FUTURE OF TRAMWAYS

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 71, Issue 290, 7 December 1928, Page 11

FUTURE OF TRAMWAYS

“CARS NOT YET DOOMED” WHAT GLASGOW IS DOING Occasionally an Australian who has . been abroad arrives home declaring that in Great Britain “everywhere trams arc being scrapped in favour of buses,” says the Melbourne Age. The paper goes on to say;—“Transport journals, even those which cater , exclusively for the motor trade, have been strangely silent on this most interesting phenomenon and officials of the Tramways Board when questioned have confessed that they know of no city of any jmportanco which is scrap ping its trams. Some light has been ■ thrown on the mystery by English papers. “Wolverhampton, it appears, has purchased the local tramway undertaking and has given a motor-bus company the exclusive right of running bus services in tho ‘city.’ This sounds imposing until it is realised that the trams operated over six miles of route only and that the undertaking was purchased for £58,000. Swindon too, is ‘scrapping’ its trams. The extent of that system is so great that it will be dealt with by 15 buses after March 31, 1929. “For the year which ended June 30 lasi the averse number of electrn. am? -cable cars in daily use in Melbourne was 629 or 648 if buses wore included. Among the largo cities abroad Glasgow has ordered 50 new tramcars, is reconstructing 150 of the o-d cars and at the rate of 25 a week is rewiring the cars to give electric heating in cold weather. Apparently the tiamcar is not yet doomed.”