Pimlico, Peckham and Greenwich Street Tramways

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The Pimlico, Peckham and Greenwich Street Tramways Company operated horse-drawn trams in south and south-east London as part of the larger London tram network . The company operated standard-gauge lines with a total length of 20.7 kilometers from 1870 to 1873 .

history

In 1869 the Pimlico, Peckham and Greenwich Street Tramways Company applied for a concession for a route from Vauxhall Station via Kennington Oval , Camberwell , Peckham , New Cross and Deptford to Blackheath , which was approved on July 12, 1869 and built until 1872. On August 10, 1870, the company received a second concession for several route sections, namely an extension of the first route to Vauxhall Bridge , a branch route from Deptford Bridge to Greenwich , and a second route from Camberwell via Elephant and Castle to Blackfriars Bridge , a third from Westminster Bridge Road via Bricklayers Arms to New Cross and a fourth from Victoria Station to Vauxhall Bridge. All of these lines were built until 1872. The opening of the line to Victoria Station, which was completed in October 1872, was delayed until after the takeover of the railway company in 1873, as there were still disputes about the location of the depot for this line and this could only be built in the course of 1873 .

The routes were opened as follows:

Line openings of the Pimlico, Peckham and Greenwich Street Tramways Company
date route
December 13, 1870 New Cross, New Cross Road / Queen's Road - New Cross Road - Deptford Bridge - Blackheath Road - Blackheath Hill, Greenwich South Street
March 5, 1871 Blackheath Road / Greenwich High Road - Greenwich High Road - Greenwich Church Street - Nelson Road - Romney Road - Trafalgar Road - Greenwich, William IV (King William Lane)
May 1, 1871 Shard Arms Public House - Old Kent Road - New Cross Road - New Cross, Queen's Road
July 2, 1871 Bricklayer's Arms - Old Kent Road - Shard Arms Public House
September 1, 1871 Blackfriars Bridge (south side) - Blackfriars Road - St. George's Circus
September 6, 1871 St. George's Circus - London Road - Elephant and Castle - New Kent Road - Bricklayer's Arms
September 25, 1871 Westminster Bridge Road / Kennington Road - Westminster Bridge Road - St. George's Circus
Elephant and Castle - Walworth Road - Camberwell Road - Camberwell Green
January 29, 1872 Camberwell Green - Peckham Road - Peckham High Street - Queen's Road - New Cross Road-Queen's Road
April 15, 1872 Vauxhall Bridge (east side) - Vauxhall Bridge Road - Harleyford Road - Kennington Oval (south side) - Harleyford Street - Camberwell New Road - Camberwell Green
October 20, 1873 Victoria Station - Vauxhall Bridge Road - Vauxhall Bridge (west side) (completed October 1872, opening only through the London Tramways)

The Vauxhall Bridge itself was not allowed to be crossed. The company therefore set up a provisional horse-drawn bus service across the bridge, which tied Victoria Station until the opening of the railway in Pimlico in October 1873 and then connected the two ends of the horse-drawn railway on both sides of the bridge. The temporary arrangement was to remain in place until 1906. As early as 1871, the railway company began to work with the Metropolitan Street Tramways and was allowed to use their route from Westminster Bridge to the Westminster Bridge Road / Kennington Road junction. On July 28, 1873, the London Tramways Company was authorized to buy up the two railway companies that ceased to exist. Most of the lines were in operation until 1952.

vehicles

The vehicles were two-story with an open upper deck. Nothing is known about the number and the manufacturer. However, it is known that the vehicles were fitted with curtains and seat covers made of velvet and carpeted floors.

literature

  • John R. Day: London's Trams and Trolleybuses . London Transport, London 1977, ISBN 0-85329-082-2 (English).
  • ER Oakley: London County Council Tramways, Vol. 1 - South London . London Tramways History Group, Bexleyheath 1989, ISBN 0-9513001-0-5 (English).
  • John Reed: London Tramways . Capital Transport Publishing, Harrow Weald 1997, ISBN 1-85414-179-1 (English).