B class Melbourne tram

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

B class
Service
Entered service 1984-1994
Built by Comeng/ABB
Built / In service 132/131
Fleet numbers 2001-2132
Depots Southbank, East Preston, Essendon, Camberwell, Brunswick, Glenhuntly
Weight
Tare 34t
Dimensions
Length 23.63m
Width 2.77m
Height 3.65m
Power
Motors 2x AEG ABS 3322 195kW
B1 class advertising tram
B1 class advertising tram

The B class are a two section, three bogie articulated tram that operates in Melbourne, Victoria. Following the introduction of two B1 Class trams in 1984 and 1985, a total of 130 B2 class trams were ordered by the Victorian Government and built by Comeng (later ASEA Brown Boveri) in Dandenong, Victoria. They were introduced by the Metropolitan Transit Authority in 1988.

[edit] B1 class

The B1 class consist of two trams built as prototype light rail vehicles in 1984 and 1985 for the St Kilda and Port Melbourne light rail conversion projects. One is in service while the other is stored at Southbank.

[edit] B2 class

The B2 Class trams were the first trams introduced to Melbourne to feature air conditioning and dot-matrix destination signs. The electronics of the B2 Class were similar to earlier Z3 and A Class trams, however the B2 Class trams have Gate Turn-Off control systems.

In August 1999, the Melbourne tram network was privatised. A total of 55 trams were allocated to Swanston Trams (later M>Tram) with the reminaing 75 allocated to Yarra Trams. Both companies began their own repainting and refurbishment program that saw new liveries and internal colour schemes. However, with Yarra Trams now the sole operator of the Melbourne system, all B2 Class trams (with the exception of all over advertising trams) are painted in the Yarra Trams livery.

The Yarra Trams livery features a fog grey coat with a darker shade of grey for the bottom skirts and roof trimmings. The Yarra Trams logo and streamlined gum leaf are applied using vinyl stickers. The now defunct M-Tram livery utilised a more green concept as well as featuring yellow ribboning around the tram, a large M> logo, and a blue roof. Most trams are now repainted into the Yarra Trams Livery with white as the base instead of fog grey.

In 2003, Yarra Trams briefly proposed adding a further 'low-floor' section to the trams. This proposal was voiced during the introduction of the Apollo Seating Layout. However, the plan to add the low-floor section has been shelved and the Apollo Seating Layout has only been applied to 10 trams.

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Trams in Melbourne
Routes
1 • 3 • 5 • 6 • 8 • 11 • 16 • 19 • 24 • 27  30 • 31 • 42 • 47 • 48 • 55 • 57 • 59 • 64 • 67 • 68 • 70 • 72 • 75 • 76 • 78 • 79  82 • 86 • 89 • 94 • 96 • 108 • 109 • 112
Current Tram Fleet
W • Z • A • B • C • C2 • D
Operators
Tourist services
Tram depots
Brunswick • Camberwell • East Preston • Essendon • Glenhuntly • Kew • Malvern • Preston Workshops • Newport Workshops • Southbank
Miscellaneous
v • d • e
Melbourne's public transport - Metlink
Modes
Network
Ticketing
Main operating companies
Other operating companies
Broadmeadows Coaches • Cardinia Transit • Cranbourne Transit • Driver Bus Lines • Dyson's Bus Services • Eastrans • East West Bus Company • Grenda's • Hope Street Bus Line • InvictaBus • Ivanhoe Bus Company • Kastoria Bus Lines • Martyrs Bus Service • Melbourne Bus Link • McKenzie's • Moonee Valley • Moorabbin Transit • Moreland Buslines • NationalBus • Northern Bus Lines • Panorama Coaches • Peninsula Bus Lines • Portsea • Reservoir • RyansBus • Sita Buslines • Skybus Super Shuttle • Sunbury Bus Service • Tullamarine Bus Lines • US Bus Lines • Ventura Bus Lines • Ventura MountDandy • Westrans