Blackpool Heritage Trams

Blackpool Heritage Trams are a mixed fleet of restored vehicles that ran on the Blackpool Tramway, which runs from Blackpool to Fleetwood on the Fylde Coast in Lancashire, England. The line dates back to 1885 and is one of the oldest electric tramways in the world. The fleet is operated by Blackpool Transport (BT) and is the last surviving first-generation tramway in the United Kingdom. Excluding museums, it is one of only a few tramways in the world to still use double-decker trams. the heritage service and fleet have been suspended until further notice.

Most services on the line are now operated by a fleet of modern Bombardier Flexity 2 trams, but a Heritage Tram service using the traditional trams previously operated on Bank Holidays, select weekdays and weekends through the year, as well as during the Blackpool Illuminations.

The Heritage fleet is a large fleet of vehicles that were mainly retained from previous generations of the town's tramway operations, as well as some from other locations. They are now operated by Blackpool Heritage Tram Tours between Pleasure Beach and North Pier as standard and can be caught at the 'Heritage Tram Tours' stops, identifiable by a green circular sign.

History by type Many different types of trams have served on the Blackpool Tramway over the years.

Conduit cars

The Blackpool Tramway officially opened on 29 September 1885 with an initial fleet of 10 trams. The first eight were double-deck open top trams that operated on the conduit system, whilst the ninth and tenth cars were single-deck crossbench trailers which could be hauled by any of the first eight trams. The original fleet livery was a mix of sand, green and white colours. The trams were built in various conditions. Nos. 1 and 2 were built by Starbuck, with 48 seats and a garden seating arrangement on the upper decks. Nos. 3 and 4 were built by Lancaster Carriage and Wagon Works, with 32 seats and a knifeboard seating arrangement on the upper decks. Nos. 5 and 6 were also built by Lancaster and had a knifeboard seating arrangement on the upper decks, but they had a higher seating capacity of 44. Nos. 7 and 8 were built by Starbuck, with 56 seats and a crossbench seating arrangement on the upper and lower decks. Nos. 7 and 8 were originally open-sided, until they were rebuilt in 1895 with enclosed lower decks. Nos. 9 and 10 were built by Lancaster with open sides and 28 seats in a crossbench seating arrangement. In 1891, the two trailer cars were replaced by two new double-deck open top Conduit cars which were given the same numbers. The new 9 and 10 were built by G.F. Milnes, with 48 seats and a garden seating arrangement on the upper decks, just like nos. 1 and 2. Conduit car No. 4 is preserved by the National Tramway Museum in Crich.

Lancaster Palace cars The Lancaster Palace cars were four trams built by Lancaster between 1894 and 1896. They were numbered 11–14. They first appeared in a green livery. They were the first trams in Blackpool to have two bogies each rather than four wheels fixed in place under the bodies.

Dreadnought cars

The Dreadnought cars were 20 trams built between 1898 and 1902 by G.F. Milnes. They were numbered 15–26 and 54–61. They first appeared in a green, teak and white livery. The design was unique to the Blackpool Tramway, with double staircases fitted at each end to access the upper decks whilst the driving compartments and access to the lower decks were in between the staircases. Dreadnought car No. 59 is preserved by the National Tramway Museum in Crich.

Marton Box cars

The Marton Box cars were 15 open-top trams built in 1901 by the Midland Railway Carriage and Wagon Company. They were numbered 27–41. They first appeared in a green, teak and white livery. They were later rebuilt with enclosed upper decks. Marton Box car No. 31 has been on a long-term loan at the Beamish Museum since 1984.

Motherwell cars The Motherwell cars were 12 open-top trams built in 1902. They were numbered 42–53. They were later rebuilt with enclosed upper decks. When they were all scrapped, they donated their top covered decks to the Standard cars.

De-Luxe cars The De-Luxe cars were seven trams built in 1911. They were numbered 62–68. There were initially two variants of this class, with 62–64 built as 4 wheeled tramcars, whilst 65–68 were built as bogie tramcars. 62–64 were rebuilt with bogies by 1923. De-Luxe car No. 68 was decorated several times from 1912 with garlands and lights for various occasions. No. 68 was withdrawn in 1936 and scrapped in 1939.

Toastrack cars

The Toastrack cars were 30 trams built between 1911 and 1927. They were numbered 69–92 and 160–165, with No. 160 later being renumbered as No. 166 so that Standard car No. 160 could be numbered consecutively alongside Standards 142–159. They were named as Toastracks after the tableware item which holds toast. After being withdrawn from passenger service, Nos. 165 and 166 were converted between 1951 and 1953 for use on television filming assignments on the tramway. Toastrack car No. 163 was rebuilt in 1959 as the illuminated Blackpool Belle and after initially operating without a number in this form, it was renumbered 731 in 1968. Toastrack car No. 166 is preserved by the National Tramway Museum in Crich.

London cars The former London United Tramways X class cars were 6 trams built in 1901 by G.F. Milnes and purchased for use on the Blackpool Tramway in 1919. They were originally numbered 108, 118, 125, 137, 149 and 150 in the London United Tramways fleet. They were renumbered 93–98 in the Blackpool tram fleet.

