The city of Adelaide had an extensive tramway system running to most of its suburbs. The tram services started with horse trams that from 1878 ran on a network of lines extending eventually to about 100 km (62 mi) in length. Thirty-one years later, starting in 1909, the lines were upgraded and electrified. Forty-nine years after that, in 1958, all street tramlines were closed, leaving only the Glenelg tram line operating. In 2005, major investments in infrastructure and modern trams inaugurated what became a tramways revival, leading to a 50 per cent increase in the route length of the city's tramways, replacement of its trams – by then 48 years old – and quadrupling of ridership.
Before the revival After the closure of all Adelaide street tram services, the sole surviving route was the 10.8 km (6.7 mi) Glenelg tram line (also known colloquially as the "Bay line"), extending south-west from Adelaide's centre to the beachside suburb of Glenelg. It ran on its own reservation as a light rail line except for a street-running section about long at each end. Lack of funds to redevelop the reservation into a roadway prompted a decision to keep the line operating for a further ten years until it reached the end of its economic life. Track deteriorated, the condition of the 1929-vintage tramcars declined, and for a time it appeared that part of the line might be resumed for a freeway. However, in the early 1970s the line received a major upgrade and trams were refurbished. Throughout the period, the trams provided a reliable service and enjoyed widespread affection in the community.
After 49 years of uncertainty, the future of the line was secured in 2005, when a major engineering upgrade commenced. In 2006 new trams were delivered to replace the Type H trams that had served the route for 77 years. In 2007 the first route extension, along the main artery of Adelaide's city centre, was undertaken. In readiness for a rise in patronage, more trams were delivered. , the number of new trams was 24, further route extensions had been built, and two more routes were being investigated (but did not eventuate).
2005–2006 Glenelg line upgrade
In 2003 the newly elected Labor government announced the revitalisation of the Glenelg tram line and its intent to purchase modern low-floor vehicles to operate the line.
The first step in the tramways revival was a major upgrade to track and other infrastructure on the Glenelg line costing $22 million, which occurred in 2005–2006.
Coleman RailAt the time of the Glenelg tram line upgrade and construction of the new line to City West, Coleman Rail Pty Ltd, a private Australian construction company, was a business within the Victorian family-run engineering group Geotech Holdings, which in turn was acquired by Spanish infrastructure group Acciona in 2017. The company designed and constructed the rebuilding of the line from Glenelg to Victoria Square. It also designed and constructed the subsequent new line from Victoria Square to City West on North Terrace. extensively upgraded 10 kilometres of track; re-built 9 road crossings; built 18 raised-platform tram stops and 41 pedestrian crossings with access mazes and ramps; upgraded electrical and signalling systems, four 600V DC converter stations, a new traction power side-feeder system and overhead wiring; and altered the Glengowrie maintenance depot to accommodate the new trams on order. Overall design, construction, commissioning, and driver and operator training were conducted over a 38-week period. Four years later, in 2009, a major choke point where the tramline crossed diagonally through South Road was eliminated by removing the level crossing and building a tram overpass, which was completed in March 2010.
By the time the new trams were delivered, the line's Type H "Glenelg trams" were 77 years old. After some months of joint operation as the new trams were brought on line, 17 were sold or donated. The remaining five were refurbished in 2000 and two of those – 351 and 352 (formerly 367) – received a further refurbishment in 2012–13 in anticipation of occasional revenue operation, which occurred until 2015 when they were put into storage."Here & There", Trolley Wire issue 352, February 2018, page 19 The Department for Infrastructure and Transport donated the two to the Tramway Museum, St Kilda in 2021.
Article on the Glenelg trams: Tram types: Type H (later classified 300 Series)
2005–2012: 100 Series (Bombardier Flexity Classic) tram deliveries
These trams are detailed in the article: Tram types in Adelaide (100 Series)
The contract for nine new Bombardier Flexity Classic trams was awarded to Bombardier Transportation in September 2004. The first was delivered in November 2005 and the remainder – except for one badly damaged in transit, subsequently replaced – between January and September 2006."Adelaide news", Trolley Wire issue 307 November 2006 page 26 Designated as the 100 Series, the trams progressively replaced, in 2006, the 21 Type H trams remaining in service out of the original 30 that with a few rare exceptions had operated the Glenelg service exclusively since 1929.TransAdelaide trams information
Following the decision to extend the line from Victoria Square along King William Street, a further two Bombardier Flexity Classics were ordered in 2005.Cabinet, Subjects for Consideration, 8 August 2004 Department of the Premier & CabinetCity West to Glenelg Service, Tramway Museum, St Kilda They arrived in the first half of 2007."Adelaide – another Flexity enters service", Trolley Wire, issue 309, May 2007, page 16 The replacement for the tram damaged before delivery arrived in June."Adelaide: last Flexity arrives", Trolley Wire, issue 310, August 2007
After the route had been extended through the city centre, the service became very popular: in the three months from November 2007 to the end of January 2008, more than 100,000 extra trips had been taken than in the same period in the previous year. Intensive overcrowding occurred, and many passengers were unable to board trams during peak hours. The route extension was also blamed for increased traffic congestion in the city, although no quantitative evidence was advanced.
