The Modern Tramway in the mid-20th century. ...

‘The Modern Tramway‘ was the title of the journal of the Light Railway Transport League.


I picked up a small batch of copies of The Modern Tramway Journal which included volumes from the 1950s, 1960s and 1980s and have begun reading through them. The first Journal that I have is dated 15th July 1953. At the time of writing it is almost 70 years old.


Volume 16 No. 187 of July 1953 starts with an item entitled, “Tramways and the Press.” Starting with a specific instance of dubious reporting by the national dailies about tram parts being sent to Egypt, the article bemoans the way that tramways were increasingly being seen by the public, led by the press, as an outmoded form of transport.

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2023/06/07/the-modern-tramway-part-1/

 

Great comments about the Vienna tram system, it's a city that shows what the UK lost by doing away with them. These are a few shots from a visit in 2018, the older design trams somehow fit the architecture of the city nicely though their days are numbered and in this case old is a design dating from 1978 I believe. The city has a tremendous U-bahn as well which feels far less claustrophobic than London.

 

A second extract from The Modern Tramway Journal in 1953. .......

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2023/06/08/the-modern-tramway-part-2/

 

The Modern Tramway Journal from August 1953. ...

The editorial focussed on public attitudes to the final replacement of London's trams. ....

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2023/06/11/the-modern-tramway-part-3/

 

The Modern Tramway again. ...

Still in 1953. ... August of that year.

This is a note about a visit to Ireland by members of the Light Railway Transport League in June 1953.

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2023/06/1...touring-irelands-light-railways-in-june-1953/

 

A fifth look at the Journal of the Light Railway Transport League in the mid-1950s. ....

The Modern Tramway Journal of April

1954 took issue with the interpretation of a Road Research Laboratory Report by the London Transport Executive. The press release from the LTE was slanted in favour of decisions made about the closure of the tramway services in the capital ....

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2023/06/15/the-modern-tramway-part-5-trams-and-road-accidents/

 

The Modern Tramway again. .....

Articulated trams are relatively normal in today's world. There was a time when this was not the case. Much of Europe, save for the Italians, preferred to create tram trains from individual units and trailers. This was seen as being a more flexible policy.

Stuttgart decided to to try out articulated vehicles in the 1950s.

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2023/06/1...part-6-modern-articulated-cars-for-stuttgart/

 

The Modern Tramway again. .....

In January 1957 the Journal reported on the decision by the Manx Government to take over the Manx Electric Tramway. ......

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2023/06/19/the-modern-tramway-part-7-the-manx-electric-railway/

 

'The Modern Tramway’ – Leeds City Tramways, 1956. …

The Modern Tramway Journal in February 1957 carried an article about the tramways of Leeds. The data for the article was collated by A.K. Terry and the article was written by J.H. Price.

The Suez crisis brought a temporary halt to a number of things within the UK economy. One of these was the planned scrapping of the tram routes and tramcars in Leeds. That pause provided the opportunity for the Light Railway Transport League to compile a map, fleet list and list of services for the city. ...

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2023/06/22/the-modern-tramway-part-8-leeds-city-tramways-1956/

 

The Modern Tramway – Part 9 – More About Accidents (in London)

‘The Modern Tramway’ in March 1957 (Volume 20, No. 231) carried a follow-up article [1] to that carried by the Journal in April 1954. The original article is covered earlier in this thread.

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2023/06/24/the-modern-tramway-part-9-more-about-accidents-in-london/

 

‘The Modern Tramway’ – April 1957 – “Down the ‘Goldmine'”
The Modern Tramway Journal of April 1957 included a nostalgic look at one of the Glasgow tram network’s successes. An ‘out-boundary’ route, No. 28, which at one time was part of the longest tram route in the UK, almost 23 miles in length. End to end it was a 2 hour tram journey. At that time, the early 1930s, the route from Renfrew Ferry to Milngavie was numbered 14. “In 1934 it was cut at Spiersbridge and renumbered 28, and on 3rd April 1949, the Glenfield – Cross Stobs section was closed.” The truncated line (No. 28) ran from Renfrew Ferry to Glenfield – a distance of 5.24 miles.


http://rogerfarnworth.com/2023/06/29/the-modern-tramway-april-1957-down-the-goldmine/

 

The Modern Tramway, May 1957 – Rotterdam’s Trams in the 1950s

This short article could be entitled, ‘The Modern Tramway takes on the Manchester Guardian‘. In. Its May 1957 journal the Light Railway Transport League asks whether its readers had read the Manchester Guardian on 22nd January. The featured image shows trams in Rotterdam in May 1957.

In an article entitled ‘A Twisted Tale’, The Modern Tramway Journal was surprised to see the Manchester Guardian being taken in by the spirit of the current age which was decidedly anti-tram!

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2023/07/01/the-modern-tramway-may-1957-rotterdams-trams/

 

A short retrospective look back at London tramways at the end of the 1940s. ....

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2023/07/07/the-modern-tramway-a-quick-look-back-at-1949-in-london/

 

In the 1950s, a tram Glasgow purchased some years before, a 'one-off', unidirectional double decker car which it numbered 1005 and which was sometimes known as the 'Blue Devil' for its unconventional three tone blue colour scheme, was put forward by the LIght Railway Transport League as an option for trails that the League hoped might happen in London.

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2023/07/08/glasgow-tramcar-no-1005/

 

The final three years of the historic tram network in London ... and Operation Tramaway. ...

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2023/07/17/london-tramways-1950-1951-and-1952/

 

The 'Modern Tramway' reported in January & February 1963 on a relatively short-lived experiment on Blackpool's trams. The Marton route was an inland route through Blackpool which complemented the promenade route.

The two articles were written by F.K. Pearson who suggested that his articles could perhaps have been entitled, 'The Experiment That Didn't Quite ...'

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2023/07/29/modern-tramway-blackpool-the-marton-experiment/