Interesting Links for 25-05-2025

[andrewducker]

1. How Coventry is building a tram for a tiny fraction of what it cost Edinburgh

(tags:trams construction UK GoodNews )

Comments

[bens_dad]

Thanks.

[andrewducker]

You're very welcome.

I hope that in ten years we're looking back and saying "Gosh, that certainly made it much easier to build trams, didn't it, aren't thing great!" rather than "Shame about what happened to Coventry's trams, and how they all fell apart after 6 months."

[myka]

flippin heck coventry is getting a tram before leeds! 😬

[hano]

Chatting to people on the Railnatter Discord and the response is somewhat guarded. As one person said:

"What's being done in Coventry isn't a conventional tram but rather 'Very Light Rail' - essentially a new kind of track laying where the track can be laid with minimal excavation, thereby avoiding the need to reroute utilities and such. This is something that's been in development for many years, and as of this month a 250m test track in Coventry city centre has finally been laid to demonstrate actual tram operations.

Unfortunately the vehicles themselves are awful: battery-powered (so space is immediately lost to battery packs), full-size driver's cabs at each end, and individual 'pod' vehicles rather than segmented tram-style vehicles. The hope is, that the track aspect will be a success, and the vehicles will be replaced by proper tram-style vehicles when it comes to actually developing the system.

There's also concern that this will be used as an excuse to not build conventional trams in larger cities; Coventry is 'too small' for a conventional tram but large enough to justify a transit system, but if this concept is successful it's possible that authorities (and central government) may see it as a solve-all solution in places where a proper tram or even subway would be better.
So, overall very cautious optimism as long as the glaring issues get recognised."

[andrewducker]

Thank you, that's fascinating! The kind of detailed response that I'm always hoping for!

[hairyears]

I would guess that battery power, with rapid charging points at the route's ends, is way cheaper (in the short term) and faster to build than the overhead wires and new electrical infrastructure.

It'll work if the trams are at the very light end of light railway.