Swindon Corporation Tramways
| Swindon Corporation Tramways | |
|---|---|
 Decorated tram on Fleet Street in Swindon | |
| Operation | |
| Locale | Swindon, England |
| Open | 22 September 1904 |
| Close | 11 July 1929 |
| Status | Closed |
| Infrastructure | |
| Track gauge | 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) |
| Propulsion system(s) | Electric |
| Statistics | |
| Route length | 3.7 miles (6.0 km) |
Swindon Corporation Tramways operated an electric passenger tramway service in Swindon between 1904 and 1929.[1]
History
Swindon Corporation was the local council formed by the 1901 Municipal Borough charter,[2] with the amalgamation of the Old and New Swindon councils; a power station was built in Corporation Street. On the same site at SU 1522 8503 was the tram depot.
The corporation started to operate electric trams in 1904. A total of 3.75 miles (6.04 km) of 3 ft 6 in (1.07 m) gauge track was laid down from the Great Western Railway Station to Rodboume, Gorse Hill and the Market Square in Old Town. A small fleet of nine 48 seater trams were bought at the time of inception with four further cars purchased at a later date.
In 1906, the Swindon Tram disaster occurred. A number 11 tram taking passengers from the Bath and West Show being held in Old Town suffered brake failure driving down Victoria Hill and crashed in Regents Circus killing 5.[2]
Closure
After only 25 years of operation, Swindon's Trams were phased out by buses in 1929.[3]
Tramcar 13 survived and is under restoration.
References
- ^ The Golden Age of Tramways. Published by Taylor and Francis.
- ^ a b The Swindon Society (2000). A Century of Swindon. United Kingdom: Sutton Publishing. ISBN 0-7509-2889-1.
- ^ Mark Child (2002). Swindon : An Illustrated History. United Kingdom: Breedon Books Publishing. ISBN 1-85983-322-5.