TRAM HISTORY

A tram goes along Geelong’s Moorabool St in the 1950s.

GEELONG had an extensive tramway system that ran from 1912 until 1956. Records show that in 1943, Geelong’s tram network carried 6.5 million people. The last tram ran from the city to Belmont and return on March 25, 1956, where it was reported that thousands of people were in the streets to watch the final journey. While there have been moves by locals to bring back trams to Geelong over the years, the proposals have not been successful. Since then, Geelong’s community has been served by buses.

Today, another proposal for trams for Geelong is with the Victorian government, but this time it’s looking at a trial of new technology: advanced rail-less trams. Currently, only nine per cent of all trips to central Geelong are via public or active transport. The Geelong community’s 30-year Clever and Creative Vision includes aspirations to shift this statistic to 50 per cent.

According to the Committee for Geelong’s CEO Jennifer Cromarty, this new technology could be the solution to car parking issues in central Geelong and provide an attractor to people needing to get in and around the city for work.

“Our roads are already congested and frustrations with access to car parking are well documented,” she says. “Advanced rail-less trams can impact this by offering a convenient, easily managed, popular and a more sustainable alternative for travelling to, from and within central Geelong. This technology offers an exceptional alternative for cities that experience challenges in retro-fitting light rail infrastructure and encouraging sustainable transport choices.”

Breton Fleming, director of planning at Urbis, says the trams have the potential to revolutionise accessibility to high quality public transport in under-serviced areas.