Innovations in tram and light rail systems

Some 350 tram or light rail transit (LRT) systems are operated worldwide. After a period of little interest in trams during the 1960s and heavy cutbacks or total abandonment of tram networks, a renaissance combined with sociological and technical innovations is now taking place, especially in North America and Western Europe. More than 100 cities worldwide are considering the introduction of a tram/ LRT system. After defining tram and LRT and dealing with nine different types of tram/LRT, this article focuses on current innovations mainly in German and European cities like Hannover, Karlsruhe, Kassel, Oberhausen, Saarbrücken, Sheffield and Vienna. Sociological innovations encompass a changed perception of urban transport, changed traffic policies, the image of modern trams in the view of the citizens, tram or LRT in pedestrian malls, and the high appeal of well-designed vehicles and stops. On the technical side, innovations include low-floor vehicles, modular vehicle systems, lighter and less expensive vehicles, raised platforms at stops, the use of telematics in public transport for central control of vehicles, traffic lights actuated by vehicles, dynamic information of passengers, and track sharing by railway and LRT vehicles. Finally, tram and LRT systems are appropriate to fill the gap in capacity between bus and metro at construction expenses of about a tenth of a metro system.