Wednesday 15 May 2013

Occre London L.C.C.106 Double Decker Tram Model Kit 53008 | Hobbies

Hobbies are delighted to be selling the Occre London L.C.C.106 Double Decker Tram Model Kit 53008,  a new model kit made by the Spanish company Ocio Creativo. 
These Kits contain all the parts needed to make an impressive wood & metal model of the classic London Double Decker Tram. 


We decided to find a little history and background information about when the old trams last ran the streets of London:

By 1952 trams had already been phased out in several English cities but some of London's old trams were sent to Leeds where they remained in service until 1959.

Ten years after the demise of London's trams, trolleybuses followed them into oblivion.
In the 1970s much of the Kingsway tram tunnel was converted for road use.
During the conversion Aldwych station was destroyed but Holborn tram station remains intact in an unused portion of the tunnel.
Over the years trams have regained popularity in some quarters as an environmentally-friendly means of mass transport.
Manchester has had a tram system since the mid-1990s and in 2000 a combined tram/light railway system started running in Croydon in south east London.

Scene from last tram's journey 






1952: London's trams trundle into history
After nearly a century of service the tram has made its final appearance in London.
The very last tram to rumble along the capital's streets arrived at south-east London's New Cross depot in the early hours of this morning.
It was driven by John Cliff, deputy chairman of London Transport Executive, who began his career as a tram driver.
Trams have carried banners all week proclaiming "Last Tram Week" and special tickets carrying the same message have been produced.
Conductors punched souvenir tickets and enthusiasts drove or cycled alongside the tram - car number 1951 - for the duration of the journey.
The tram's journey time was extended by almost three hours by crowds of cheering Londoners who surrounded it along the route from Woolwich to New Cross.

Noisy and dangerous
At New Cross depot the tram was greeted by LTE chairman Lord Latham.
"In the name of Londoners I say goodbye, old tram," Lord Latham declared as the vehicle entered the tram shed.
The first electric trams appeared on London's streets in 1901 following on from horse-drawn trams which were introduced in 1861.
However, by the 1930s trams were seen as noisy and dangerous to other road users.
In 1931 a commission of inquiry recommended trams be replaced by trolleybuses - electrified vehicles which did not need tracks - but many trams were temporarily reprieved by the outbreak of the Second World War.
The final phasing out of trams follows the closure of the Kingsway tram tunnel three months ago.
The tunnel which begins in Kingsway and extends under The Strand was opened in 1906 and houses two tram stations - Aldwych and Holborn.



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