Douglas Bay Horse Tramway

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Horse tram on the promenade in Douglas

The Douglas Bay Horse Tramway ( English for horse-tram at the Douglas Bay ), also known as Douglas Horse Tram ( horse tram from Douglas ) is a 1876 opened horse tram in Douglas , the capital of the British Crown Estates belonging Isle of Man . It runs 1.6 miles (approximately 2.8 km) from the Victoria Pier jetty to the Derby Castle terminus, where the Manx Electric Railway has its depot . It is one of the very few remaining horse trams in the world.

history

The Douglas Bay Horse Tramway was designed in the early 1870s by retired civil engineer Thomas Lightfoot , who was from Sheffield and who had his retirement home in Douglas, Isle of Man. The horse tram was built in 1876 and initially operated by Lightfoot. With exceptions during the Second World War, it operated every year without exception up to the present day.

In 1882 Lightfoot sold its train to Isle of Man Tramways Ltd, whose further history can be read under Manx Electric Railway . On January 2nd, 1902, the newly formed company had 33 vehicles and 60 horses .

Since 1929, the horse tram is operated as one of the very few remaining of its kind each year only seasonally in the summer months and remains as one of the most prominent tourist - attractions on the Isle of Man.

On January 22, 2016 it was announced that the railway would not be able to resume operations in 2016. For the city of Douglas as operator, the costs had become too high. The wagons were to be given to museums and the horses were to be sold. After vehement public criticism of the city's decision to discontinue, the island government announced on March 24, 2016 that the train would also run this year. The Tynwald , the Isle of Man's parliament, finally decided on July 20, 2016 that the horse-drawn tram should be operated by the island government's Ministry of Infrastructure until the end of the 2018 season. Until then, the ministry should examine how the horse-drawn tram systems can be taken over by the city. On August 7, 2016, the horse-drawn tram celebrated its 140th anniversary. In June 2018, the stables built in 1877 were placed under monument protection.

description

The railway has a narrow gauge of 914 mm (3 feet), runs double-track throughout the road surface except at the terminal stops and has 23 carriages and around 45 horses.

Over the years, different types of wagons have been used, and at least one of each type has been preserved. So-called "closed toastracks" are used most frequently - these are summer carriages with open sides and rows of seats arranged one behind the other across the street. However, closed wagons are also used again and again. However, the last surviving is rarely used double-deck - deck passenger coaches .

In the summer, the wagons stay in front of an inn near the terminus, but there is also a wagon hall where the vehicles spend the winter.

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Isle of Man Guide - Transportation, Horse Drawn Trams . Maxima Systems. Retrieved February 8, 2008.
  2. ↑ a b Andreas Mausolf: Party with Keith and colleagues. Isle of Man: 140 years of horse-drawn tram . Tram magazine 10/2016, pp. 28–29
  3. ↑ Archived copy ( memento of the original from January 22nd, 2016 in the web archive archive.today ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.iomtoday.co.im
  4. ^ Isle of Man Government - Department to operate horse tram service for 2016 season. In: www.gov.im. Retrieved July 14, 2016 .
  5. ↑ Gareth Prior: Summer Hill stables are put on protected register. British Trams Online News, June 22, 2018, accessed July 1, 2018 .

literature

  • Robert Hendry: Rails in the Isle of Man: A Color Celebration. Midland Publishing Limited, 1993, ISBN 1-85780-009-5 .
  • Keith Pearson: Douglas Horse Tramway - A Millennium Year History. 1st edition. Adam Gordon, 1999, ISBN 1-874422-25-7 .

Web links

Commons : Douglas Horse Tram  - Collection of images, videos and audio files