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The English Electric Balloon is a type of double-decker tram that is operated on the Blackpool tramway. Initially brought into service in 1934, the Balloon formed the backbone of the Blackpool fleet until the tramway's conversion to a modern light rail network in 2012. Following the network's re-opening, a number of Balloons were converted to meet the disability regulations to serve as a supplement to the modern Flexity 2 vehicles. ==History== Commissioned in 1933 by Walter Luff, the controller of the network, in a bid to modernise the tramway's fleet, they were intended to replace the Dreadnought cars and Standard cars that had been in service since the early years of the tramway. They were built by English Electric during 1934 and 1935, the first being presented to Blackpool on 10 December 1934. 27 were delivered, of which the first thirteen were open-topped. Numbered 237–263 and used on both summer and winter services. The first one, 237, was initially numbered 226, but with the arrival of the production Boat cars, it would have been out of sequence, so it was renumbered 237. They were originally called Luxury Dreadnought cars. They had central doors and stairs, with a capacity of 84–94 passengers. Half-drop windows provided ventilation and art deco curved glass lights provided electric lighting. The enclosed-top trams had sliding roof windows and thermostatically-controlled radiators. The closed top cars originally worked on the Squires Gate service, and it was during this time that they became better known as Balloon cars instead of Luxury Dreadnought cars because of their rounded streamlined appearance. During World War II the need for the open-top cars fell significantly and cars 237–249 had their tops enclosed to look similar to 250–263. Also during this period the fleet was painted in a mostly dark green livery with cream relief to conserve paint and time, as well as to reduce the chances of them being spotted from the air. After the war years the Balloons were neglected slightly in place of the new Coronation Cars, as they were considered old fashioned and too slow to load. Blackpool Corporation soon changed its mind after experiencing the temperamental nature of the Coronations and the Balloons began to make a comeback in the late 1950s. In 1958 check rail was installed through to Fleetwood, a requirement to allow the Balloons to operate to Fleetwood and the Balloons increasingly began to appear on market-day specials, as they were useful for moving the large crowds travelling north. The Balloons continued to run their normal Squires Gate service until its closure in 1961, and following this the entire class solely worked on the promenade service. In 1968 they were re-numbered to 700–726. Between 1979 and 1982, Balloon cars 725 and 714 were totally rebuilt into two new Jubilee cars, 761 and 762.〔(【引用サイトリンク】publisher=thetrams.co.uk )〕 The reconstruction of 725 included moving the stairs to the ends, removing the central doors to increase capacity and extending its body length. However, 762 retained the central doors to improve passenger flow at stops. During 1980, an accident at the Pleasure Beach loop involving two Balloons crashing into each other caused 705 and 706 to be withdrawn. 705 was scrapped whilst 706 was rebuilt as an open-topper, later named Princess Alice. In 1989, Alan Bradley, a character in the soap opera ''Coronation Street,'' was killed when he was hit by Bispham tram 710 outside the Strand Hotel on North Promenade. During the 1990s and through to the 2000s a number of Balloons that had been withdrawn from service were heavily modernised, with four of them re-emerging with flat ends and modern interiors known as Millennium cars. From the 17 October 2002, the Balloons (and all other double decker trams) were banned north of Thornton Gate due to the poor condition of the track. Following heavy repair work the Balloons were allowed back from Easter 2004. With the arrival of the Flexity 2 trams, some Balloon cars were fitted with widened doors and other modifications to enable them to run alongside the new fleet (see below). Several other Balloons were preserved: the first to leave, number 712, re-numbered back into its original number of 249, is preserved static (but with the lower deck interior open to the public as it was when withdrawn) in pre-war livery at the National Tramway Museum at Crich. 702 is preserved at the Heaton Park Tramway in Manchester. 703 is preserved at Beamish Open Air Museum, but as Sunderland 101 in a red and cream livery and had remained in operational condition, however it is currently out of service awaiting an overhaul to return it to service. 708 is preserved by Heaton Park Tramway, but is currently on loan to North Eastern Electrical Traction Trust. 710 and 726 are preserved by a local group named Fleetwood Heritage Leisure Trust. 721 is preserved by North Eastern Electrical Traction Trust. The remaining Balloon cars were retained as part of the heritage fleet (see below). Until 2009, only one of the cars (705) had been scrapped, however on 15 October, number 722 made a move into the body shop to begin the scrapping stage, and, as of May 2010, has been fully scrapped. More cars were expected to follow over the winter closure period, however, this did not occur, as all the stored trams that had been put up for sale were sold. One of those sold, number 716, was purchased by a group named Ptarmigan Transport Solutions for use as an office. However, after they went into liquidation, 716 was offered for sale again but failed to find a buyer and was transferred to a scrapyard. Its current condition is unknown. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「English Electric Balloon tram」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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