List of town tramway systems in India
Trams in India were established in the late 19th century. Horse-drawn trams were introduced in Kolkata in 1873; in Mumbai and Chennai, trams began operations in 1874; in Nashik in 1889; electric trams began in Chennai in 1895, and trams were also introduced in Kanpur and Delhi. They were discontinued in all Indian cities between 1933 and 1964, except for trams in Kolkata.
Kolkata (Calcutta)
[Image:Kolkata transport.jpg|thumb|alt=Two-car, white-and-orange tram|Tram in Kolkata]Trams in Kolkata, West Bengal are operated by the West Bengal Transport Corporation. It is the only operating tram network in India and the oldest operating electric tram in Asia, running since 1902. There are 257 trams in total, of which 125 used to run daily on the Kolkata streets, but only 25 trams run daily nowadays. The single-deck articulated cars can carry 200 passengers.
The first horse-drawn trams in India ran a distance between Sealdah and Armenian Ghat Street on 24 February 1873. The service was discontinued on 20 November of that year. The Calcutta Tramway Company was formed and registered in London on 22 December 1880. Metre-gauge horse-drawn tram tracks were laid from Sealdah to Armenian Ghat via Bowbazar Street, Dalhousie Square and Strand Road. The route was inaugurated by Viceroy Ripon on 1 November 1880. In 1882, steam locomotives were deployed experimentally to haul tram cars. By the end of the 19th century, the company owned 166 tram cars, 1,000 horses, seven steam locomotives and 19 miles of tram tracks. In 1900, electrification of the tramway and reconstruction of its tracks to began. In 1902, the first electric tramcar in Calcutta ran from Esplanade to Kidderpore on 27 March and on 14 June from Esplanade to Kalighat.
Mumbai (Bombay)
A mass public-transport system for Mumbai was proposed in 1865 by an American company, which applied for a licence to operate a horse-drawn tram system. Although a licence was granted, the project was never realised due to the city's economic depression.The Bombay Tramway Company was set up in 1873. After a contract was signed between the Bombay Tramway Company, the municipality and the Stearns and Kitteredge company, the Bombay Presidency enacted the Bombay Tramways Act, 1874 licensing the company to run a horsecar tram service in the city. On 9 May 1874, the first horse-drawn carriage made its début in the city, plying the Colaba–Pydhone via Crawford Market, and Bori Bunder to Pydhonie via Kalbadevi routes. The initial fare was three annas, and no tickets were issued. As the service became increasingly popular, the fare was reduced to two annas. Later that year, tickets were issued to curb increasing ticket-less travel. Stearns and Kitteredge reportedly had a stable of 1,360 horses over the lifetime of the service.
In 1899, the Bombay Tramway Company applied to the municipality to operate electric trams. In 1904, the British Electric Traction Company applied for a license to supply electricity to the city with the Brush Electrical Engineering Company its agent. It received the Bombay electric license on 31 July 1905, signed by Bombay Tramways Company, the Bombay Municipality and the Brush Electrical Company. In 1905, the Bombay Electric Supply and Tramway Company was formed. BEST received a monopoly on electric supply and an electric tram service in the city, and bought the Bombay Tramway Company's assets for. Two years later, the first electric tram debuted in the city. Later that year, a steam power generator was commissioned at Wari Bunder. In 1916, a power purchase from Tata Power began, and by 1925, all power generation was outsourced from Tata. To ease rush-hour traffic, double-decker trams were introduced in September, 1920. The trams met travellers' needs until the betterment of the city's train network, and the service closed on 31 March 1964.
Chennai (Madras)
Chennai was the third city in India to get a tramway for passenger carriage. The first horse-drawn tram service in Madras began operations in June, 1874, shortly after the opening of the tramway in Bombay. The tramway used metre gauge tracks and operated on several routes, the chief of them being a route between Royapuram and Triplicane. The tramway was in service for a few years, but like the early horse-drawn trams in Calcutta, it had to be discontinued due to poor financial returns.Tramways saw a revival in the city with the opening of the Madras Electric Tramways in 1895, connecting the docks and the inland areas, carrying goods and passengers. When the system began on 7 May 1895, it was India's oldest electric tram system and it is the first electric tram system in India. The original conduit system was replaced by a conventional overhead wire system after a series of destructive monsoons. The trams could carry heavy loads and were popular, with thousands of riders daily. The route included Mount Road, Parry's Corner, Poonamallee Road and the Ripon Building. At its height in 1921, 97 cars ran on of track. The tram company went bankrupt about 1950, and the system closed on 12 April 1953.