Trams in Lisbon

Lisbon tramway network

Two Remodelado trams on line 28.
Operation
Locale	Lisbon, Portugal
Horsecar era: 1873 (1873)–1902 (1902) Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) (to 1888) 900 mm (2 ft 11 7⁄16 in) (from 1888) Propulsion system(s) Horses Experimental steam
Electric tram era: since 1901 (1901) Status Open Routes 27 (maximum) 5 (present) Operator(s) Carris Track gauge 900 mm (2 ft 11 7⁄16 in) Electrification 600 V DC overhead lines Depot(s) Santo Amaro Amoreiras (to 1981) Arco de Cego (1902-1996) Route length 76 km (47 mi) (maximum)) 26 km (16 mi) (present) Website Carris (Portuguese) (English)

The Lisbon tramway network (Portuguese: Rede de eléctricos de Lisboa) serves the municipality of Lisbon, capital city of Portugal. In operation since 1873, it presently comprises five urban lines.

The first tramway in Lisbon entered service on 17 November 1873, as a horsecar line. On 30 August 1901, Lisbon's first electric tramway commenced operations. Within a year, all of the city's tramways had been converted to electric traction.

Up until 1959, the network of lines was further developed, and in that year it reached its greatest extent. At that time, there was a total of 27 tram lines in Lisbon, of which six operated as circle lines. As the circle lines operated in both clockwise and anticlockwise directions, each with its own route number, it is more correct to speak of a total of 24 tram routes, all of them running on 900 mm (2 ft 11 ⁷⁄₁₆ in) narrow gauge tram lines.

The construction of the Lisbon Metro and the expansion of the bus system began the slow decline of the network.

The current lines are:

The five remaining lines only operate in the southern centre and west of the city. Despite the relevant tourist attraction, those lines are still very important because of sections of the city's topography that can only be crossed by small trams. Tram 15 also connects the entire western river front of the city to the centre and allows a better flow of passengers with the bus system towards an area that still is not served by the metro.

Although reports prepared by both the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne and the Verkehrsbetriebe Zürich concluded that the network should be retained and even extended, the process of decline continued until 1997, with the closing of the Alto de São João branch and the Arco Cego depot. By that time, many trams were destroyed or sold to other companies. Since then,there was only 1 change to the system, with the shortening of Line 18 to Cais do Sodré.