Tramlink
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Tram 2548 in the current livery at Arena
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The tram network as of 2016[update]
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| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Transport for London |
| Area served | Bromley, Croydon, Merton, Sutton |
| Locale | South London |
| Transit type | Light rail tram |
| Number of lines | 4
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| Number of stations | 39 |
| Annual ridership | 27.0 million (2015/16) |
| Website | www |
| Operation | |
| Began operation | May 2000 |
| Operator(s) | FirstGroup |
| Number of vehicles | 24 Bombardier CR4000 12 Stadler Rail Variobahn |
| Technical | |
| System length | 28 km (17 mi) |
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) |
| Electrification | Overhead line (750 V DC) |
| Top speed | 50 miles per hour (80 km/h) |
Tramlink is a light rail tram system serving Croydon and surrounding areas in South London, England. It began operation in 2000, the first tram system in London since 1952. It is owned by London Trams, an arm of Transport for London (TfL), and operated by FirstGroup.
The network consists of 39 stops along 28 km (17 mi) of track, on a mixture of street track shared with other traffic, dedicated track in public roads, and off-street track consisting of new rights-of-way, former railway lines, and one right-of-way where the Tramlink track parallels a third rail-electrified Network Rail line.
The network has four lines that coincide in central Croydon, with eastbound termini at Beckenham Junction, Elmers End and New Addington, and a westbound terminus at Wimbledon, where there is an interchange for London Underground. The Tramlink is the fourth-busiest light rail network in the UK behind Manchester Metrolink, Tyne and Wear Metro and the Docklands Light Railway.
In 1990 Croydon Council with London Regional Transport (LRT) put the project to Parliament and the Croydon Tramlink Act 1994 resulted, which gave LRT the power to build and run Tramlink.
In 1996 Tramtrack Croydon Limited (TCL) won a 99-year Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contract to design, build, operate and maintain Tramlink. TCL was a partnership comprising FirstGroup, Bombardier Transportation (the builders of the system's trams), Sir Robert McAlpine and Amey (who built the system), and Royal Bank of Scotland and 3i (who arranged the finances). TCL kept the revenue generated by Tramlink and LRT had to pay compensation to TCL for any changes to the fares and ticketing policy introduced later.
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