Fleetwood Box cars

The Fleetwood Box cars were 15 trams built between 1898 and 1914 by G.F. Milnes. They were originally numbered 14–24 and 38–41 in the Blackpool and Fleetwood Tramroad fleet, before being renumbered 101–115 after purchase by Blackpool Corporation Transport in 1920. Box cars 20–24 became 101–105, Box cars 14–19 became 106–111 and Box cars 38–41 became 112–115. The last four cars were built without clerestory roofs and were known as New Fleetwood Box cars. Box car No. 40 (114) is preserved by the National Tramway Museum in Crich.

Fleetwood Yankee cars The Fleetwood Yankee cars were seven partially open-sided combination trams built in 1899 by the Electric Railway & Tram Carriage Works. They were originally numbered 28–34 in the Blackpool and Fleetwood Tramroad fleet, before being renumbered 116–122 after purchase by Blackpool Corporation Transport in 1920. Apart from No. 30 (118), they were rebuilt with enclosed saloons between 1920–1921 and became known as Greenhouse and Glasshouse cars.

Fleetwood Vanguard cars The Fleetwood Vanguard cars were three trams built in 1910 by United Electric Car Company. They were originally numbered 35–37 in the Blackpool and Fleetwood Tramroad fleet, before being renumbered 123–125 after purchase by Blackpool Corporation Transport in 1920. OMO car No. 7 was rebuilt as a replica Vanguard car in 1987 and was renumbered 619, its previous number when it was an English Electric Railcoach prior to its rebuild as an OMO car. It is preserved by the Heaton Park Tramway in Manchester.

Fleetwood Crossbench Rack cars

The Fleetwood Crossbench Rack cars were 16 open-sided trams built between 1898 and 1899 by G.F. Milnes. They were originally numbered 1–13 and 25–27 in the Blackpool and Fleetwood Tramroad fleet, before being renumbered 126–141 after purchase by Blackpool Corporation Transport in 1920. The Crossbench Rack cars were 1–10 (126–135) and 25–27 (139–141) and the trailer cars were 11–13 (136–138). The trailer cars were later converted to motor cars. Rack car No. 2 (127) is preserved by the National Tramway Museum in Crich.

Standard cars

The Standard cars were 42 trams built between 1923 and 1929 by the Blackpool Corporation Transport Department and Hurst Nelson in Motherwell. They were numbered in-consecutively, with the numbers being 28, 33–43, 45–51, 53, 99–100, 142–160 and 177. The Standard cars numbered 28, 33–43, 45–51 and 53 reused those numbers from the Marton Box and Motherwell trams that had been withdrawn. They are double-deck and have a capacity of 78 passengers, with 32 seats on the lower deck and 46 on the upper. The four-window design came from the 1902 Motherwell trams. They are long, high and wide. They had Preston McGuire bogies with wheelbase and diameter wheels, British Thomson-Houston B510 motors with hand and rheostatic brakes. All were built as the "open balcony" type, but in later years some were enclosed. The Standard cars were originally in service between 1923 and 1966, with their withdrawal being protracted from 1940. Standard car No. 40 became the last double-deck open balcony tram to operate commercially in Great Britain. Until 2002, no Standards survived in public service in Blackpool until Boat car No. 606 was given to the Trolleyville museum in the United States in 2000 in exchange for Standard car No. 147, which was restored to its enclosed condition and returned to service in April 2002.

Seven Standard cars were preserved. No. 40 is in near original condition with open balconies on the upper deck and is enclosed on the lower deck. It is in the red, teak and cream livery and is operational at the National Tramway Museum in Crich. No. 48 is in enclosed condition and is in the green and cream livery. It has been in the Oregon Electric Railway Historical Society collection in the United States since 1964.Price, J. H. (August 1978). "Museum News", five-page article about OERHS and its museum in Glenwood. Modern Tramway, pp. 270–273, 276. Ian Allan Publishing. It operated on the Willamette Shore Trolley heritage tramway in Portland between 1995 and 2006 and then returned to the Oregon Electric Railway Museum, where it returned to service in 2017. No. 49 is enclosed and is in the green and cream livery. It is stored at the National Tramway Museum in Crich. No. 143 is in original open balcony form and is in the red, teak and cream livery. It is owned by the Fylde Transport Trust and was launched in Blackpool on 23 September 2019 but failed during this launch and is currently stored awaiting further repairs to enable it to return to service. No. 144 is in near original condition with open balconies on the upper deck and is enclosed on the lower deck. It is in the green and cream livery and is preserved at the Seashore Trolley Museum in Maine, United States. No. 147 is enclosed and is in the green and cream livery. It is stored in Blackpool. No. 159 is enclosed and is in the green and cream livery. It is operational at the East Anglia Transport Museum.

Pantograph cars

The Pantograph cars were 10 trams built in 1928 by English Electric in Preston. They were numbered 167–176. These cars were single-deckers and purchased at a cost of £2,000 (equivalent to £ in ), by Blackpool Corporation Tramways. They were designed for interurban use and have an American style appearance with 48 seats. Originally given the nickname "Pullman" cars due to their more luxurious assets, they were the first trams in Blackpool to be equipped with a pantograph built by Brecknell, Munro & Rogers mounted on a tall tower, which quickly earned them the longer-lasting nickname "Pantographs". They were subsequently fitted with traditional trolley poles. The first car, No. 167, was delivered on 30 July 1928 and the last, No. 176, in 1929. They were long and wide, had Dick Kerr bogies, BTH B510 motors and air-brakes, with hand and rheostatic brakes.