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Trams set to return to Shanghai

2014-10-16 10:02 Shanghai Daily Web Editor: Gu Liping
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Trams are set to return to Shanghai's streets under a new plan announced yesterday by city transport officials.

An electric tram network will stretch over suburban and downtown areas, the Shanghai Transport Commission said.

Trams were first introduced in Shanghai early in the 20th century, and at the peak more than 300 ran in the city. The network was closed in the early 1970s.

Officials said trams will complement the existing public transport.

According to a long-term urban plan by the commission, the city will have around 800 kilometers of tram tracks in the future — equal in length to the 2020 target for the Metro network.

"No more underground space can be spared for the Metro in downtown areas like the Bund," said Shen Yicheng, deputy director of Shanghai Transport Commission's urban planning office.

"Therefore, trams are a suitable solution," Shen told Jiefang Daily.

A detailed plan has yet to be created and no timescale for the project was announced.

A standard tram usually has capacity for around 350 passengers and travels at between 25 to 30 kilometers per hour.

"A tram's capacity is ideally suited to suburban residential areas with populations of between 500,000 and 1 million," Shen said.

Shen said most of the Shanghai trams will use overhead electric network power supply.

Currently, Shanghai has one tram route in service in Pudong's Zhangjiang High Tech Park.

The 9.8km route has 15 stops and a ticket price of 2 yuan (32 US cents).

But work on two new tram routes in Songjiang District will start this month. Covering a distance of 40 kilometers and connecting to Metro Line 9, these will open in 2017.

Qingpu District has also given the go ahead for two tram routes.

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