W Class trams dominated Melbourne's streets for over 60 years.
This photo is from 1992
But these are long gone, and almost all the rest may soon follow.This photo is from 1992
Visit the National Trust's campaign page to see how you can help keep more W Class trams running !
And you can sign our on-line petition by clicking here
The National Trust been campaigning for years to keep a significant number of Melbourne’s unique and iconic W Class trams in operation.
The Trust classified the remaining fleet of 300 in 1990, highlighting the fact that they had been an essential part of Melbourne’s character for over 60 years. In 1993, the then government promised to keep 53 on the streets, and not to sell the 'surplus' to overseas tourist routes.
In the late 1990s, about 50 were upgraded with new brakes, heaters, and other modern equipment, allowing them to continue in operation.
But now only 12 are used on the City Circle, and of the other 40 that were promised, only 20 are used at any one time on only two routes. The government recently confirmed that these 40 are to be phased out in the next few years.
That
means there will be no more traditional cream and green W Class trams running on Melbourne's streets. They will be just a memory, like the one represented in 2006 during the Commonwealth Games ceremony.With this lack of
committment, many of the W's have not seen major maintenance for years.This one was photographed in 2008.
The international importance of Melbourne's W Class trams is better recognised overseas than here. See this page from San Fransisco's Museums in Motion site. In fact almost more are operating succesfully overseas than here.
W Class trams in Seattle
photo virtualtourist.com
W Class tram in Memphis
photo from U S Streetcar systems, John Smatlak.
W Class tram in San Francisco.
photo from about.com
This tram was donated to the Copenhagen Tram Museum as a wedding present.
Join our campaign to keep more W's running in Melbourne !
We also welcome your comments.
