Trams in Warsaw

Trams in Warsaw

Low-floor tram Pesa Jazz
Overview
Native name	Tramwaje Warszawskie
Locale	Warsaw, Poland
Transit type	Tram
Number of lines	27
Operation
Began operation	11 December 1866
Operator(s)	Tramwaje Warszawskie
Technical
System length	138 km (86 mi)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
System map A map of the Warsaw tram system (need to be updated (line construction animated map)

Map of Warsaw tramway network before 1945 (interactive version)

Horse tram on Marszałkowska Street, 1867

Electric tramway establishment, Warsaw, Marszałkowska Street and Jerusalem Avenue crossing, 1907^[1]

Electric trams on Marszałkowska Street, 1914

Restored type A electric tram from 1910s on display

Restored Konstal N tram car from the 1950s running on a special tourist line

Konstal 13N tram cars from the 1960s, retired in 2012

Trams in Warsaw are a 138-kilometre (86 mi) (276-kilometre (171 mi) of single track) tram system serving a third of Warsaw, Poland, and serving half the city's population^{[citation needed]}. It operates over 750 cars,^[2] and is the second-largest system in the country (after the Silesian system) and one of the biggest in Europe.^[3] There are about 27 regular lines,^[4] forming a part of the city's integrated public transport system organized by the Warsaw Transport Authority. Since 1994 the system is operated by the municipally-owned company Tramwaje Warszawskie sp. z.o.o.

History[edit]

Horse tram[edit]

The history of tram transport in Warsaw dates back to 1866 when a 6-kilometre (3.7 mi) long horsecar line was built to transport goods and passengers between the Vienna Railway Station and the Wilno and Terespol stations across the Vistula River. This was in order to circumvent limitations imposed by Russian authorities, which prevented the construction of a railway bridge for strategic reasons. In 1880, a second line was constructed with the help of Belgian capital, this time intended as public transit within the city. The Belgian company quickly expanded its own lines, and in 1882 took over the line between the railway stations, which has lost most of its original purpose after a railway bridge was finally built in 1875. In 1899 the entire tram system, by then 30 kilometres (19 mi) of tracks with 234 tram cars and 654 horses operating 17 lines, was purchased by the city. By 1903, plans were drafted to convert the system to electric trams, which was done by 1908.

Interbellum[edit]

The development mostly stagnated for the next 10 years with only a few short stretches built. After World War I, the network developed rapidly handling increased traffic and extending to the outskirts of the city with the network reaching the length of 60 kilometres (37 mi) and 757 tram cars in 1939. In 1927, a privately owned light rail line called EKD (today Warszawska Kolej Dojazdowa) was built, connecting several neighboring towns with the center of Warsaw using electric railcars similar to trams, only larger and more massive, with frequent stops and tracks running along the streets in city; however the system was incompatible with the Warsaw trams as it used standard gauge tracks while the city network still used broad gauge left from Russian times. In 1925, the company operating the Warsaw trams decided to construct a rapid transit system. Preliminary boring started, but the Warsaw Metro was postponed because of the Great Depression; the idea resurfaced in 1938, but was again buried with the outbreak of World War II.

Second half of the 20th century[edit]

The tram system remained operational, although gradually deteriorating, during most the Nazi occupation until the Warsaw Uprising in 1944, after which all the infrastructure was systematically destroyed. After the war it was rebuilt relatively fast. As the system was practically built from scratch the occasion was used to convert it to standard gauge. During the 1950s and 1960s, the network was extended to newly built districts of soviet style panel houses and industrial plants and newer trams based on the design of Presidents' Conference Committee were introduced. Due to the city's lack of a metro system and restriction on car ownership, the tram system remained the backbone of Warsaw's transport system. In the 1960s, however, a political decision was made to increase the dependency on oil imported from Russia, while Polish coal was to be exported to Western Europe in exchange for hard currency; as a result, newly developed districts were connected with the city center by buses rather than trams, and some of the existing tracks were closed.

Present situation[edit]

After 1989, the tram system in Warsaw initially received little investment with a large part of the city's budget spent on the construction of the first Warsaw Metro line. However, since 2005, the situation has been changing with the purchase of new rolling stock, modernization of key tram lines, and deployment of a passenger information system. Plans also include extension of the network and an "intelligent" traffic management system which is to prioritize trams at traffic lights. In August 2008, a tender for delivery of 186 low-floor, air-conditioned trams was launched, allowing for a dramatic overhaul of the look of the tramway system.

