Just like a cable tram dummy
Mal Rowe
Saturday, October 5, 2024 6:45 AM
The attached clipping is from the Argus newspaper of 28th of January 1927.
It shows the drop centre section of what was probably W1 419, the second of the W1 class trams.
The authors of Destination City speculated that the drop centre was supposed to replicate the passenger experience of riding on the grip car of a Melbourne cable tram.
The caption supports that speculation.
At this time there was an active campaign to keep cable trams in Collins St and this could have been part of the campaign to go electric.
The initial design had the seats permanently facing outwards, but they were later converted to a tip over design.
All were later converted to W2s or SW2s. The W2s that started out as W1s were distinguished by having single pane windows in the drop centre panels.
My pic of 471 in Swanston St shows that.
427 and 431 have been restored to the W1 layout with tip-over seats. 427 is at Bylands and 431 is at Hawthorn.
Bendigo tramways restored 421 to a form of the W1 design and numbered it 31. It later was modified for lease to the Dockline tramway in Auckland and is now back in service in Bendigo.
Mal Rowe - occasional passenger in some of these.
It shows the drop centre section of what was probably W1 419, the second of the W1 class trams.
The authors of Destination City speculated that the drop centre was supposed to replicate the passenger experience of riding on the grip car of a Melbourne cable tram.
The caption supports that speculation.
At this time there was an active campaign to keep cable trams in Collins St and this could have been part of the campaign to go electric.
The initial design had the seats permanently facing outwards, but they were later converted to a tip over design.
All were later converted to W2s or SW2s. The W2s that started out as W1s were distinguished by having single pane windows in the drop centre panels.
My pic of 471 in Swanston St shows that.
427 and 431 have been restored to the W1 layout with tip-over seats. 427 is at Bylands and 431 is at Hawthorn.
Bendigo tramways restored 421 to a form of the W1 design and numbered it 31. It later was modified for lease to the Dockline tramway in Auckland and is now back in service in Bendigo.
Mal Rowe - occasional passenger in some of these.
