Brussels Urban Transport Museum
The Brussels Urban Transport Museum, also known as the Tram Museum, is a transport museum in Woluwe-Saint-Pierre, a municipality of Brussels, Belgium.
Located in an old tram depot, the museum displays a collection of trams and buses from different eras in the history of public transport in Brussels. It is situated at 364b, avenue de Tervueren/Tervurenlaan, opposite Woluwe Park. This site is served by the bus and tram stop Musée du Tram/Trammuseum.
Location
The museum is housed in part of an old tram depot in the Brussels municipality of Woluwe-Saint-Pierre. The tram depot consists of two parts: one part containing the museum and maintenance areas for the historic trams and the other part that is still used by the Brussels Intercommunal Transport Company. The Musée du Tram/Trammuseum stop along lines 8, 36, 39 and 44 is also located at this depot.History
Woluwe depot
The first tram depot at this location dates back to 1897 and was built as part of the International Exposition of 1897. Its history is closely linked to the prestigious Avenue de Tervueren/Tervurenlaan, realised in 1896–97 by the contractor, based on plans by the architect and urbanist. The avenue and tramline were constructed at the behest of King Leopold II to connect the exhibition sites at the Parc du Cinquantenaire/Jubelpark and the Palace of the Colonies, in the suburb of Tervuren. Parmentier received a 50-year concession for the line, which he transferred to the '. The narrow-gauge line was inaugurated in May 1897, with the Woluwe depot then comprising a single shed, a small workshop, a power station, and an administrative building.After the BIB was taken over by ' in 1899, the line was upgraded to standard gauge, like the rest of the Brussels tramway network. In 1907–08, the depot was expanded: the storage capacity tripled, the workshop and power station were demolished, two new sheds were built and extended to Bovenberg, and the administrative building was enlarged with a residence along the Rue du Leybeek/Leybeekstraat. The depot remained largely unchanged until 1941, when the rear of the first shed was converted to a staff canteen, offices, and workshops. By 1952, the Woluwe depot covered, had of indoor tracks, a capacity of 285 vehicles, and operated 14 tram lines.
Museum
Around 1976, the first two halls of the depot were out of use. In September 1976, these halls were gradually abandoned and transformed into exhibition halls to establish a transport museum. The first exhibitions were held in June 1977. STIB/MIVB decided to convert these halls into an exhibition space where historic vehicles have been on display since 1977.In 1982, STIB/MIVB entrusted the management of the museum to the non-profit organisation Brussels Urban Transport Museum, whose first members were mostly STIB/MIVB staff and public transit enthusiasts. It consists entirely of volunteers, many of whom are also STIB/MIVB staff members. Although both the buildings and the collection are owned by STIB/MIVB, they are maintained by the volunteers of the non-profit organisation.
The building was designated a historic monument on 29 November 2001. It was thoroughly renovated between 2006 and 2009. Nowadays, the third hall remains an active STIB/MIVB depot, housing about 30 trams that serve lines 39, 44, and part of line 8. Over the coming years, it will be partly rebuilt to its 1945 condition.