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 | | Tuesday, 6 November, 2001, 20:51 GMT Streetcars desired by Manchester  It is planned to ship trams through the Panama Canal Old trams from San Francisco are to be shipped to Britain for trials in north-west England. The Californian city is selling 15-year-old Boeing Vertol vehicles for �170 each rather than have them scrapped. Two streetcars will arrive in Manchester for trials which could see them installed full-time. A spokesman for Greater Manchester passenger transport executive said: "A number of options for improving the capacity of the trams are currently being considered and developed. 'More passengers' "Central to the work is the development of new centre sections, which can be fitted to existing trams enabling them to carry more passengers. "However, it is likely to take some time before the new centre sections can be provided. "Therefore, GMPTE and Serco Metrolink are looking at the possibility of bringing in more trams in a bid to improve capacity on the network more quickly."
But the streetcars will only be used as a short-term solution for overcrowding. A further 70 new trams are needed for the city's �500 million extensions to Oldham, Rochdale, Ashton and Manchester Airport. The American trams, which can carry up to 200 people, will begin their journey to Britain by road. They will be driven to Los Angeles before being shipped along the Pacific Coast, past Mexico, then along the Panama Canal, through the Caribbean and across the Atlantic. It will cost the city �30,000 to transport the trams, but will see the Metrolink save a possible �6m on buying new trams. Streetcar alternative The streetcars are considered to be an alternative to a �7m Government grant to build new centre sections, which would enable 14 of Metrolink's 31 trams to carry 90 more passengers each. Geoff Inskip, GMPTE's deputy director general and Metrolink project director, said: "Metrolink has proven extremely popular. "At peak hours along the Bury to Altrincham route, we want to make sure that as many people as possible who want to use the trams can do so. "We have a commitment to provide the best public transport network possible and ensuring that Metrolink has sufficient capacity for its passengers is an important part of that commitment." | |   See also: Internet links: The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites Top England stories now:  Links to more England stories are at the foot of the page. | |||||||||||||||||||
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