Hill of Howth Tramway

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Colloquially known as the Howth Tram, the tramway operated from June 1901 to June 1959 and served Howth Head, near Dublin, Ireland. The service was run by the Great Northern Railway (Ireland) (GNR(I)), which viewed it as a way to bring more customers to its railway stations at Sutton and Howth.

Electric double-decker tramcars ran the five-mile route, which went from Sutton station along Greenfield Road and Carrickbrack Road to St. Fintan's Cemetery, then past the Baily post office and Stella Maris convent to Howth Summit. From there, the tramway ran down into Howth, terminating at the railway station. Most of the route was single track, with passing points at the main stopping places. The track gauge was 1600mm, the same standard as railways in Ireland.

In 1958, Córas Iompair Éireann (CIE) took over GNR(I)'s operations in the Republic of Ireland, including the Howth Tram. A year later, the tramway was closed down. It was initially replaced by two CIE bus routes - numbers 87 (Sutton - Ceanchor Road) and 88 (Howth - Windgate Road). Two routes were necessary, as several narrow hill curves were not passable by the buses used. Eventually, sections of the disused tram route between the Baily post office and the Summit were converted to a wider road and a single bus route (number 88) was possible.

The area is now served by extensions to the 31 bus route. In winter, icy roads on the hill occasionally cause the bus service to be suspended, unlike the tram which ran in all weather conditions.

One of the tramcars is now exhibited at the National Transport Museum of Ireland, which is located at Howth Castle near the former terminus of the tramway at Howth railway station. Tramcar 10 is also preserved at the National Tramway Museum, Crich, Derbyshire.

[edit] References

Kilroy, James: "Howth and her Trams: Stories and Sketches of the Howth Tram", Trams to the Hill of Howth ,Fingal Books, Dublin (1986).

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