The

Tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport ...

s in

Mandalay Mandalay ( or ; ) is the second-largest city in Myanmar, after Yangon. Located on the east bank of the Irrawaddy River, 631km (392 miles) (Road Distance) north of Yangon, the city has a population of 1,225,553 (2014 census). Mandalay was fou ...

were owned and operated by the Mandalay Electric Company, which was incorporated in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

in October 1902 with a capital of £ 200,000.

History

The street railway review (1891) (14575123748)

The construction began in December 1902 by Dick, Kerr & Co., and the first car was moved electrically on 17 June 1904. From the center at Zegyo bazar the tramway radiated in the following three branches:Electric Tramway in Mandalay.
Street Railway Review, 20 November 1904. Page 913. * To the shore, where the steamers embarked their passengers * To the Arakan Pagoda * To the Court House MandalayTrams(1904)Generator

The track had a gauge of and a length of , electrified double track throughout. The rails were high with a groove, laid at lengths. The rails were double spiked onto

hardwood Hardwood is wood from dicot trees. These are usually found in broad-leaved temperate and tropical forests. In temperate and boreal latitudes they are mostly deciduous, but in tropics and subtropics mostly evergreen. Hardwood (which comes from ...

sleepers, which had been laid on a

ballast Ballast is material that is used to provide stability to a vehicle or structure. Ballast, other than cargo, may be placed in a vehicle, often a ship or the gondola of a balloon or airship, to provide stability. A compartment within a boat, ship ...

bed. The rolling stock consisted of 24 electric motor cars. These were of the single deck, open, cross bench type, built by the Electric Railway & Tramway Carriage Works in

Preston Preston is a place name, surname and given name that may refer to: Places England *Preston, Lancashire, an urban settlement **The City of Preston, Lancashire, a borough and non-metropolitan district which contains the settlement **County Boro ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancas ...

. The car bodies were in length and about wide and provided seats for 48 passengers. The

bogie A bogie ( ) (in some senses called a truck in North American English) is a chassis or framework that carries a wheelset, attached to a vehicle—a modular subassembly of wheels and axles. Bogies take various forms in various modes of transp ...

s were made by

Brush A brush is a common tool with bristles, wire or other filaments. It generally consists of a handle or block to which filaments are affixed in either a parallel or perpendicular orientation, depending on the way the brush is to be gripped durin ...

and their wheels driven by two Dick, Kerr & Co. standard 25B

traction motor A traction motor is an electric motor used for propulsion of a vehicle, such as locomotives, electric or hydrogen vehicles, elevators or electric multiple unit. Traction motors are used in electrically powered rail vehicles ( electric multip ...

s, each capable of delivering approximately and could be braked in emergency by specially arranged

resistor A resistor is a passive two-terminal electrical component that implements electrical resistance as a circuit element. In electronic circuits, resistors are used to reduce current flow, adjust signal levels, to divide voltages, bias active e ...

s. The roof frames were composed entirely of

teak Teak (''Tectona grandis'') is a tropical hardwood tree species in the family Lamiaceae. It is a large, deciduous tree that occurs in mixed hardwood forests. ''Tectona grandis'' has small, fragrant white flowers arranged in dense clusters ( pan ...

, covered by

cotton Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor pe ...

laid in a wet coat of white

paint Paint is any pigmented liquid, liquefiable, or solid mastic composition that, after application to a substrate in a thin layer, converts to a solid film. It is most commonly used to protect, color, or provide texture. Paint can be made in many ...

. They had electric headlights with 100 V. The power house with three

Babcock & Wilcox Babcock & Wilcox is an American renewable, environmental and thermal energy technologies and service provider that is active and has operations in many international markets across the globe with its headquarters in Akron, Ohio, USA. Historicall ...

water tube boilers with a working pressure of {{convert, 160, psi, kPa was built in 78th street alongside the necessary offices, car sheds and repair shops. The track and overhead cables were severely damaged during the air raid of 3 April 1942Michael D. Leigh
The Evacuation of Civilians from Burma: Analysing the 1942 Colonial Disaster.
A&C Black, 24 April 2014. Page 161. and subsequently were dismantled.

References

Tram transport in Myanmar 3 ft 6 in gauge railways in Myanmar Mandalay Defunct town tramway systems by city