In 2014 a new line was open connecting a quickly growing remote residential district on the north eastern outskirts of the city with the existing tram network and the M1 metro line. The route is currently undergoing further expansion and is to be completed in the spring of 2017. As of November 2016, two more new lines are being planned: one to Gocław, and the other to a southern suburb of Wilanów; these should be completed in the years 2020-23.^[5]

Rolling stock[edit]

Image	Tram car type	Number of cars	Description
	Konstal 105Na and derived, HCP 123N	521 cars (273 sets)	The most commonly used in Warsaw. Produced from 1973 to 2007. An evolution of the earlier Konstal 13N, the city's first modern tram, a copy of the PCC streetcar derived Czechoslovak Tatra T1 widely used throughout the soviet bloc. First cars were based on the electrical systems from the 13N placed in a lighter body, later ones had them replaced with more efficient ones. Most commonly used in sets of two, however sets of three and single units also appear.
	Konstal 112N Konstal 116N/116Na	30 sets	A single prototype Konstal 112N partially low-floor two segment articulated tram based on 105Na, built in 1995. Additional units extended to three segments, designated 116N/116Na, produced between 1998 and 2000
	Pesa 120N	15 sets	Pesa 120N was first tram in Warsaw with 100% of low floor. It was bought in 2007 to operate modernized route in the city center.
	Pesa Swing (120Na)	180 sets + 6 sets	Further 186 sets (120Na) were purchased to operate a planned new line and to replace some of the oldest trams. At the request of the city a tranche 6 sets were converted to bi-directional, designated 120NaDuo to allow using them on an unfinished line lacking a turning loop.
	Pesa Jazz Duo (128N)	50 sets	In 2013 an additional 50 bi-directional trams of a new design were purchased from PESA to be delivered in 2014, planned to allow operating on possible new lines during their construction and sections of existing tracks during maintenance work.
	PESA 134N	30 sets	Ordered January 2014 from PESA in Bydgoszcz[6] They are used on less loaded lines. They were bought to replace old single cars from Konstal.
Total of sets:			584
Percentage of low-floor sets:			63%

Tramwaje Warszawskie Sp. z o.o. logo.

Tram depots[edit]

Historic fleet[edit]

Image	Model[7]	Tram car type	Year	Car number
	A	Falkenried/MAN	1907	43
	Lw	Linke-Hoffman Werke	1925	541
[1]	C	Lilpop, Rau i Loewenstein	1925	257
	K	Gdańska Fabryka Wagonów	1940	403
	K	Wspólnota Interesów Katowice	1940	445
[2]	N	Konstal	1949	607
	N		1951	674
	4N		1961	873
	4Nj		1957	838
	13N		1969	795
	102N		1969	5
	102Na		1971	42
	105N		1975	1000, 1001

Tickets[edit]

There is one ticket tariff for every mode of transportation. Tickets can be purchased at ticket machines all over the city.

Warsaw tram linie 22 in 1940

Route list[edit]

This is a list of Warsaw Tramway lines. as of 2015, there were several track closures all over the tramway system, due to the construction of the second metro line. This list shows tram lines which are operating as of 10 March 2015 and the routes they operate on as of the same date.^[8] Instead of normal lines there are also tourist lines (line T) or horse tram in the Old Town.

Line	Start	End
1	Annopol	Banacha
2	Metro Młociny	Nowodwory
3	Annopol	Gocławek
4	Żerań Wschodni	Wyścigi
6	Gocławek	Metro Młociny
7	Kawęczyńska - Bazylika	P+R Aleja Krakowska
9	Gocławek	P+R Aleja Krakowska
10	Osiedle Górczewska	Wyścigi
11	Metro Młociny	Rondo Daszyńskiego
13	Kawęczyńska - Bazylika	Cmentarz Wolski
14	Banacha	Metro Wilanowska
15	Marymont - Potok	P+R Aleja Krakowska
17	Tarchomin Kościelny	Służewiec
18	Żerań FSO	Służewiec
20	Boernerowo	Żerań FSO
22	Wiatraczna	Piaski
23	Czynszowa	Nowe Bemowo
24	Gocławek	Nowe Bemowo
25	Banacha	Annopol
26	Osiedle Górczewska	Wiatraczna
27	Metro Marymont	Cmentarz Wolski
28	Koło	Dworzec Wschodni (Kijowska)
31	Służewiec	Metro Wierzbno
33	Kielecka	Metro Młociny
35	Nowe Bemowo	Wyścigi
41	Woronicza	Żerań Wschodni
T	pl. Narutowicza	pl. Narutowicza

See also[edit]

• Warsaw Metro
• List of town tramway systems in Poland

References[edit]

External links[edit]

• Media related to Trams in Warsaw at Wikimedia Commons
• Official website
• Map of Tramlines (Valid as of 27 March 2013)
• Tramwar - a private website about trams in Warsaw (in Polish)