Watch in pics: 140 year old public transport of India, Trams

New Delhi: The trams were introduced by the British in the 19th century. A tram is a rail vehicle that runs on tracks in urban streets. It is shorter in size than the rail. It runs on electricity thus saves fuel costs. Tram transport was first introduced in Madras in 1895. These were then introduced in Kolkata, Mumbai, Kanpur, Delhi. The transport system has almost faded in all these cities except Kolkata.Let's explore this 140 year old vintage era transportation system in pictures: 1. Trams began in Madras on 7 May, 1985 it was the first electric tram system in India. Run by the Madras Electricity System (MES), trams on rails dominated Chennai roads back then and remained a convenient mode of transport for office-goers. 2. The trams moved when road traffic was not much and people did not own cars. The service came to a stop in 1953 as the company went bankrupt. 3. The Kolkata Tram system began on 24th February, 1873. The trams were owned by Calcutta Tramway Co. Ltd. The service did not attract enough passengers. In 1880, a longer horse drawn service was introduced. By the end of 19th century, the service owned 186 tramcars, 1,000 horses and 30 km of track.4. 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 the Viceroy, Lord Ripon.Then the system was electrified in 1900. By 1943, it was connected to Howrah and the total track reached 67 kms. 5. Today, the trams are finding tough to compete with the new mode of transport as the passenger intake is low. Also, the maintenance cost is a factor of their vanishing.6. Earlier, 275 tramcars carried 7, 50,000 passengers every day. Now, 170 tramcars carry about 160,000 passengers every day. 7. The employees also get paid late due to low turnover. The decline in the number of passengers is due to the slow speed and long journey of a tram, although the costs are cheap. 8. In Bombay, trams were the first modern means of conveyance which earlier depended upon horse-drawn carriages. The government enacted the Bombay Tramways Act, 1874 (under which the present Metro and Monorail projects are implemented) for operating trams in Mumbai.The first tram, begun between Parel and Colaba on 9 May 1874, was drawn by six to eight horses. (Stearns and Kitteredge reportedly had a stable of 900 horses when tram service began). Electrified tram service began on 7 May 1907. Double-deck tram service began in September 1920; at the peak of service in 1935, 433 trams ran on 47 kilometres (29 mi) of track. The trams met travelers' needs until the advent of trains; the service closed on 31 March 1964. 9. The Delhi tram system opened on March 6, 1908 and by 1921 there were 15 km of track and 24 cars. The system closed in 1963. 10. Trams were introduced in Kanpur (Cawnpore) in June 1907. The tram system opened in June 1907 and closed on May 16, 1933. There were 4 miles of track and 20 single-deck open trams. The single line connected the railway station with Sirsaya Ghat on the banks of the Ganges.