Milwaukee Tram

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tram
Milwaukee Tram
image
Basic information
Country United States
city Milwaukee
opening 2nd November 2018
Infrastructure
Route length 3.3 km
Gauge 1435 mm ( standard gauge )
Power system 750 V = overhead line / battery operation
Stops 10
business
Lines 1
Clock in the peak hours 10-15 min
vehicles 5 Brookville Liberty Modern Streetcar

The Milwaukee tram is the tram system of the US city ​​of Milwaukee in the state of Wisconsin, which has around 600,000 inhabitants .

Former trams

TMER & L railcar 846 from 1920 in a museum

In 1860, the first horse tram opened in Milwaukee . Lines operated by steam railcars were added later, followed by the first electric railcars in 1890 . In 1897 the first electric interurban tram ran from Milwaukee to Kenosha .

In 1905, the various railways were combined in the Milwaukee Electric Railway and Light Company (TMER & L). The global economic crisis led to a reduction in supply at the end of the 1920s. Overland routes were sold or closed and the railways replaced by buses. During the Second World War , this process was temporarily stopped because gasoline and tires were rationed, but the workers in the armaments factories had to be promoted.

The decline of the tram continued in the post-war period. The last train ran in Milwaukee on March 2, 1958.

Today's tram

Brookvolle railcars on test drive in Milwaukee in May 2018

On November 2, 2018, a new tram service opened in Milwaukee. The so far only line of the train called Milwaukee Streetcar or “The Hop” crosses the city center. The approximately 3.3 kilometers long route runs between the Burns Commons in the north and Intermodal Station . In the south of the center, in its central section, it is single-tracked in each direction through two parallel streets. It is standard gauge ; the trains are mainly supplied with a direct voltage of 750 volts via an overhead contact line , but run on a part of the line without catenary in battery mode .

At the Intermodal Station stop at the Milwaukee Rail and Bus Terminal Intermodal Station, you can transfer to Amtrak passenger and suburban trains , to city and regional buses from the Milwaukee County Transit System, and to long-distance buses .

vehicles

The route with ten stops is used by five double articulated railcars of the type Brookville Liberty Modern Streetcar , which were built by the Brookville Equipment Corporation . The three-part, 70% low-floor, bidirectional vehicles are 20.25 meters long and 2.64 mm wide. They have 32 seats and two doors on each side in the middle segment. During operation under the overhead line, your batteries are recharged for the section without contact lines.

Infrastructure

The depot was located in the basement of a parking garage at the Milwaukee Intermodal Station. Three substations supply the contact lines with electricity.

Rates

In the first year of operation, the tram could be used free of charge.

outlook

A loop-shaped single-track branch line to The Couture is planned for the opening in 2020 . A second line ("Lakefront Line") is to be used, which circles the center in a counter-clockwise direction using the existing single-track sections.

Web links

Commons : The Hop  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b The Hop is here at milwaukeemag.com, accessed on November 21, 2018
  2. ↑ a b c Milwaukee in: Blickpunkt Straßenbahn 6/2018, p. 171.
  3. ↑ a b c Milwaukee’s Streetcar Service Starts Friday, Here's How The Hop Works at wuwm.com, accessed on November 21, 2018