Liberec trams to run to Jablonec again from May Day

Liberec is a city in the north west of the Czech Republic and was served by a metre-gauge tramway from August 1898. 

 

In 1947-1954 an interurban tram line was built to connect Liberec with the town of Jablonec nad Nisou 13km (8 miles) away, mostly single track with passing loop and Jablonec had its own tramway system until 1965. 

 

In the 1990s, Liberec decided to modernise and convert its system to standard gauge, which involved dual-gauge track for a period. This applied to the first section of the Jablonec interurban as far as Fugnerova. For the remainder it was decided to replace passenger service with replacement buses while reconstruction to standard gauge took place. The last metre-gauge tram ran to Jablonec ran in July 2021. 

 

After delays caused by land acquisition problems, the new standard-gauge tram line to Jablonec will carry its first passengers on the May Day holiday (1 May 2024). The track runs on its own right-of-way or at the side of the road and is still single with passing loops. Road traffic and trams are regulated by signals. If a tram enters an occupied section the traction current is automatically switched off. 

 

The 21.5km Liberec tramway is operated by some 50 Tatra T3 trams dating from 1987-1999. 22 of these high-floor trams have been rebuilt with a low-floor entrance at the centre door. There is also one EVO2 low-floor tram delivered in 2012. There is an active preservation group supported by the undertaking that has restored historic trams. A preserved tram set from Praha (Prague) has also been borrowed for 2024 and passenger trips on restored trams are offered.