tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...

-train is a type of light rail vehicle that meets the standards of a light rail system (usually an urban street running tramway), but which also meets national mainline standards permitting operation alongside mainline

trains In rail transport, a train (from Old French , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles that run along a railway track and transport people or freight. Trains are typically pulled or pushed by locomotives (often know ...

. This allows services that can utilise both existing urban light rail systems and mainline railway networks and stations. It combines the urban accessibility of a tram or light rail with a mainline train's greater speed in the suburbs. The modern tram-train concept was pioneered by the German city of

Karlsruhe Karlsruhe ( , , ; South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the third-largest city of the German state (''Land'') of Baden-Württemberg after its capital of Stuttgart and Mannheim, and the 22nd-largest city in the nation, with 308,436 inhabitants. ...

in the late 1980s, resulting in the creation of the

Karlsruhe Stadtbahn The Karlsruhe Stadtbahn is a German tram-train system combining tram lines in the city of Karlsruhe with railway lines in the surrounding countryside, serving the entire region of the middle upper Rhine valley and creating connections to neighbou ...

. This concept is often referred to as the

Karlsruhe model The Karlsruhe model is a tram-train system which consists of tram/ light rail trains and commuter/ regional rail trains running on the same set of tracks, generally between or outside of urban areas. It was initially developed and implemented ...

, and it has since been adopted in other cities such as

Mulhouse Mulhouse (; Alsatian: or , ; ; meaning '' mill house'') is a city of the Haut-Rhin department, in the Grand Est region, eastern France, close to the Swiss and German borders. It is the largest city in Haut-Rhin and second largest in Alsace a ...

in France and in Kassel, Nordhausen and Saarbrücken in Germany. An inversion of the concept is a train-tram; a mainline train adapted to run on-street in an urban tramway, also known as the

Zwickau Model {{Unreferenced, date=August 2009 The Zwickau model is an inversion of the Karlsruhe model, with diesel main-line trains extended through city streets on tram tracks. It is so called because the German city of Zwickau was the first to introduce th ...

Technology

The tram-train often is a type of

interurban The Interurban (or radial railway in Europe and Canada) is a type of electric railway, with streetcar-like electric self-propelled rail cars which run within and between cities or towns. They were very prevalent in North America between 1900 ...

— that is, they link separate towns or cities, according to George W. Hilton and John F. Due's definition. Most tram-trains are standard gauge, which facilitates sharing track with main-line trains. Exceptions include Alicante Tram and Nordhausen, which are metre gauge. Tram-train vehicles are dual-equipped to suit the needs of both tram and train operating modes, with support for multiple electrification voltages if required and safety equipment such as

train stop Part of a railway signalling system, a train stop, trip stop or tripcock (sometimes called a tripper) is a train protection device that automatically stops a train if it attempts to pass a signal when the signal aspect and operating rules pro ...

s and other railway signalling equipment. The Karlsruhe and Saarbrücken systems use " PZB" or "Indusi" automatic train protection, so that if the driver passes a signal at stop the emergency brakes are applied.

History

The idea is not new; in the early 20th century,

interurban streetcar The Interurban (or radial railway in Europe and Canada) is a type of electric railway, with streetcar-like electric self-propelled rail cars which run within and between cities or towns. They were very prevalent in North America between 1900 a ...

lines often operated on dedicated rights-of-way between towns, while running on street trackage in town. The first interurban to emerge in the United States was the Newark and Granville Street Railway in

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

, which opened in 1889. In 1924, in Hobart, Australia, sharing of tracks between trams and trains was proposed. The difference between modern tram-trains and the older interurban and radial railways is that tram-trains are built to meet mainline railway standards, rather than ignoring them. An exception is the United States' River Line in

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, which runs along freight tracks with time separation; passenger trains run by day, and freight by night.

Existing systems

Asia

Japan

*Fukui: Fukui Fukubu Line

Europe

Austria

* Gmunden: Traunsee Tram (2018) *

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

: Badner Bahn

Denmark

* Aarhus Letbane

France

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, third-largest city and Urban area (France), second-largest metropolitan area of F ...

Rhônexpress Rhônexpress is an express tram-train service which links central Lyon, France, with its airport, Lyon-Saint Exupéry Airport, and the TGV train station located there. The route is long, and served by six tram-train sets, built by Swiss man ...

(2010) * Lyon:

Tram-train de l'ouest lyonnais The tram-train de l'ouest lyonnais (in English, Western Lyon tram-train) is transport project in the urban area of Lyon in the region Rhône-Alpes to improve the traffic between the railway stations of Lyon-Saint-Paul to Brignais, L'Arbresle, ...

