Trams in Volchansk

Trams in Volchansko

Volchanka depot with a KTM-19 tram
Overview
Type Tramway
Locale Volchansk, Russia
Termini Lesnaya Volchanka (Volchansk)
Volchanka
Stations 13
Operation
Opened 31 December 1951[1]
Owner Volchansk Municipality
Operator(s) MUP «Volchansky Avtoelektrotransport»
Rolling stock 5 trams
Technical
Line length 7.6 km (4.7 mi)
Number of tracks Single track
Track gauge 1,524 mm (5 ft)
Electrification yes
Route map
Volchanka tram depot
A yellow-blue KTM-5 tram

The Tram in Volchansk (Russian: Волчанский трамвай) is the primary transportation mode connecting the northern and southern region of Sverdlovsk in Russia,[2] specifically, the southern town of Volchansk and northern town of Lenaya Volchanka.[3] Volchansk's population is 10,403.[4] The tram has been in operation since December 31, 1951. The system contains one line which is 7–8 kilometers long.[5]

History

Volchansk is the smallest Russian town with a tram according to one Russia travel blog[5] and is located about 2105 km east of Moscow and 452 km north of Yekaterinburg.[6] The Volchansk tram service started on December 31, 1951.[5] At that time Volchansk did not have the status of a "town" (it was declared a town in 1956), but its population was at least least 30,000 people.[6]

At first, the line continued past Volchanka depot to Opencast Colliery #5 (Razrez 5).[7] This was closed in 1994 due to theft of the trolley wire. There was also an inter-urban tram line to the neighbouring town of Karpinsk, that had been working from 1953 to April 22, 1965.[8] It was dismantled due to the transfer of a large walking excavator from Karpinsk to Volchansk along the road between these two towns.

Rolling stock

The rolling stock consists of two tramcars of model 71-605 (stock numbers #7 and #8), one tramcar 71-608KM (stock number #1), one tramcar 71-402 “SPECTR” (stock number #2) and one tramcar 71-619 (stock number #3). The last one came to the town in January, 2008. The SPECTR had arrived a couple of years before. Thereby Volchansk has completely renewed all its rolling stock and unlike many similar towns in Russia it has enough tramcars to operate its transport system.

Passenger tramcars are equipped with bow-type current collectors, which are suitable for operation on the existing catenary. It is planned to equip tramcars with modified pantographs adapted to work in local conditions.

The depot has a snow plow “GS-4” (may be incorrect as the machine's stock number is unknown), though it is currently not functioning due to vandalism. However, Volchansk workers intend to restore the machine. Currently, a tractor is used to shovel snow off the track.

The depot uses an old flatcar that was a tramcar of model KTM-1 many years ago. It is coupled with a passenger tramcar and used to transport materials and tools to the track-works places.

A body of a tramcar model MTV-82 is used as a warehouse.

Guinness World Record claim

Although not verifiable through the Guinness Book of World Records, local lore claims it is the smallest city in the world to have its own independent stand-alone tram system. Volchansk citizens have applied to the Russian Records Book in order to have an official confirmation of their town as being the smallest one in Russia with its own tram service.[9]

See also

References

  1. ↑ History and description of Volchansk Tramway System
  2. ↑ http://russiatrek.org/sverdlovsk-oblast
  3. ↑ http://www.urbanrail.net/eu/ru/volchansk/volchansk.htm
  4. ↑ http://russia.places-in-the-world.com/1486984-place-volchansk.html
  5. 1 2 3 http://russiatrek.org/blog/cities/volchansk-the-smallest-russian-town-with-tram/
  6. 1 2 http://ymtram.mashke.org/russia/volchansk/volchansk_descr_en.html
  7. ↑ Volchansk Tramway: map of 1965 (Lesnaya Volchanka to Razrez 5)
  8. ↑ Volchansk Tramway: map of 1959 (Lesnaya Volchanka to Karpinsk)
  9. ↑ Photo of the diploma of the Russian Records Book (in Russian), Transphoto.ru.
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