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Trams in Luxembourg

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An Urbos3 tram, operational since 2017, near the Gare stop

The first generation of trams in Luxembourg ran from 1875 to 1964, before they were withdrawn from service and the tramways removed. A second generation of trams began operational service on 10 December 2017, along a new route that will, by early 2025, run from Luxembourg Airport to the Cloche d'Or business district, in Gasperich, serving the new national stadium, via Pfaffenthal-Kirchberg and Luxembourg railway stations. Additional lines are planned for the network both within Luxembourg City, as well as extending to Strassen and Esch-sur-Alzette.

Trams have been free of charge since 29 February 2020, when all public transport in Luxembourg (buses, trams and trains) were made free at the point of use.[1][2][3][4]

Contemporary and future usage

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T1

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Luxembourg is in the process of reintroducing trams to its transport infrastructure. Construction work began on a new tram depot on the edge of the Grünewald Forest and the Kirchberg quarter of Luxembourg City in January 2015,[5] with the first tracks of the T1 tramline being laid in July 2016.[6] The tramline, when fully operational, will have 24 stations connected by 16 km (9.9 mi) of tracks and have a capacity of 10,000 passengers per hour in each direction.[7] Trams provided by the Spanish company CAF[8] began trials on the first phase of the route in July 2017.

On 10 December 2017, the first phase of the route opened with trams running from the depot, along Avenue John F. Kennedy, past the European district, the location of many EU institutions, before terminating at the Grand Duchess Charlotte Bridge. Here, a new funicular railway was opened on the same date allowing passengers to descend to Pfaffenthal-Kirchberg railway station for access to national and international heavy rail services running through the Pfaffenthal valley.[9][10][11]

The second phase opened on 27 July 2018; it extended tram services across the Grand Duchess Charlotte Bridge to Place de l'Étoile in the Limpertsberg quarter.[12][13]

Opening on 13 December 2020, the third phase saw the line extend into the historical Ville Haute quarter, across the Adolphe Bridge, along the Avenue de la Liberté, before terminating at Luxembourg railway station for interchanges between national and international heavy rail services.[14] Work to widen and reinforce the Adolphe Bridge, first opened in 1903, to accommodate the tramway was completed in July 2017, with a new cycle and pedestrian lane suspended beneath the existing bridge.[15]

The fourth phase, opening in September 2022, extended the line from the central station to Bonnevoie.[16][17]

On 7 July 2024, the fifth phase extended the line southwestwards from Bonnevoie, via Howald railway station to the business district in Cloche d'Or, Gasperich, before terminating at Luxembourg's new national stadium.[18]

The final phase of the route, estimated to be completed by early 2025, will extend the line eastwards from the tram depot on the edge of Kirchberg to Senningerberg before terminating at Luxembourg Airport.[17][19]

Future lines

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The future tram network in 2035 as outlined in the 2022 national mobility plan

In October 2020, the Minister for Sustainable Development and Infrastructure, François Bausch, presented detailed plans, of an initiative first announced in June 2018, for a future tramline, extending off the T1 line, alongside the A4 motorway to the north of Luxembourg's second most populous city, Esch-sur-Alzette, by 2028, and to the Belval quarter of the city, including the University of Luxembourg Belval campus, by 2035.[20][21][22] Trams would be expected to reach speeds of up to 100 km/h (62 mph) when travelling through rural sections of the route.[20] In conjunction, plans were announced to expand the network, with the creation of additional lines connected to T1 within, and in proximity to, Luxembourg City, serving amongst other areas, the planned Laangfur residential district in Kirchberg, via Boulevard Konrad Adenauer, and also via a revamped Place de l'Étoile interchange and Route d'Arlon, Strassen.[20][23][24]

Rolling stock

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Twenty-one Spanish CAF Urbos100 trams were delivered in 2017,[25] with a further twelve ordered in 2018.[26] They are 45 m (147 ft 8 in) long, 2.65 m (8 ft 8 in) wide, 3.6 m (11 ft 10 in) high, with 75 seats[25] and able to carry up to 422 passengers at a top speed of 70 km/h (43 mph). To cope with a 3.6 km (2.2 mi) gap in the 750V DC catenary between "Rout Bréck - Pafendall" tram stop in Kirchberg (about 160 m (520 ft) east of Grand Duchess Charlotte Bridge) and the central railway station, the trams use CAF's ACR system.[27]

Historical usage and museum

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The last of the first generation of tramways in Luxembourg, seen here in 1964.

Luxembourg's first horse-drawn tram line began operations in 1875 running through Luxembourg City along a 10 km (6.2 mi) line. Electrification followed in 1908. The original track followed a route from Luxembourg railway station through the city centre to Limpertsberg. It was extended to various parts of the city until 1930 when the network covered 31 km (19 mi). Several lines were closed at the beginning of the 1960s as buses replaced the trams. The last tram ran on the line to Beggen on 5 September 1964.[28] The country's other tram network Tramways Intercommunaux du Canton d'Esch served Esch-sur-Alzette and its surroundings from 1927 to 1956.[29]

A number of historic trams can be seen at Luxembourg City's tram and bus museum located on Rue de Bouillon in Hollerich. In particular, the museum exhibits two electric trams, two tram coaches, and a replica of a horse tram. There are also numerous models and photographs.[30]

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Tram interiors

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Tram stops

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Green track tramlines

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See also

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Further reading

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  • Association des modélistes ferroviaires de Luxembourg (Walferdange): Les tramways de la ville de Luxembourg: T.V.L., Walferdange : A.M.F.L., 1986, 156p., Collection: Les chemins de fer luxembourgeois, Vol. 5.
  • Bohnert, Paul; Dhur, Raymond; Eck, Jules; Rauen, Prosper: De Minettstram: die Geschichte der interkommunalen Trambahnen im Kanton Esch, Düdelingen : Stadtverwaltung und Kulturkommission, 1985, 325p.
  • Hoffmann Jean-Paul, Dhur Raymond, Clesse René, Balthasar Marcel: Tramway Municipaux - De Stater Tram: die Geschichte des öffentlichen Personen-Nahverkehrs in der Stadt Luxemburg 1875-1993, Administration municipale, 1993, 259p.

