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The Brisbane tramway network once served Brisbane, the capital city of Queensland, Australia. It operated between 1885 and 1969 and ran on standard gauge track. The electric system was originally energised to 500 volts, and subsequently increased to 600 volts. All tramcars built in Brisbane up to 1938 had an open design. This proved so popular, especially on hot summer nights, that the trams were used as fundraisers and often chartered right up until the last service by social groups. Most trams operated with a two-person crew – a driver (or motorman) and a conductor, who moved about the tram collecting fares and issuing tickets. The exceptions to this arrangement were on the Gardens line (Lower Edward Street) where the short duration of the trip meant it was more effective for passengers to simply drop their fare into a fare box as they entered the tram; and the "one man cars" which operated in the early 1930s (see below). The peak year for patronage was in 1944–45 when almost 160 million passengers were carried. The system route length reached its maximum extent of in 1952. The total track length was , owing to many routes ending in single, rather than double, track. Single track segments of the track were protected by signalling which operated off the trolley wire. By 1959 more than of track were laid in concrete, a method of track construction pioneered in Brisbane. The last track opened was in O'Keefe Street Woolloongabba, in May 1961. However, this track was not used in normal passenger service and was merely used to reduce dead running from Logan Road back to Ipswich Road Depot. Of the Australian capital cities which closed their networks between the 1950s and 1970s (only Melbourne and Adelaide retained trams, although Adelaide only had one line in operation), Brisbane was the last capital city to shut down its trams. Despite the decision to shut down the network, the city's trams were held with great affection by locals. There have been ongoing proposals since the early 1990s to reinstate a functional tram network. ==History== Brisbane developed with no wealthy suburbs, instead the well-off built mansions on hills, and the city expanded to become one of the most dispersed cities in the world by the 1870s.〔 In the early years of Brisbane's settlement walking was the most convenient way to get around as most people choose to live close to their workplace.〔 In 1875 the railway line to Ipswich opened up some areas in western and southern districts, however fares were expensive, as was owning a horse. By 1885 an omnibus service reached almost every part of Brisbane.〔 Omnibuses consisted of a strongly constructed wooden wagon with seating for males on the roof and a back-door entrance to the interior. 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「Trams in Brisbane」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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