In the 1950s, a tram Glasgow purchased some years before, a ‘one-off’, unidirectional double decker car which it numbered 1005 and which was sometimes known as the ‘Blue Devil’ for its unconventional three tone blue colour scheme, was put forward by the LIght Railway Transport League as an option for trails that the League hoped might happen in London. The tramcar sat on PCC type trucks [1] and was sleek and streamlined. It can be seen in its later standard colour scheme in the bottom-right of the featured image above (Public Domain). [6]

The link to Flickr below takes us directly to Frederick McLean’s page on Flickr which focusses on this tram. Frederick McLean’s notes say that the reverse of the photograph was stamped with the photographer and/or negative owner name C. W. Routh and with the date 25 May 1955. He notes too that, in the photograph, the tram was heading South-east at St. George’s Cross.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/fred_bear/51714105647

The next link to Frederick McLean’s Flickr feed shows Tram No. 1005 on, probably, a tram enthusiast tour, so showing a ‘Reserved’ destination blind.

https://flic.kr/p/2jCYDsr

In Washington DC a conduit system was in use, like that in London, and PCC cars were in use. The Light Railway Transport League (LRTL) proposed a trial on London’s streets of a modern PCC tram. They were even prepared to pay for the exercise.

Glasgow’s No 1005 was one of two cars considered a suitable vehicle for the trial by the LRTL. It was “equipped with up-to-date VAMBAC [3] electronic control, which promised smoother starting and braking, thus allowing higher schedule speeds with safety and comfort for passengers. In addition the trucks were fitted with improved motors, and more importantly, resilient wheels which gave a much quieter ride.” [2: p45]

Sadly the obstacles to the trial in London were too great. Harley lists these: [2: p46]

• Single-ended cars needed turning loops. There was only one route (between Beresford Square and Well Hall Roundabout on Route No. 44) which might accommodate the trial.
• Glasgow trams used bow collectors rather than trolley poles and we’re not fitted out for conduit working.
• The Glasgow network was in fact a narrow-gauge network, three quarters of an inch (19mm) narrower than the standard-gauge in use in London. [5]

With a will to do so, these obstacles might have been overcome at LRTL expense, but ultimately there was no desire among the authorities in London to countenance the trial. Harley quotes the letter sent by the Operating Manager (Trams and Trolleybuses), dated 23rd March 1950: “Work on the replacement of the remaining trams is proceeding rapidly, and it is expected that the first stage of the conversion scheme will be completed before the end of the year, and that the scheme as a whole will be finished within a period of three years. You will see, therefore, that the Executive are committed to a policy of substituting oil-engined buses for the tramway system, a policy which they consider to be right and proper. In these circumstances the Executive regret that they cannot avail themselves of the offer you have made.” [2: p46]

The parallel offer of a similar trial using a, then, modern single deck Blackpool tram was also rejected by the authorities in London. Their minds were fully made up.

In Glasgow, Car No. 1005, foundered in use. Trams Today tells us that “when initially built in 1947 it featured Vambac controllers, a unique livery of three tone blue and was single ended but progressively both the livery and the control equipment had been standardised with the rest of the fleet. This still left the unusual loading arrangements which made 1005 unpopular with the general public amongst a fleet of more than a thousand more orthodox trams. Consequently it had for several years been restricted operation to use only at peak times whilst much older trams bore the brunt of all day service.” [4]

“In an attempt to rectify this situation and make better use of 1005 it entered the workshops during 1955 for rebuild that dispensed with the single ended arrangement. A drivers cab and full controls were provided in the rear. …. The work was carried out on a strict budget and, although successful in making 1005 more standardised, it still saw only infrequent use when it tram, generally appearing only during rush hour period until 1962 when it was finally withdrawn and disposed of for scrap.” [4]

References

1. PCC type bogies were first used on PCC cars in New York. The PCC car was “a revolutionary vehicle – a streamlined, single deck Tramcar which ride on superbly engineered trucks, giving a quiet and comfortable ride. When, on 1st October 1936, Mayor Fiorello H. La Guardia of New York, inaugurated service of Brooklyn and Queens Transit Car 1009, a new era in rail transportation opened. Orders followed from American and Canadian cities and eventually almost 5,000 cars rolled off the production line. This figure was augmented by the 15,000 PCC cars or vehicles built under PCC patents which appeared in Europe and Asia. The concession for England was snapped up by Crompton-Parkinson. They produced an advanced VAMBAC system (Variable Automatic Multinotch Braking and Acceleration Control), compatible with PCC technology, and 42 sets of equipment were used by London Under- ground in the late 1930s. In 1937, W Vane Morland, the Leeds manager, visited Boston to see the new design. He then returned home with the blueprints of the PCC, but the outbreak of war put paid to any more progress.” [2: p45]
2. Robert J. Harley; London Tramway Twilight: 1949-1952; Capital Transport Publishing, Harrow Weald, Middlesex, 2000.
3. VAMBAC was the acronym used to refer to Variable Automatic Multinotch Braking and Acceleration Control. It was in use in the UK as early as the late 1930s on London Underground. [2: p45]
4. Trams Today Facebook Page on 9th January 2016: https://m.facebook.com/144002195699684/photos/a.733720253394539/736060386493859/?type=3, accessed on 8th July 2023.
5. Glasgow Corporation Tramways; Wikipedia; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glasgow_Corporation_Tramways: “Glasgow’s tramlines had a highly unusual track gauge of 4 ft 7+3⁄4 in (1,416 mm). This was to permit 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge railway wagons to be operated over parts of the tram system (particularly in the Govan area) using their wheel flanges running in the slots of the tram tracks. This allowed the railway wagons to be drawn along tramway streets to access some shipyards. The shipyards provided their own small electric locomotives, running on the tramway power, to pull these wagons, principally loaded with steel for shipbuilding, from local railway freight yards.”
6. http://parkheadhistory.com/heritage-transport/images-transport-3, accessed on 8th July 2023.
7. https://www.flickr.com/photos/fred_bear/51714105647, accessed on 8th July 2023.
8. https://flic.kr/p/2jCYDsr, accessed on 9th July 2023.