Trams in Prague

[railsquid]

Due to an unexpected sequence of events I find myself this weekend not whiling away the hours on the daikon-infested plains of western Tokyo, but in Prague, which is full of trams, to my surprise many of them still Tatras, so took the opportunity to ride around a bit to stave off the jetlag. Here's a random photo:

 

Prague Tatra trams, I.P. Pavlova, 2023-05-21 by Rail Squid, on Flickr

 

More to follow when I feel like it.

Edited May 20, 2023 by railsquid

[bill937ca]

I will be there later this year.

Edited May 22, 2023 by bill937ca

[railsquid]

I'm not here for pleasure, alas, but managed to negotiate arrival at the weekend to acclimatize and get over the culture shock.

[brill27mcb]

I must paint my Tomytec Prague Tatra pantographs yellow sometime.

 

Rich K.

[railsquid]

Meanwhile not a tram but a metro station:

 

Můstek Station (Prague) by Rail Squid, on Flickr

 

I had forgotten how ineffably cool these are.

[KateM]

I've been in Prague on Saturday too! Model train fair slash flea market for people to buy, sell, exchange... Too bad it took place somewhere totally off because the usual place near main train station is being reconstructed.

 

Enjoy your stay even though it is not for pleasure 🙂 

[bikkuri bahn]

Quote

I had forgotten how ineffably cool these are.

I remember the escalators being really, really fast, probably because many of the stations are so deep.  Seemingly frantic when contrasted with some of the department store escalators here in Japan- slowed, slowed down for the oldies.

[railsquid]

I think they have been slowed down, I remember being surprised by the speed the first time I went on them (early 1992) but now they feel about as fast (or as slow) as the ones on the Oedo Line.

[ED75-775]

Ooooh, Prague trams, that reminds me I was there in 2013:

 

 

 

We weren't there for too long, just two days between a one-night stay in Austria and a three-night stay in Berlin. Having never seen a Tatra T3 IRL, I was kind of intrigued by them. They weren't the only things running though, there was a smattering of other types - Škoda 14T and 15T articulated trams, plus the older single-unit T6A5s - we didn't see anything else in service apart from them, although I did see an older tram and trailer being used as a café in Wenceslas Square.

 

Still hasn't convinced me to buy a Tomytec version though, as I'm trying to religiously stick to Japanese and, if any were to come up, Australasian trams. We'll see how long that lasts when I'm in Japan!

 

Alastair

[bill937ca]

Sad news from Prague today. A 14T was hit from behind by a T3 set.  Both T3s were heavily damaged and the driver of the T3 had to be extradited from the cab.

 

 

https://dopravacek.eu/2023/05/24/v-braniku-se-rano-srazily-tramvaje-ridice-museli-vyprostit-hasici/?fbclid=IwAR0Zg-CpviuHXoZKtgsiYPs6zB4lt2qGlixw8eTS19du4dgyZ3OiyDAppvI

[bill937ca]

In early June I spent a week in Prague riding and photographing the Prague tram system as well as being a general tourist.  There are 26 day time lines and as of December 31, 2022 781 cars including over Tatra T3s. As of late 2022 over 400 T3s remain on the Prague system. In addition to the regular trams Prague has a nostalgia tram line (#23) with 10 non-modernized T3s that run 7 days a week, two heritage tram lines that run on weekends only and a Public Transport Museum in a former tram depot.

 

Here are a couple of photos near the front door of the hotel on Spalena. 

 

https://tram.mobilnitabla.cz/vuz/8014

https://tram.mobilnitabla.cz/vuz/8234

This shows route 23 tram 8014, a 1974 T3M,  on Spalena headed in the direction of Prague Castle. The junction at Karlovo Namesti is in the background.

 

Here 8234, a 2001 T3R.P leads a route 9 two-car set through the junction at Spalena and Lazarska turning onto Sapalena.  This is also the terminal / starting point of the the 10 night tram lines.

Edited June 25, 2023 by bill937ca

[bill937ca]

A great tram system offers a varied fleet, a large and complex system with great junctions.  This Karlovo Namesti, about two blocks from the junction at Spalena and Lazarska outside the hotel. It is a T junction with  lines 2, 3, 4, 6, 10, 14, 16, 18, 22, 23 and 24.

 

A design note. All three legs of the junction are side of the road and there are no traffic lights like much of Central Prague. busy auto traffic is either routed away from the historic preserve or restricted to one-way traffic.

 

Needless to say, I made it down to this junction several times during the trip.

8518 is one of T3R.Ps recently equipped with cab air conditioning.  It is waiting to turn either north or south.

 

Looking east, a pedestrian safety island has been added close to  the corner providing a great photography vantage point.

 

8329, a 2002 modernized T3R.P runs solo on route 2 one of only a few lines worked by solo trams. In the corner a route 23 tetro tram turns onto Karlovo Namesti.

 

Some older T3s do remain in regular service.  This is a 1998 T3M2-DVC which still has the older route number only head end

sign. These trams are confined to one depot and I frequently saw them on line 16.