Mulhouse tramway The Mulhouse tramway (french: Tramway de Mulhouse; gsw-FR, D'Strossabàhn Milhüsa) is a tram network in the French city of Mulhouse in Alsace, France. It commenced service in 2006, and now comprises three purely tram lines, plus one hybrid t ...

* Nantes:

Nantes tram-train The Nantes tram-train (french: Tram-train de Nantes) is a tram-train network operating in the French city of Nantes and the surrounding region. Background The Nantes to Châteaubriant railway line was part of a former Nantes to Rennes railway rou ...

(2011) *

Île-de-France The Île-de-France (, ; literally "Isle of France") is the most populous of the eighteen regions of France. Centred on the capital Paris, it is located in the north-central part of the country and often called the ''Région parisienne'' (; en, Pa ...

(Paris region): ** Tramway Line 4 (2006) ** Tramway Line 11 Express (2017)

Germany

* Chemnitz: Chemnitz Tramway *

Stadtbahn Karlsruhe The Karlsruhe Stadtbahn is a German tram-train system combining tram lines in the city of Karlsruhe with railway lines in the surrounding countryside, serving the entire region of the middle upper Rhine valley and creating connections to neighbou ...

* Kassel:

Kassel RegioTram The Kassel RegioTram is a tram-train light rail system in Kassel, Hesse, Germany. Kassel's tram-train system follows the Karlsruhe model, and has been in full operation since 2007. With special RegioTram tramcars, continuous trips between th ...

(2006) * Nordhausen:

Trams in Nordhausen The Nordhausen tramway network (german: Straßenbahnnetz Nordhausen) is a network of tramways forming part of the public transport system in Nordhausen, a city in the federal state of Thuringia, Germany. Opened in 1900, the network is currently ...

* Saarbrücken: Saarbahn

Hungary

Szeged-Hódmezővásárhely tram-train The Szeged-Hódmezővásárhely Tram-train is a tram-train system in Hungary between two of the most important cities of Csongrád-Csanád County, Szeged (the county seat) and Hódmezővásárhely (a city with county rights). Construction began ...

(2021)

Italy

* Sassari: Metrosassari

Netherlands

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital o ...

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"Ne ...

RandstadRail RandstadRail () is a light rail network in the Rotterdam–The Hague metropolitan area in the west of the Netherlands that is jointly operated by HTM Personenvervoer (HTM) and Rotterdamse Elektrische Tram (RET). It connects the cities of Rotte ...

Portugal

Porto Porto or Oporto () is the second-largest city in Portugal, the capital of the Porto District, and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipality of Porto, is small compared to its metropol ...

: **

Porto Metro The Porto Metro ( pt, Metro do Porto), part of the public transport (mass transit) system of Porto, Portugal, is a light rail network that runs underground in central Porto and above ground into the city's suburbs. ''Metro do Porto S.A.'' was f ...

Line B/Bx (opening 2005) ** Porto Metro Line C (opening 2005)

Spain

Alicante Alicante ( ca-valencia, Alacant) is a city and municipality in the Valencian Community, Spain. It is the capital of the province of Alicante and a historic Mediterranean port. The population of the city was 337,482 , the second-largest in t ...

: Alicante Tram (2007) * Mallorca: Mallorca rail network *

Cádiz Cádiz (, , ) is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the Province of Cádiz, one of eight that make up the autonomous community of Andalusia. Cádiz, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Western Europe, ...

Cádiz Bay tram-train The Cádiz Bay tram-train is a tram-train/ light rail system in the Spanish city of Cádiz and the surrounding area. The system opened in October 26, 2022. Background The new tram-train line has been described by the European Commission as be ...

(opening 2022)

United Kingdom

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire a ...

Rotherham Rotherham () is a large minster and market town in South Yorkshire, England. The town takes its name from the River Rother which then merges with the River Don. The River Don then flows through the town centre. It is the main settlement of ...

Sheffield Supertram The Sheffield Supertram is a tram and tram-train network covering Sheffield and Rotherham in South Yorkshire, England. The infrastructure is owned by the South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (SYPTE), with Stagecoach responsible for t ...

(2018) *

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

South Wales Metro The South Wales Metro () is an integrated heavy rail, light rail and bus-based public transport services and systems network in South East Wales around the hub of . The first phase was approved for development in October 2013. Works are current ...

(2023)

North America

* Puebla,

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

: Puebla-Cholula Tourist Train

Proposed systems

Africa

* The October 6th Tram system (The O6T),

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the Capital city, capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, List of ...

