Better Transport

In large towns or cities, trams are often a good solution – they fill the gap between trains and buses. They can carry large numbers of people and can be integrated with existing public transport.

While trains move lots of people quickly over a long distance and buses move smaller numbers of people, and for shorter journeys, trams are more flexible than trains - because they stop more often - and faster and more reliable than the bus.

It's important we work to get more trams in the UK - right now there are only eight - because:

• Trams are very popular and they encourage people to leave their cars behind. The number of people using trams has increased by 52% since 1999. On average, one in five peak hour passengers on UK trams previously travelled by car. At the weekends, half of the tram passengers used to travel by car. At least 22 million car journeys a year no longer occur in the UK because of trams.
• Trams can help us tackle climate change. Travelling by car produces over three times as much CO2 as travelling by tram, according to Defra (pdf).
• Trams reduce congestion in city centres by providing people with a quick, reliable, high-quality alternative to the car. They can reduce road traffic by up to 14%.
• Trams make cities nicer places to be. They improve local air quality because they run on electricity so don’t produce any pollution at the point of use. They are very quiet and safe.
• Trams improve the image of a city and contribute to economic regeneration. A new tram is a visible, permanent way of showing that an area is being invested in for the future. It attracts businesses and tourists, and helps people access jobs and services.

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