Edited June 25, 2023 by bill937ca

[bill937ca]

Closest tram stop to the hotel  was up Spalena at Narodni Trida which also is a Metro stop. Lines 2, 9, 18, 22 nd 23 stopped here.

 

8231 is leading a route 22 set around the corner from Narodni to Spalena.

 

T3R.P 8334 modernized in 2002 is up pulling up to the stop. This is a car-free zone.

Route 23 tram 6892, one of the oldest T3s in Prague dating from 1974.  Yes, Rich red pantographs on the retro  trams.

 

Around the corner on Narodni near the Café Louvre  T2 6004 on route 23 built in 1962 picks up speed. The tram tracks are protected by linear thresholds which are common in central European cities like Vienna and Krakow.  About 52% Of Prague's tram tracks are exclusive lanes.

 

Edited June 25, 2023 by bill937ca

[bill937ca]

Next we cross the Vitava River and head to Mala Strana.  Here we find an S-curve at Malostranske Namesti.  Just past this square is the tunnel though a building using gauntlet track. This limits this stretch to about 30 trams per hour in each direction.

8176 on the S-curve at the south end of Malostranske Namesti.

 

A 15T in the tunnel inside a building.

Another 15T exiting the tunnel and leaving the gauntlet track.  Tram signals for trams going in the other direction are on the right.

 

Edited June 26, 2023 by bill937ca

[bill937ca]

I didn't get out to the end of lines that often. However, my initial attempt to walk up to the castle wasn't a success and I opted instead to ride to the end of the tram line. This is Bila Hora Loop at the end of lines 22 and 25.  Like many Prague tram loops it has more than one track.

Edited June 25, 2023 by bill937ca

[bill937ca]

On the Friday night after a Beef Goulash dinner, I walked the 343 metre Legion Bridge (Most Legii) walked through along Vitenza and around the corner onto Ujezd.  At the Hellichova  tram stop the parking spaces on the east side of the street were built on slightly elevated pads with a couple of projections out to the street.  This proved to be a very good place to take tram photos.

 

This track was all renewed in March 2023.

 

This is a famous photo location with the early high Baroque St Nicholas Church (Mala Strana) and belfry in the background.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Nicholas_Church_(Malá_Strana)

 

I stood here maybe 5-10 minutes. Trams kept coming along, one after another.   It was a lot of fun.

Tram 351 is one of Prague's heritage trams.  It was built in 1915 by Ringhoffer (who built almost all of Prague's four wheel trams). It ran until 1963 and survived as a snow plow.  It had the premiere on Prague's first heritage tram line, line 91 on April 19, 1992. it is seen here on a private hire.

Skoda 15T 9278 is seen also at Hellichova tram stop.  It is part of the newest tram order and was built in 2016. The yellow around the windshield indicates an air-conditioned tram.

https://www.praguemorning.cz/prague-tram-or-bus-with-air-conditioning/?fbclid=IwAR3E_V0ucNHy-92SN7OlVRf6M6rDKmdlCHvwfuXd87vWpLsf5VUK8ftR8rU

 

8264 is a T3R.PLF of 2009 rebuilt into a longer configuration with a center low floor section.  These burgundy and gray trams are nicknamed "wolves" in Prague.

 

Rebuilt T2 6004 again on route 23.  

 

Rebuilt T3R.P 8553 entered service in 2007.  It is on route 15. 

 

Edited June 26, 2023 by bill937ca

[bill937ca]

Tram streets in Prague are very busy.  This is Vodickova as it curves into Lazarska.  I spent some time the first day near here on a park bench in a parkette. My suitcase  didn't make it to the connecting plane like I did and I was still in my travel clothes instead of shorts and T-shirt. I was badly in need of water and a sleep but in the meantime trams were running by every minute  or so. I charted the Vodickova tram stop a couple of years ago. On a weekday there are 42 to 53 tram sets an hour between 0700 and 1800 in each direction. For the short distance between Lazarska and Vodickva stops these trams get up pretty good speed. Typical cruising speed is 40 Km/hour on Prague streets.. The road fence helps.

Edited June 26, 2023 by bill937ca

[bill937ca]

Like most large tram systems, Prague has a fleet of work trams. These are not the construction cars of the glory days,  but modified T3s used for a variety of purposes.

 

Instead of having a few trams with extra equipment for training new drivers Prague has a dedicated fleet of training trams. Some are solo like 5523 here outside the hotel and some run in sets. This tram was created from tram 6851 and began operation in December 2007. There are no center doors on this tram.

Edited June 26, 2023 by bill937ca

[railsquid]

5 hours ago, bill937ca said:

Tram streets in Prague are very busy.  This is Vodickova as it curves into Lazarska.  I spent some time the first day near here on a park bench in a parkette. My suitcase  didn't make it to the connecting plane like I did and I was still in my travel clothes instead of shorts and T-shirt. I was badly in need of water and a sleep but in the meantime trams were running by every minute  or so. I charted the Vodickova tram stop a couple of years ago. On a weekday there are 42 to 53 tram sets an hour between 0700 and 1800 in each direction. For the short distance between Lazarska and Vodickva stops these trams get up pretty good speed. Typical cruising speed is 40 Km/hour on Prague streets.. The road fence helps.