In 2016 the transport minister said public perception of trams returning to Adelaide had changed:"When we announced in 2005 that we would be extending the Glenelg tram past Victoria Square to the railway station there were howls of protest against it. I think we've managed to completely flip the public debate from being against these sorts of projects to be being very strongly in favour."
In the hot Adelaide summer, passengers complained about the inadequacy of air conditioning in the new trams, which originally had been flagged for use in Frankfurt; many of the floor-mounted vents were more suited to heating than cooling. It was found that equipment on the roof and in the undercarriage was overheating and airflow over the outside radiators was inadequate. The air conditioning was progressively upgraded.
Another four 100 Series Bombardier Flexity Classic trams were ordered from Bombardier in June 2008 for the extra traffic to be generated by the projected Adelaide Entertainment Centre extension. They entered service in 2011 and 2012, production having been held up by 100-years flooding of a river next to the Bautzen plant."Additional trams", Trolley Wire issue 314, August 2008, page 15Entertainment Centre, Hindmarsh to Glenelg Service, Tramway Museum, St Kilda The total 100 Series fleet was 15 .
2007 route extension
The next step in Adelaide's tramways revival was a 1.2 km (0.75 mi) extension northwards from the Glenelg line terminus in Victoria Square along King William Street into North Terrace. Mid-street stops were built in King William Street and, in North Terrace, at Adelaide railway station and the University of South Australia western city campus 500 metres (550 yards) further west () – called the "City West" terminus for the time being. The previous Victoria Square terminus, in the centre of the square, had been pulled up and reconstructed on the western side, opening in August 2007. The whole extension was opened in October, enabling through services from Glenelg to the new terminus via the city's principal retail precinct. Fare-free travel was introduced on the new lines within the city centre and from Victoria Square to South Terrace."Adelaide's Tramway Extension Opens", Trolley Wire, issue 311, November 2007 pages 3–8Official opening for tram extension ABC News 14 October 2007
Initially the extension was received poorly, but trams quickly became crowded, with patronage levels well above pre-upgrade levels (see the patronage panel below).
The case for further tramway extensions became the subject of public debate. The South Australian tourism minister supported the line being extended to North Adelaide and Prospect. Transport Minister Patrick Conlon, however, considered the idea impracticable, and preferred to have a fare-free city loop.
2009 and 2017: 200 Series (Alstom Citadis 302) tram deliveries These trams are detailed in the article: Tram types in Adelaide (200 Series)
Flexity Classic and Citadis 302 specifications compared Flexity Classic Citadis 302 Built Bautzen, Germany2005–6 Barcelona, Spain2007 Delivered 2006, 2011–12 2009, 2017 Length 30.0 m 32.0 m Width 2.40 m 2.40 m Height 3.50 m 3.60 m Vehicle mass (tare) 40 tonnes 39 tonnes Max speed 70 km/h 70 km/h No. of modules 3 5 No. of bogies 4 (2 of which are powered) 3 (2 of which are powered) Passenger capacity (peak) 179 186 No. of seats 70 58 No. of doors per side 3 6 (2 of which are single) Boarding device (ramp) Built in Portable Percentage low floor 70% 100%
In mid-2008 the state government issued an international tender call for new or second hand trams in anticipation of the next route extension. Soon, 23 almost new trams were found in Madrid. The city had been in the process of installing new light rail infrastructure but the 2008 financial crisis had caused it to cut back on its plans, resulting in surplus rolling stock. They were five-segment Citadis 302 models manufactured by Alstom for the Metro Ligero in Madrid. The transport minister said that although the $6 million cost for each tram was about the same as buying them new, their prompt arrival would help to avoid capacity problems with the forthcoming route extension. He added that the trams had been built for Madrid's hot climate and the air conditioning was "as good as it gets". The government purchased six of the trams in July 2009."Six new trams for Adelaide", Trolley Wire, issue 318, August 2009, page 21
TransdevTSL – then operators of the Melbourne tram franchise – were engaged to manage transport and modification, commissioning and staff training activities. The trams were delivered by sea to Melbourne Docks, then to its Preston Workshops for modifications before being transported directly into Glengowrie tram depot on 13 November 2009.New European trams a massive boost to Adelaide network Rail Express, 24 June 2009
In December 2017 a further three Citadis 302 trams were delivered, bringing their numbers to 9 and the total tram fleet to 24.Job lot as new trams heading to SA The Independent Weekly, 18 October 2017
2010 route extension In the 2008 state budget, the government announced that it would further extend the tram line 2.8 km (1.7 mi) north-west to the Adelaide Entertainment Centre, Port Road, Hindmarsh. The line, opened in March 2010, runs from what had been the 2007 terminus on North Terrace, near the railway station, to the Adelaide Entertainment Centre in the inner north-west suburb of Hindmarsh. It also incorporated a park-and-ride service on Port Road.
2018 route extensions In December 2016 the state government announced two further extensions: