Many cities throughout the world have planned or are planning major investments in tram transport in order to cut down car congestion. Eric Russell reports.

The laying of tram tracks is relatively straightforward where the line has to run over existing roads, which already have foundations that have to support the heaviest vehicles. This will help the city of Toronto which is planning a major move to tram transport.
Major investment is planned to turn streets in Toronto into corridors for public transport only. In an effort to reduce congestion, Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) wants to give buses and streetcars priority on certain key streets in the city.
It proposes the creation of transit malls, or public transport only corridors in the city centre, where buses and streetcars have segregated lanes and priority at road junctions. On all these transit malls traffic signals would give priority to public transport.
Streetcars have been part of Toronto life since 1861 and are a famous symbol of the city. The Commission considers that if they could move more quickly through the city streets it would benefit everyone, although the motorists' lobby disagrees. The TTC is now undertaking a period of public consultation before a decision to go ahead can be taken.
Tram infrastructure engineering can also be minimised by using rubber-tyred vehicles, as the French town of Caen in Normandy has chosen. It says these vehicles are not trolley buses, because they send the return current through a central rail instead of an overhead wire.
They are steered by an arm which drops into a single centre rail and also provides a return path for the negative traction current. The concept enables the new tramway is to be 40 per cent cheaper than traditional tramways.

Buffer zones

The tramway uses a purpose-built reserved street section, designed to also act as a buffer area between the pedestrian pavement and road. Cars are banned from using the reserved section. This also allows the trams to average 20kph during the journey, 30 per cent faster than buses.
The 34 stations are fully wheelchair-accessible, as are the trams, and are spaced about 300m to 400m apart. The maximum gradient allowed by the rubber tyred system is 13 per cent (1 in 8), which allows trams to reach critical areas of the city centre and the city's old quarters.
To broaden its transport services, the local authority has expanded its bus network to make it complement the tram services; provided more car and cycle parks; built platform-to-platform connections between tram and bus services; created a one-price tram/bus ticket; and tripled its existing cycle route network to encourage environmentally-friendly transport.
The trams are Bombardier GLT tram-on-tyre three-car articulated units with a maximum capacity of almost 200 people each, 154 seated plus 41 standing. They are powered by Alstom 300kW traction motors. An auxiliary 200kW diesel engine is available for running off route and at the depot, powering the traction motors.
The vehicles are single-ended, to create more space for passengers, and are treated as road vehicles under French traffic law, so they cannot run in multiples.
The tramway is also producing a change in lifestyle for the people of Caen. It is enabling districts to be opened up and revitalised, creating links between central and outer districts, bringing living and working areas closer together and promoting access to public transport for the disabled.

Longest tram

The world's longest tram has been delivered to Dresden in Germany by Bombardier Transportation. Twenty of the 45m long units will be delivered by August 2004. The operator, Dresdner Verkehrsbetriebe, has an option for 50 additional trams.
The new vehicles, type NGTD12DD, which are part of Bombardier's LF2000 vehicle family, are being manufactured at the company's site in Bautzen, Germany. They are three metres longer than their predecessor. The new five-car units feature bogie technology. All entrances are low-floor.
The tram, which has been designed for high-density lines, offers capacity for a total of 260 passengers, of which 107 can be seated. The vehicles meet the strict requirements of Dresdner Verkehrsbetriebe for passenger comfort, with features such as monitors and video cameras for maximum passenger information and safety.
An unconventional transport system is attracting great interest in Cardiff. As the vehicles resemble cars and run in guideways on existing streets, they could be called the real streetcar.
The concept meets the needs of people more closely than anything before and its flexibility is probably the closest that a transport system can come to that of the car.
Called ULTra, Urban Light Transport, it is the brainchild of Professor Martin Lowson of Bristol University. It is an on-demand system of personal driverless vehicles travelling automatically on their own guideway matrix and is being implemented by Advanced Transport Systems Ltd (ATS), a spin-out company from the University in conjunction with partners Arup and AMEC.
Vehicles are battery powered and require 2kW during continuous running. They carry four people, weigh 800kg gross and have a maximum speed of 40kph.

Safe design

Professor Lowson says safety was a prime consideration in the design. ULTra is fundamentally safe because it operates one way only in its own designated and segregated guideway. A detection system automatically stops the vehicle if there is an obstacle in the way. The prospect of breakdown has been minimised by designing to aircraft standards of reliability.
Vehicles steer themselves through junctions on the guideway following a magnetic track. This means the guideway can be an entirely passive structure, with no points to change, for example. This reduces capital cost and maintenance needs.
In many areas, stores or car parks can be used as stations. These will be built in a lay-by so other vehicles can pass without being held up. Empty vehicles recirculate automatically on the network for the next fare.
Lowson is convinced that lead acid batteries are the ideal power source for such transport systems. He says ULTra is environmentally friendly as it consumes 75 per cent less energy per passenger kilometre than a car, less than 50 per cent of the energy per passenger kilometre of a bus and 80 per cent less energy per passenger kilometre than a tram or light rail system. Journeys are also three times quicker than by bus, car or light rail.
With electric drive and tyred wheels, vehicles are also quiet. They are spacious and can accommodate wheelchair users, bicycles or pushchairs, luggage and shopping.
Entry to the vehicle is only possible with a valid ticket. This reduces the risk of vandalism. Damage within the vehicle would probably be detected by a sensor suite and, on detection, the vehicle would be diverted to a manned station where the issues could be dealt with. Personal security measures are also included.

Low cost

A variety of studies have suggested that the system as a whole will cost between one third and one half of an equivalent light rail scheme.
Professor Lowson says many of today's traffic problems result from the way that our environment has developed. ULTra matches the way cities have developed with many features of central city life having moved out to the city edges.
He says ULTra is attracting great interest from around the world and several local authorities are considering pilot studies of the system. He says this may be due to the low cost of the guideway, which can be less than laying pavements.
In another capital, London, the most populous borough, Croydon, is a major commuter and commercial conurbation. Sited 15miles south of the capital's centre, it has grown tremendously during the latter part of the 20th century and now has a population of 320000, making it the equivalent of Britain's seventh largest city.
This has led to roads across the borough becoming choked with traffic, and to the adoption of trams as a solution to the resulting problems.
Bombardier built the 24 trams for the system, at a cost of £35million, including a maintenance agreement. The design is based on the K4000 series vehicles which have proved successful in Cologne, Germany.

Two-bodied units

Each tram consists of two long car bodies, joined by a short intermediate section with a trailer bogie. Bogies at either end of the tram are motorised, and above these are the only sections of the vehicles which do not have low floors.
Two areas on each unit are designated for use by disabled passengers, or passengers with prams or bicycles. Each unit can carry 209 passengers, 74 seated and 135 standing. Top speed is 80kmh.
Propulsion and control equipment includes automatic anti-slip devices, load detection, brake force control, and an electronic diagnostic system. Each tram stop is equipped with a shelter with integrated passenger information and help points connected to the control room.
A recently released study shows that over 7000 car journeys a day have transferred to Croydon Tramlink since its introduction in May 2000. Tramlink now accounts for 15 per cent of journeys made in the week and 17 per cent at the weekend. The main reasons for this success are that Tramlink has proved to be faster, more reliable and more comfortable than people's previously-used form of transport.
That appears to be a key factor is persuading the travelling public to leave their cars behind and can only increase the popularity of trams generally.