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...

Asia

* Haifa–Nazareth,

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

* Keelung Light Rail Transit ( Nangang- Keelung),

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

Europe

Braunschweig Braunschweig () or Brunswick ( , from Low German ''Brunswiek'' , Braunschweig dialect: ''Bronswiek'') is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, north of the Harz Mountains at the farthest navigable point of the river Oker, which connects it to the ...

, Germany * Bratislava,

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

, United Kingdom. Wales & Borders franchise: South Wales Valley Lines (2022 - 2023) - rolling stock currently under construction. *

Erlangen Erlangen (; East Franconian: ''Erlang'', Bavarian: ''Erlanga'') is a Middle Franconian city in Bavaria, Germany. It is the seat of the administrative district Erlangen-Höchstadt (former administrative district Erlangen), and with 116,062 inhab ...

, Germany – an extension of Straßenbahn Nürnberg not initially planned to use mainline rail tracks but proposed to do so in the future. The planned line to Herzogenaurach replicates a former mainline rail line *

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county and combined authority area in North West England, with a population of 2.8 million; comprising ten metropolitan boroughs: Manchester, Salford, Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tam ...

, United Kingdom. Proposed extensions to the

Manchester Metrolink Manchester Metrolink (branded locally simply as Metrolink) is a tram/ light rail system in Greater Manchester, England. The network has 99 stops along of standard-gauge route, making it the most extensive light rail system in the United Ki ...

network. *

Grenoble lat, Gratianopolis , commune status = Prefecture and commune , image = Panorama grenoble.png , image size = , caption = From upper left: Panorama of the city, Grenoble’s cable cars, place Saint- ...

, France * Groningen, Netherlands * île de France (Paris region), France. The system is called ''Tram Express'' by the transport authority STIF: 1 line already exists (Tramway Line 11 Express) and 2 lines are scheduled (Tramway Lines 12 Express and 13 Express). The light train rolling stock will only roll on national rail network in western line ('' Line 13 Express'') a short section of 3.6 km (2.2 mi) is an urban tram section of the 19 km (11.8 mi) line. The southern line ('' Line 12 Express'') is a 20 km (12.4 mi) line, 10 km will be ''tram'' section and the 10 km another will roll on national rail network. *

Kiel Kiel () is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 246,243 (2021). Kiel lies approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the southeast of the Jutland ...

, Germany *

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the seventh-most populous city in Europe. Kyi ...

, Ukraine * Košice,

(in planning phase) * León, Spain * Liberec —

Jablonec nad Nisou Jablonec nad Nisou (; german: Gablonz an der Neiße) is a city in the Liberec Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 45,000 inhabitants. It is the second-largest city in the region. It is a local centre for education, and is known for its glass ...

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

Linköping Linköping () is a city in southern Sweden, with around 105,000 inhabitants as of 2021. It is the seat of Linköping Municipality and the capital of Östergötland County. Linköping is also the episcopal see of the Diocese of Linköping (Church ...

, Sweden * Manresa, Spain * Metro Mondego,

Coimbra Coimbra (, also , , or ) is a city and a municipality in Portugal. The population of the municipality at the 2011 census was 143,397, in an area of . The fourth-largest urban area in Portugal after Lisbon, Porto, and Braga, it is the largest cit ...

, Portugal *

RijnGouweLijn The RijnGouweLijn ( en, The Rhine- Gouwe Line), or RGL, was a proposed light rail project in South Holland, Netherlands, that used some new tracks and some existing tracks from the Gouda–Alphen aan den Rijn railway and the Woerden–Lei ...

, Netherlands * Metro de Sevilla. Seville has one metro line and one tram line that are not connected, but the long-term intention is to link the metro and tram systems. *

Sevastopol Sevastopol (; uk, Севасто́поль, Sevastópolʹ, ; gkm, Σεβαστούπολις, Sevastoúpolis, ; crh, Акъя́р, Aqyár, ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea, and a major port on the Black Sea ...

* Strasbourg, France *

Szeged Szeged ( , ; see also other alternative names) is the third largest city of Hungary, the largest city and regional centre of the Southern Great Plain and the county seat of Csongrád-Csanád county. The University of Szeged is one of the m ...

, Hungary. Two other destinations are being considered as of January 2022 besides the Szeged - Hódmezővásárhely line, which entered operation in November 2021. The Szeged - Subotica (Serbia) line is in early planning phase. A preparatory study was also completed for the Szeged - Makó line, but the estimated costs were high, and it is also dependent on a new road-rail bridge over the river Tisa only in planning phase as of now. * TramCamp, Camp de Tarragona,

Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a '' nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the nort ...

