Birmingham Corporation Tramways operated a network of tramways in Birmingham from 1904 until 1953. It was the largest narrow-gauge tramway network in the UK, and was built to a gauge of. It was the fourth largest tramway network in the UK behind London, Glasgow and Manchester. There were a total of 843 trams (with a maximum of 825 in service at any one time), 20 depots, 45 main routes and a total route length of 80+1/2 mi. Birmingham Corporation built all the tramways and leased the track to various companies. Birmingham was a pioneer in the development of reserved trackways which served the suburban areas as the city grew in the 1920s and 1930s.

History

The first trams operated in Birmingham from 1872, and the network expanded throughout the late 19th century. Initially these were horse and steam operated, the first electric trams operated from 1901. Under the terms of the Tramways Act 1870 (33 & 34 Vict. c. 78) the Birmingham Corporation owned all of the tracks within the city boundaries, however, they were forbidden from operating the trams themselves, and so various private companies operated them under lease. It wasn't until 1904 that the Birmingham Corporation took advantage of new legislation, which allowed it to operate trams in its own right as the original concessions expired. By 1912, the corporation had taken over all of the privately operated lines, it also took over other district tramways as the city boundaries were expanded. BCT continued to expand the network into a comprehensive system, and also took over routes extending into the Black Country. The last new route to Stechford was opened in 1928. Decline set in during the 1930s, when several tram lines were converted to trolleybus operation, as this was seen as being a more economic option than replacing worn out track and rolling stock. Several of the least used lines were also abandoned, and replaced by diesel buses. Reflecting the fact that it now operated buses and trolleybuses as well as trams, BCT changed its name to Birmingham City Transport in 1937. However, most of the tram network remained in operation until large scale closures began in 1947. The last three lines to Short Heath, Pype Hayes and Erdington were closed simultaneously on 4 July 1953. Trams eventually returned to the streets of Birmingham on 6 December 2015, after a 62-year gap, when the first part of the Midland Metro city-centre extension was opened to Bull Street tram stop.

Timeline

Routes

Depots and Works

Tramcar fleet

Statistics

Surviving artefacts and infrastructure

Tramcars

Shelters

Depots

Track

Literature

Video and DVD