Leeds Corporation Tramways

System map at fullest extent (click to expand)

A 1931 Leeds tram, in the later red livery

Construction of the Leeds Tramway on Roundhay Road, Harehills, Leeds

Leeds Tramway on Briggate.

There were several lines running between the city centre[3] and Cross Gates,[4] Chapel Allerton,[5][6] Moortown,[7] Roundhay,[8] Middleton,[9] Beeston,[10] Armley,[11] Hunslet[12] and Kirkstall.[13] The network, of which certain sections were on reserved track, was far more extensive than that of the proposed Leeds Supertram, which has not been built after a funding shortfall from central government.

The earliest trams were single decker horsedrawn trams, but later purchases were double deckers, operated by Leeds Tramways Company. The last of these ran in 1901. Steam trams were also used until full electrification. Throughout most of the twentieth century the tramway used a mixture of bus style and balloon trams, both in double-decker formation.[14] The system of collection by trams from the overhead wiring was unusual in that it used bow collectors rather than poles, obviating the need to turn the pole round at each terminus.

Even when other cities were abandoning their tramways in the 1940s, Leeds continued to modernise its system. Two prototype modern single-deck trams (somewhat similar to those used in continental European cities) were built in the early 1950s, in particular two single deck trams painted purple for the coronation, was in operation on route 3 to Roundhay in 1953 – perhaps because this followed a segregated track along Roundhay Road to the popular attraction of Roundhay Park. These two were a conventional air and magnetic braked vehicle (601) and an all electric "vambac" car (602). The latter resides in the Crich tramway museum.

In the early 1950s (1951), Leeds purchased 90 "Feltham" secondhand trams (dating from 1931), from London Transport. By this period, Leeds tramcars were normally painted in red.

After the closure of the Leeds system on 7 November 1959,[2] Sheffield became the last city in England operating trams (closing in 1960), with Glasgow (Scotland) the last in the UK (closing in 1962). The Blackpool tramway then became the UK's only commercial tramway, until the opening of the Manchester Metrolink in 1992.

It is argued that the closure of the tramway was shortsighted, particularly given the fact that the majority of the network ran on reserved track, and as such did not interfere with the road system. Leeds had one of largest and most advanced urban transport systems in the UK, and was developing new tramcars and opening new lines right until its closure. The people of Leeds have now tried multiple times since the 1980s to get their tramway back, with no success.

Several Leeds electric trams are now preserved at the National Tramway Museum at Crich. The last remaining Leeds horse tram, number 107, has been restored by the Leeds Transport Historical Society and is currently on display at the National Tramway Museum.[15] What were once commonly thought to have been original tram poles remaining in Roundhay were actually lighting standards in a bus park. There is an old electricity sub station used for the tramway on Abbey Road in Hawksworth.[16]

• Photos of Leeds trams from 1953
• Leeds City Tramways at the British Tramway Company Badges and Buttons website