Only one tram route was ever operated; Lincoln Corporation had introduced motorbuses on other routes in 1920. The tram system was closed on 4 March 1929, and the trams were replaced by Leyland TD1 double-deck motorbuses. [6]
Nottingham Corporation Tramways was formed when Nottingham Corporation took over the Nottingham and District Tramways Company Limited, which had operated a horse and steam tram service from 1877.
The Mexborough & Swinton Tramways Company was a tramway system in the West Riding of Yorkshire, England, founded in 1902 and which began services in 1907 linking Rotherham with the Old Toll Bar, Mexborough. Its routes served Manvers Main Colliery, Wath upon Dearne and the towns of Rotherham, Rawmarsh, Swinton and Mexborough.
The Chesterfield and District Tramways Company and its successors ran a tramway system in the Derbyshire town of Chesterfield, England. The first horse-drawn line opened in 1882, and in 1897, the system was taken over by Chesterfield Corporation, who extended and electrified it in 1904 and 1905. Additional tramcars were purchased, but two had to be scrapped after a disastrous fire at the depot in 1916. The system suffered from a lack of maintenance as a result of reduced staffing levels during the First World War, and the trams were replaced by trolleybuses in 1927.
The stud contact system is an obsolete ground-level power supply system for electric trams. Power supply studs were set in the road at intervals and connected to a buried electric cable by switches operated by magnets on the tramcars. Current was collected from the studs by a "skate" or "ski collector" under the tramcar. The system was popular for a while in the early 1900s but soon fell out of favour because of the unreliability of the magnetic switches, largely due to friction and rapid corrosion affecting its cast iron moving components.
Derby Corporation Tramways was the tram system serving the city of Derby, England. It opened on 27 July 1904.
Dundee Corporation Tramways formerly served the City of Dundee in Scotland. The corporation had financed the construction of a horse tramway in 1877, but had then leased it to the Dundee and District Tramways Company. They had replaced most of the horse trams with steam tram locomotives pulling trailer cars from 1884, but in 1897 the corporation decided that it would run the tramway system itself. After some negotiation and the payment of compensation, they took over the system in 1899, with a view to electrifying it. Electric trams started running in 1900, and the changeover was completed in 1902.
Between 1901 and 1949 Manchester Corporation Tramways was the municipal operator of electric tram services in Manchester, England. At its peak in 1928, the organisation carried 328 million passengers on 953 trams, via 46 routes, along 292 miles (470 km) of track.
Luton Corporation Tramways served the town of Luton in Bedfordshire from 21 February 1908 until 16 April 1932.
Peterborough Tramways served the city of Peterborough from 24 January 1903 until 15 November 1930.
Southend-on-Sea Corporation Tramways served the town of Southend-on-Sea in Essex from 19 July 1901 until 8 April 1942.
Torquay Tramways operated electric street trams in Torquay, Devon, England, from 1907. They were initially powered by the unusual Dolter stud-contact electrification, but in 1911 was converted to more conventional overhead-line supply. The line was extended into neighbouring Paignton in 1911 but the whole network was closed in 1934.
Bournemouth Corporation Tramways served the town of Bournemouth in Dorset from 23 July 1902 until 8 April 1936.
Lincoln Tramways Company operated a horse-drawn tramway service in Lincoln, England, between 1882 and 1905.
Wolverhampton Corporation Tramways operated a tramway service in Wolverhampton between 1902 and 1928.
The City of Oxford and District Tramway Company and its successor the City of Oxford Electric Traction Company operated a horse-drawn passenger tramway service in Oxford between 1881 and 1914. The tramway was unusual for having a track gauge of only 4 feet (1.219 m).
Hastings and District Electric Tramways operated a tramway service in Hastings between 1905 and 1929.
Halifax Corporation Tramways operated a tramway service in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England between 1898 and 1939. After considering lifts and inclined planes to assist trams in negotiating the steep hills to the south of the town, they obtained permission to build a conventional system in 1897, and the first three routes opened in 1898. By 1905 there were 37 miles (60 km) of track and 96 tramcars, supplied by two manufacturers. In 1921, an additional route was added to the system, and the Corporation embarked on a programme of building their own tramcars, some of which replaced existing vehicles, while some extended the fleet. During the 1930s, the trams were gradually replaced by motor buses, either run by the Corporation or by private companies, and the last tram ran on 14 February 1939.
Huddersfield Corporation Tramways operated a tramway service in Huddersfield, England, between 1883 and 1940. It initially used steam locomotives pulling unpowered tramcars, but as the system was expanded, a decision was taken to change to electric traction in 1900, and the first electric trams began operating in February 1901. The system was built to the unusual gauge of 4 ft 7+3⁄4 in, in the hope that coal wagon from neighbouring coal tramways, which used that gauge, could be moved around the system. This did not occur, but two coal trams were used to delivered coal to three mills.
The Great Grimsby Street Tramways Company was a tramway serving Grimsby and Cleethorpes in Lincolnshire, England. It was a subsidiary of The Provincial Tramways Company. They opened a horse tramway in 1881, running from the Wheatsheaf Inn in Bargate to the border with Cleethorpes, with a branch along Freeman Street, and extended the line into Cleethorpes in 1887. It followed the trend of many British systems, and was converted to an electric tramway in December 1901. Small extensions were made to the system at both ends, but the basic plan of the system remained the same throughout its life.
Bradford Corporation Tramways were a tramway network in the city of Bradford, West Riding of Yorkshire, England which operated trams from 1882 until 1950 and trolleybuses from 1911 until 1972. The track gauge of the tramways was 4 ft.