- Trams Downunder

RE: Memories of Sydney Trams - was: Sydney tram video - 32 Minutes.
"Noel Reed"

On Tuesday, 15 July 2014 10:43 AM, Dick Jones wrote ----

I can't recall there being any traffic lights in the main city streets until
after the trams had gone. Apparently, as your message implied, the trams
regulated the traffic flow and in their absence, the old "give way to the
right" road rule applied, along with the requirement for motorists to give
hand signals when stopping or turning. "Trafficators" were not universally
fitted to cars at that time.

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In the fifties, the only road traffic signals in the Sydney city area were
in King Street, west of the George Street intersection. and at Macquarie
Street and Martin Place near Parliament House and Sydney Hospital. These
road signals were actuated by pneumatic pads in the roadway and in the case
of the trams in King Street, by contacts on the trolley wire. (A few
contacts of this type were acquired by SPER). The trolley wheels of
approaching trams would cause a brief 600 volt DC pulse to be sent to the
kerb-side control box of the traffic signals. Many Important tramway
junctions in the city and inner suburbs had tramway signal boxes from where
the signalmen could watch the hand signals of 'point duty' police officers
and would clear the appropriate signals for tram movements.

Consequent on the closure of the tramways in the city, the 600 volt DC
traction feeder cables from the City Substation in Jamison Street were
hauled out of the cable ducts along the various streets. The same cable
ducts were consequently re-used by the Dep't of Main Roads, (later RTA, now
R&MS ) for interconnecting cables for the present extensive road traffic
signal system in the city.

Following the closure of the North Sydney area tramway system, I was able to
see from the S&C office on Floor 8 of Railway House, the traction feeder
cables between City Substation and Wynyard Tramway Station being winched out
of the ducts under Wynyard Park. The cables were of no further use and were
cut into short lengths to be taken away for scrap.

Noel Reed.

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From:TramsDownUnder@... [mailto:TramsDownUnder@yahoogroups.com]

Sent: Tuesday, 15 July 2014 10:43 AM
To: 'TramsDownUnder@yahoogroups.com'
Subject: RE: [TramsDownUnder] Memories of Sydney Trams - was: Sydney tram
video - 32 Minutes.

Great memories, Pete.

I recall going for a tram ride out to La Perouse with the family in around
1957, in a coupled set of O cars and marvelling at the speed of the trams as
the cars on the adjacent roadway in Anzac Parade, toward the end of the
line, were left behind. The road speed limit back then was 30 miles per
hour, later raised to 35. The O cars were certainly allowed to show their
speed on the reserved track.

I also noted that the trams on the reservation were just slowing near the
stops then were given the OK by the conductor and continued on, as the area
was still sparsely populated beyond Maroubra Junction. This was also done
elsewhere when traffic was light, as I used to go from home at Canterbury to
City Road Junction on Saturday mornings in the mid 50's as there was a
gymnasium for kids in one of the Grace Brothers buildings. I used to ride in
the "observer's" seat on the usual O or P cars so that I could watch the
driver and the trams in the early morning used to just slow down and then
move on when signalled by the conductor if there were no passengers
alighting.

Toward the end of the tramways, the Liberal party was backing the (Rob)
Caldwell scheme which would have seen the remaining Eastern Suburbs lines
with reserved track sections retained but the virulently anti-tram Labor
party was returned and the rest, like the trams, was history.

Regards

Dick

From:TramsDownUnder@... [mailto:TramsDownUnder@yahoogroups.com]

Sent: Tuesday, 15 July 2014 9:09 AM
To:TramsDownUnder@...
Subject: RE: [TramsDownUnder] Memories of Sydney Trams - was: Sydney tram
video - 32 Minutes.

My memories of Sydney trams were that tram drivers were forceful in their
driving techniques, both in city streets and on open reservations.
Memories become coloured over the intervening years, but my recollections
are:

City street intersections - the majority were not controlled by police on
point duty. There were few traffic lights in the city centre. When trams
stopped at an intersection (where the tram stops were always placed on the
approach side), the parallel road traffic always stopped, even where there
were marked centre-of-the-road waiting areas marked out for tram passengers.
When no trams were stopped, the traffic flowed through. Cross-traffic
stopped. When a tram arrived and stopped, the parallel road traffic
stopped and this was the "signal" for the cross traffic to move. When tram
passengers had finished joining, the tram driver simply gave a couple of
dings on the bell and started to move forward, forcing the cross road
traffic to stop. The parallel road traffic also then moved forward.

Trams running in streets maintained the same speeds as the road traffic . no
20km/h or so as with the light rail - unless, of course, the trams were
blocking back by sheer numbers, as was often the case. This was
particularly so when the Circular Quay via Elizabeth Street line was cut
back to a single trailing cross-over terminus at Hunter Street.

Reservation running - Speeds were normally "flat out", at what I would
estimate to be about 40mph/65km/h, although I do stand to be corrected.
Road traffic speeds on the adjacent roads was supposed to be 30mph/50km/h
but traffic was usually a little faster where conditions allowed. The
trams at least kept up with this traffic and often gained on the cars.
Tram stops were placed at street "level crossings" on the approach side.
Vehicle drivers anticipated that all trams would stop at these tram stops
and so would cross over in the path of an approaching tram. 99.9% of trams
did stop, but on the occasional "Special", trams would not stop and
proceeded through the tram stops at varying speeds, sometime to the
detriment of the crossing motorist. This occurred on one tour, where a
(coupled?) P-class had a dispute over the right-of-way with a taxi which
came off second best when hit by a Tomlinson (?) coupler through the side
door.

I feel that if the Eastern Suburbs tram lines (to La Perouse and the
beaches) had managed to survive until the advent of the Light Rail era, they
would be operating today as an extensive modern light rail network.

Memories!

Hunslet

From:TramsDownUnder@... [mailto:TramsDownUnder@yahoogroups.com]

Sent: Tuesday, 15 July 2014 8:18 AM
To:TramsDownUnder@...
Subject: Re: [TramsDownUnder] Re: Sydney tram video - 32 Minutes.

I spent a lot of time in Melbourne from the 1960s to the 1980s, after riding
Sydney trams in their closing years and my recollection was that Melbourne
trams were, by comparison, very slow. I think the Sydney operation had a
very special style to it - making it all the more painful to know that it
was ditched. I believe the Brisbane trams flew along too.

Tony P

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