Tram users seek revival of key routes on 153rd anniversary
Tram users seek revival of key routes on 153rd anniversary
Tram users and transport activists on Monday renewed their demand for the restoration of services on key city corridors, marking the 153rd birth anniversary of Asia’s oldest surviving tram system with a blend of celebration and concern.
With tram operations now confined to only 2 truncated routes — Shyambazar–Dharmatala and Gariahat–Dharmatala — and services running irregularly, commuter groups said the shrinking network deepened the city’s transport crisis. They argued that despite skeletal operations, trams continued to attract a steady stream of passengers, reflecting a latent demand for the zero-emission mode of transport.
“To see such a robust, clean transport system with ready infrastructure being slowly dismantled is unfortunate,” said Debasish Bhattacharya, President of the Calcutta Tram Users Association (CTUA). “We are hearing how countries like Thailand are reviving tram systems. In Kolkata, trams can serve as feeder services to the expanding Metro network, making urban mobility cleaner and more integrated.”
To commemorate the milestone, enthusiasts flagged off a festively decorated vintage tram that completed a round trip along the 2 operational stretches. Passengers and tram lovers gathered onboard, cut a birthday cake, and held small cultural programmes, blending nostalgia with advocacy.
On February 24, 1873, Kolkata saw its first horse-drawn tram roll through its streets. Over time, the system transitioned to electric traction and expanded into a vast network. As recently as 2011, trams operated on 37 routes across the city. Today, only 2 remain.
The highlight of Monday’s observance was tram car number 498, a wooden-bodied carriage built at the Nonapukur workshop during World War II. According to tram chronicler Sagnik Gupta, the car was constructed under extraordinary circumstances. “With Japanese air raids targeting the then British city and strict deadlines from the Calcutta Tramways Company headquarters in London, workers built these L-Class trams at night by candlelight,” Gupta said.
After decades in passenger service, the tram was withdrawn and later used as a staff car. Its twin now stands at the Esplanade terminus as a museum named Smaranika. Recently restored, car 498 returned to the tracks on Monday, drawing applause from onlookers along the route.
For many Kolkatans, trams symbolise more than transport — they evoke memory, comfort, and a slower, gentler rhythm of city life. Yet legal uncertainties and policy indecision clouded their future.
CTUA members reiterated their demand that the 2016 proposal to introduce 19 air-conditioned trams be implemented. They pointed out that nearly 400 cities worldwide operate tram networks successfully, often as part of sustainable urban mobility plans. “The tram is intertwined with Kolkata’s identity,” Bhattacharya said. “It cannot be allowed to fade away.”