, Spain *

Wrocław Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the River Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, rou ...

, Poland (2005) —

600 V DC This is a list of the power supply systems that are, or have been, used for tramway and railway electrification systems. Note that the voltages are nominal and vary depending on load and distance from the substation. Many modern trams and trains ...

/ 3 kV DC * Riga, Latvia *

Tampere Tampere ( , , ; sv, Tammerfors, ) is a city in the Pirkanmaa region, located in the western part of Finland. Tampere is the most populous inland city in the Nordic countries. It has a population of 244,029; the urban area has a population o ...

, Finland *

Turku Turku ( ; ; sv, Åbo, ) is a city and former capital on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River, in the region of Finland Proper (''Varsinais-Suomi'') and the former Turku and Pori Province (''Turun ja Porin lääni''; ...

, Finland *

West Midlands conurbation The West Midlands conurbation is the large conurbation that includes the cities of Birmingham and Wolverhampton and the towns of Sutton Coldfield, Dudley, Walsall, West Bromwich, Solihull, Stourbridge and Halesowen in the English West Midland ...

, United Kingdom. Proposed extensions to the

West Midlands Metro The West Midlands Metro (originally named Midland Metro) is a light-rail/tram system in the county of West Midlands, England. Opened on 30 May 1999, it currently consists of a single route, Line 1, which operates between the cities of Birmi ...

Oceania

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

– On June 5, 2008, the Government of South Australia announced plans for train-tram operation on the

Adelaide Metro Adelaide Metro is the public transport system of Adelaide, the capital city of South Australia. It is an intermodal system offering an integrated network of bus, tram, and train service throughout the metropolitan area. The network has an ann ...

's Outer Harbor/ Grange train lines and City West-Glenelg tramline extension as part of a 10-year A$2 billion public transport upgrade.

South America

* Bogotá Commuter Rail (RegioTram), Colombia * Cali, Colombia

Vehicles

Models of tram designed for tram-train operation include: * Alstom's RegioCitadis and Citadis Dualis, derived from the Citadis * Bombardier Flexity Link and

Bombardier Flexity Swift The Bombardier Flexity Swift is a series of urban and inter-urban tram, light rail and light metro vehicles manufactured by Bombardier Transportation. It is part of the Bombardier Flexity family of rail vehicles, and like the others, Flexity S ...

Siemens S70 The Siemens S70, its successor the S700 and European variant, the Avanto, are a series of low-floor light-rail vehicles (LRV) and streetcars manufactured by Siemens Mobility, a division of German conglomerate Siemens AG. The S70 and S700 are ...

Stadler Citylink The Stadler Citylink (known as the Vossloh Citylink until 2015) is a series of tram-trains manufactured by Stadler Rail at its Valencia factory since 2011. The design was introduced by Vossloh España before their takeover by Stadler Rail in 201 ...

Train-tram

Europe

Zwickau Zwickau (; is, with around 87,500 inhabitants (2020), the fourth-largest city of Saxony after Leipzig, Dresden and Chemnitz and it is the seat of the Zwickau District. The West Saxon city is situated in the valley of the Zwickau Mulde (German: ...

Trams in Zwickau The Zwickau tramway network (german: Straßenbahnnetz Zwickau) is a network of tramways forming part of the public transport system in Zwickau, a city in the federal state of Saxony, Germany. Opened in 1894, the network has been operated sinc ...

Trams in Nordhausen, – on-board diesel generator (light-weight RegioSprinter diesel railbuses that also operate on street tramway)

North America

*Austin, Texas: Capital MetroRail – commuter rail that shares more commonality with train-tram operation, with downtown street running and usage of mainline track. Uses diesel multiple units. *

: River Line (NJ Transit), River Line – diesel multiple units using main line tracks between Trenton, New Jersey and Camden, New Jersey in a time-sharing agreement with the freight companies.

References

External links

TramTrain - the 2nd generation: Searching for the 'ideal' TramTrain-city

''(English/German)''

''(English/German)''
tram-train of Karlsruhe transformed in a subway in the center

Leeds City Region proposal

{{Authority control Electric public transport Passenger rail transport

Technology

History

Existing systems

Asia

Japan

Europe

Austria

Denmark

France

Germany

Hungary

Italy

Netherlands

Portugal

Spain

United Kingdom

North America

Proposed systems

Africa

Asia

Europe

Oceania

South America

Vehicles

Train-tram

Europe

North America

See also

References

External links