The Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Tramways Company was formed in 1903 to build a tramway linking

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...

Derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby gai ...

, and

Ilkeston Ilkeston is a town in the Borough of Erewash, Derbyshire, England, on the River Erewash, from which the borough takes its name, with a population at the 2011 census of 38,640. Its major industries, coal mining, iron working and lace making/texti ...

, in

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. But only a short section was built.

Construction

The

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditi ...

and

Tramways Company was formed in 1903 but it was not until 1913 that the tramway opened from Ripley to

, by way of

Langley Mill Langley Mill is a large village in the Amber Valley district of Derbyshire, England. History Originally named ''Long Lea'', the village of Langley Mill was a major employer throughout the mid 1900s with many companies including The Flour Mi ...

Eastwood Eastwood may refer to: Places ;in Australia *Eastwood, New South Wales **Eastwood railway station **Electoral district of Eastwood *Eastwood, South Australia ;in Canada * Eastwood, Ontario *Eastwood, Edmonton, Alberta, a neighborhood ;in the Ph ...

and Kimberley. The capital was funded by

Balfour Beatty Balfour Beatty plc () is an international infrastructure group based in the United Kingdom with capabilities in construction services, support services and infrastructure investments. A constituent of the FTSE 250 Index, Balfour Beatty works ac ...

& Co., of

. Many of the bridges which can be seen along the route date from this time (for example, the bridge over the canal at Langley Mill, that had previously been a wooden construction). The original Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Tramways Company Bill of 1902 was an ambitious application which proposed the building of of track to link together the tramway systems of Nottingham, Derby and Ilkeston. However, when passed the following year the Act only authorized the construction of of route, of which only were laid, the section from Ripley to Cinderhill. This was the beginning of the service known locally as the Ripley Rattlers.

Operation

The first tramcar services started on 4 July 1913, only 5 months after linelaying had begun. This was between

Loscoe Loscoe is a village near Heanor in Derbyshire, England, lying within the civil parish of Heanor and Loscoe. It had prominent coalmines in the 19th and 20th centuries. Denby Common and Codnor Breach are hamlets on the western edge of the villag ...

and Kimberley, and the section to

Cinderhill Cinderhill is an area in the City of Nottingham. It is located roughly from the City Centre, and surrounding areas include Bulwell to the north, Aspley and Broxtowe to the south, Basford to the east and Nuthall to the west. Cinderhill lies w ...

was opened a month later. The completed line from Cinderhill to Ripley opened on 1 January 1914 which made it possible to travel from Nottingham to Ripley, a distance of , in 1 hr 40 mins. The trams ran 18 hours a day, except for Sunday when the service was reduced. Fares were a penny a mile. Workmen boarding before 8 am were able to obtain return tickets at single prices, while colliers journeying to and from the pits were charged a penny regardless of the length of their journey. The first trams left the depot at 4.30 am, while the last tram, 'The Flyer', left Nottingham at 11pm with limited stops only. It was, by reputation, the most dangerous tramcar service in the

British Isles The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ...

, due to the length of its route, and the gradients it negotiated. The line was the subject of a short story by

D. H. Lawrence David Herbert Lawrence (11 September 1885 – 2 March 1930) was an English writer, novelist, poet and essayist. His works reflect on modernity, industrialization, sexuality, emotional health, vitality, spontaneity and instinct. His best-k ...

: ''There is in the North a single-line system of tramcars which boldly leaves the county town and plunges off into the black, industrial countryside . . . . . This, the most dangerous tram-service in England, as the authorities themselves declare, with pride, is entirely conducted by girls, and driven by rash young men, or else by invalids who creep forward in terror.'' Transcript of "Tickets Please" by D.H.Lawrence
/ref> In 1916, the company also took over the

Ilkeston Corporation Tramways Ilkeston Corporation Tramways was a tramway network in Ilkeston, Derbyshire, in the East Midlands of England run firstly by Ilkeston Borough Council and from 1916 by the Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Tramways Company. The system ran between 19 ...

, but the routes of the two companies never joined (and being different gauges, this seemed an unlikely proposition).

Mergers

During the 1920s, the improved performance of motor transport gave significant competition to the trams from the many early omnibus companies. Not to be left out, in 1920 Balfour Beatty established the

Midland General Omnibus Company Midland may refer to: Places Australia * Midland, Western Australia Canada * Midland, Albert County, New Brunswick * Midland, Kings County, New Brunswick * Midland, Newfoundland and Labrador * Midland, Ontario India * Midland Ward, Kohima, N ...

(it was initially called the General, but changed its name after buying the Midland Bus Company from Kimberley). The M.G.O. shared the Notts & Derbys base at Langley Mill. The three

companies, the Midland General Omnibus Company, the Notts and Derbys Tramways Company and the older Mansfield District Traction Company, formed a single group of companies called the

Midland General Group Midland may refer to: Places Australia * Midland, Western Australia Canada * Midland, Albert County, New Brunswick * Midland, Kings County, New Brunswick * Midland, Newfoundland and Labrador * Midland, Ontario India * Midland Ward, Kohima, N ...

. The Midland General snapped up many of the smaller companies in the area in the 1920s and 1930s, taking over Brewin and Hudson of Heanor, Williamson & Son of Heanor, J.T.Boam of Ilkeston, and the Heanor & District Omnibus Company.

Decline and closure

By 1928, Nottinghamshire & Derbyshire was given power to operate a trolley bus system. The first trolley buses were introduced in 1931, and on 5 October 1933 the last tram ran on the Nottingham to Ripley route. The trolley bus system was very efficient and reliable, the journey from Ripley to Nottingham taking 90 minutes. Trolley bus operation continued until 25 April 1953, when they gave way to the bus. The fleet of trolley buses was sold to Bradford Corporation. Near to the Queen Adelaide pub in Swingate, there is an old cable pole (or what looks like one).

References

External links