References

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  1. ^ "Luxembourg makes public transport free". Deutsche Welle (DW). 29 February 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
  2. ^ Kirby, Paul (29 February 2020). "Free transport in Luxembourg, but what's the cost?". BBC News. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
  3. ^ Abnett, Kate (29 February 2020). "Luxembourg becomes first country to make public transport free". Reuters. Luxembourg. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
  4. ^ Calder, Simon (29 February 2020). "'Like the first step on the moon': Luxembourg makes history as first country with free public transport". The Independent. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
  5. ^ Hinger, Paul (16 January 2015). "Luxembourg City: Work begins on new tram depot". Wort.lu. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
  6. ^ "Kirchberg: Luxembourg City's first tram tracks laid". Wort.lu. 21 July 2016. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
  7. ^ "24 stations: Luxembourg's new tramway in figures". Wort.lu. 10 April 2015. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
  8. ^ "Delivery in February: Take a first look at Luxembourg's new tram". Wort.lu. 18 January 2017. Retrieved 10 December 2017.
  9. ^ "Pfaffentahl-Kirchberg route: Luxembourg's first funicular carriage arrives". Wort.lu. 22 March 2017. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
  10. ^ Paulsberg, Linda (5 February 2017). "Chronicle.lu - Linda Paulsberg: the New Funicular Railway - a Railway First in Luxembourg". Retrieved 4 August 2017.
  11. ^ "Next Wednesday: Luxembourg trams start running next week in test phase". Wort.lu. 6 July 2017. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
  12. ^ Lambert, Frédéric (4 June 2018). "Le tram arrivera place de l Étoile, le 27 juillet". L'essentiel (in French). Retrieved 3 February 2019.
  13. ^ Lecorsais, Diane; Tasch, Barbara (28 July 2018). "Three new tram stations". luxtimes.lu. Retrieved 27 January 2019.
  14. ^ "Tram to Central Station: Final tests between Place de l'Étoile and station". today.rtl.lu. 27 November 2020. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
  15. ^ "September 17: Luxembourg City to open cycle bridge in 'world first'". Wort.lu. 18 July 2017. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
  16. ^ Toussaint, Thomas (11 September 2022). "From today: Luxembourg City tram extension opens". today.rtl.lu. Retrieved 28 January 2023.
  17. ^ a b Hansen, Yannick (12 September 2022). "Travellers can now take tram to Bonnevoie". Luxembourg Times. Retrieved 28 January 2023.
  18. ^ "Multimodal opportunities as Luxembourg tramway extension opens". Railway Gazette International. 9 July 2024. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
  19. ^ Arellano, Gaël (9 January 2023). "De la Cloche d'Or au Findel: "2024 sera l'année du tram" d'après François Bausch" [From Cloche d'Or to Findel: "2024 will be the year of the tram" according to François Bausch]. 5minutes.rtl.lu (in French). Retrieved 29 January 2023.
  20. ^ a b c "Le tram rapide et son contexte multimodal entre Luxembourg-Ville et la Region Sud" [The rapid tram and its multimodal context between Luxembourg City and the South Region] (PDF) (Press release) (in French). Ministry of Mobility and Public Works, Luxembourg Government. 21 October 2020. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
  21. ^ Théry, Patrick (11 June 2018). "Un tram jusqu à 100 km/h entre Esch et la capitale". L'essentiel (in French). Retrieved 3 February 2019.
  22. ^ Elsen, Frank (31 January 2019). "Committee for sustainable development: Improving the quality of life and public transport links in Luxembourg". today.rtl.lu. Retrieved 3 February 2019.
  23. ^ Ewen, Luc (27 November 2020). "Nicht jede Region erhält ihre Tram" [Not every region gets its tram]. Wort.lu (in German). Retrieved 13 December 2020.
  24. ^ Dimitrova, Aseniya (19 September 2020). "Luxembourg unveils plans for Place de l'Étoile". themayor.eu. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
  25. ^ a b "CAF delivers first Luxembourg tram". Metro Report. DVV Media International Ltd. 10 February 2017. Retrieved 30 March 2019.
  26. ^ "CAF Supplies Catenary-Free Trams for New Line in Luxembourg City". Railway News. 7 June 2018. Retrieved 30 March 2019.
  27. ^ "Luxembourg tram". caf.net. Retrieved 30 March 2019.
  28. ^ "TVL - Tramways de la Ville de Luxembourg (1875-1908-1964)" [Tramways of the City of Luxembourg (1875-1908-1964)]. rail.lu. Retrieved 3 March 2009.
  29. ^ "TICE - Tramways Intercommunaux du Canton d'Esch (1927-1956)". rail.lu. Retrieved 3 March 2009.
  30. ^ "TVL - Musée des Tramways et de Bus de la Ville de Luxembourg" [Tramways and Bus Museum of the City of Luxembourg]. rail.lu. Retrieved 3 March 2009.
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