 

I always find the Prague trams refreshingly zippy and frequent and generally at the top of the traffic food chain. Mostly clean as well, though I did encounter one or two trailers which had been visited by vandal smearers.

 

A couple of co-workers who were attending the same meeting in Prague were from the kind of country where public transport consists of rusty, packed buses stuck in day-long traffic jams, and they were planning to use Uber or whatever, but quickly realised the trams were more convenient.

[railsquid]

11 hours ago, bill937ca said:

Tram 351 is one of Prague's heritage trams.  It was built in 1915 by Ringhoffer (who built almost all of Prague's four wheel trams). It ran until 1963 and survived as a snow plow.  It had the premiere on Prague's first heritage tram line, line 91 on April 19, 1992. it is seen here on a private hire.

 

 

That reminds me, on the day I arrived I was mooching around with no particular purpose and went past this tram loop: https://goo.gl/maps/DDcbfHaAoi27ecJX9  ("Dlabačov"?) and saw a close relative of the above:

 

Prague tram "349" (tram loop Dlabačov, 2023-05-20) by Rail Squid, on Flickr

 

complete with trailer:

Prague tram trailer "1419" (tram loop Dlabačov, 2023-05-20) by Rail Squid, on Flickr

 

and there was also what appears to be a beer tram:

Prague beer tram (?) (tram loop Dlabačov, 2023-05-20) by Rail Squid, on Flickr

 

The next day I found a nice upstairs cafe with a nice view of passing trams:

 

Prague tram crossing Václavské Naměstí (2023-05-21) by Rail Squid, on Flickr

 

]

Prague tram crossing Václavské Naměstí (2023-05-21) by Rail Squid, on Flickr

 

and lo and behold:

 

Prague tram crossing Václavské Naměstí (2023-05-21) by Rail Squid, on Flickr

 

That was alas pretty much as far as it went tram-spotting wise, though I did get to "commute" every day thereafter in a Tatra, which is not something I imagined I'd ever do again:

 

Prague tram (Line-11, 2023-05-22) by Rail Squid, on Flickr

 

 

[bill937ca]

6 hours ago, railsquid said:

 

I always find the Prague trams refreshingly zippy and frequent and generally at the top of the traffic food chain. Mostly clean as well, though I did encounter one or two trailers which had been visited by vandal smearers.

 

 

Prague trams have absolute priority in many cases. At crosswalks (they don't stop) and at many intersections. Frequently, auto traffic is routed around tram junctions. Andel is a prime example.

[bill937ca]

Prazsky Hrad or Prague Castle is the only stop announced in English on the DPP tram network. It is an interesting side of the road  operation  right in the heart of the city.

Heritage tram 349 passing through Prazsky Hrad.

8164 modernized in 2005 is one of a small sub group of that were given entirely new bodies due to corrasion.. It is approaching the inbound stop.

15T 9314 passes through the stop. The roadway is to the left and usually features a long line of touring  buses.

looking towards the spot were most tourists exit the trams.

 

Edited June 26, 2023 by bill937ca

[bill937ca]

The Prague tram network is almost entirely unidirectional. However, there is one group of articulated double ended trams, the 54 KT8N2-RN2P  These are used for stub ended temporary operations due to construction and more recently for stub ended phased extensions that will eventually include a loop. Currently, three extensions are under way on the Prague tram system.

Double end tram 9086 on Vodickova in the center of Prague enroute to a temporary stub terminal on route 5.

 

Edited June 26, 2023 by bill937ca

[bill937ca]

Saturday morning came and after breakfast at the hotel, it was time to board the #2 tram and ride up to the Prague Public Transport Museum. Senior admission was 60 Czk about $2.77 US.  For this I received a little souvenir ticket, picked a free collection guide in English (and available in several other languages). 

 

The museum is located in Stesovice depot. it is one of  68 tram museums in Europe.  The museum displays are housed in a five track wing, with another five track wing for additional storage and a third five track wing for the commercial operation fleet.  The individual car house wings would make a great stand alone tram depot prototype for model tram layout.

 

The public transport museum is only open weekends and holidays.

Entrance to the Public Transport Museum.

Red retro pantograph for Rich!!!

Nicely proportioned tram depot wing. That small door is the entrance to  the museum.

The three sections of the Public Transport Museum.  On the left the museum, in the center storage and on the right the operating car house.  The building at the front was a café four years ago.

Edited June 26, 2023 by bill937ca

[bill937ca]

Now a look inside the museum. There is a great abundance of four wheel tram cars as these were running n Prague until the first Mero line opened in 1974.

A lineup of  controllers

Running wire hangers.

Running wire crossovers.

Looking towards the reception booth and gift shop.

Entrance to a 1940s era "submarine". Everyone rode inside!

More and more trams!

Edited June 26, 2023 by bill937ca