London County Council Tramways
Encyclopedia
The London County Council Tramways was an extensive network of public street tramways that was operated by the council
London County Council
London County Council was the principal local government body for the County of London, throughout its 1889–1965 existence, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today known as Inner London and was replaced by the Greater London Council...

 throughout the County of London
County of London
The County of London was a county of England from 1889 to 1965, corresponding to the area known today as Inner London. It was created as part of the general introduction of elected county government in England, by way of the Local Government Act 1888. The Act created an administrative County of...

, UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

, from 1899 to 1933, when they were taken over by the London Passenger Transport Board
London Passenger Transport Board
The London Passenger Transport Board was the organisation responsible for public transport in London, UK, and its environs from 1933 to 1948...

.

Acquisition of tramways

Under the Tramways Act 1870
Tramways Act 1870
The Tramways Act 1870 was an important step in the development of urban transport in Britain. Street tramways had originated in the United States, and were introduced to Britain by George Francis Train in the 1860s, the first recorded installation being a short line from Woodside Ferry to...

 local authorities were permitted to acquire privately-operated tramways in their area after they had been operating for twenty-one years. Accordingly, in October 1891 the LCC decided to exercise its option to take over four and a half miles of route operated by the London Streetways Company. The company disagreed with the price offered by the council, and the sale did not go through until 1 March 1895. As the LCC had no powers to operate tramways itself, it put the operation of the line out to tender, which the incumbent London Streetways won, being the only applicant.

In 1896 the London Street Tramways offered the rest of their network for sale to the county council, as did the North Metropolitan Tramways Company. The council purchased the lines, and the North Metropolitan were awarded a fourteen year lease to operate them.

The council succeeded in having the London County Council Act 1896 passed which gave it powers to operate trams. The next system to be acquired was that of the London Tramways Company in 1899, and from this date on all lines taken over were operated by the county council itself. By 1909 most of the tramways in the county had been taken over, with the LCC operating 113 miles (181.9 km) of tramways.

Electrification

In 1900 a further act of parliament
Act of Parliament
An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...

 gave the council the power to electrify its system. On 15 May 1903 the first electrified section from Westminster to Tooting
Tooting
Tooting is a district in south London, England, located in the London Borough of Wandsworth. It is situated south south-west of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.-History:...

 was opened by The Prince
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....

 and Princess of Wales who rode the route in a specially decorated tramcar, and paid their fares with halfpenny coins minted for the occasion. The last horse tram ran on the 30 April 1915. Much of the system used a conduit system of electrical current, as the metropolitan borough
Metropolitan boroughs of the County of London
The term metropolitan borough was used from 1900 to 1965, for the subdivisions of the County of London created by the London Government Act 1899....

s had the power of veto on the installation of overhead wires.

Expansion

The tramways north and south of the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...

 were almost completely separate until the opening of the Kingsway Subway
Kingsway tramway subway
The Kingsway Tramway Subway is a cut-and-cover Grade II Listed tunnel in central London, built by the London County Council, the only one of its kind in Britain...

 in 1908.

From 1 July 1921 the LCC Tramways assumed operation of the Leyton Urban District Council
Municipal Borough of Leyton
Leyton was a local government district in southwest Essex, England, from 1875 to 1965. It included the neighbourhoods of Leyton, Leytonstone and Cann Hall. It was suburban to London, forming part of the London postal district and Metropolitan Police District...

 trams.

In 1933 the LCC Tramways had 167 miles (268.8 km) of tracks in operation, of which about nine were in Leyton, and a quarter of a mile owned by the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...

. Much of central London was never served by trams, these being excluded from the area by legislation passed in 1872.

LCC trams could also be seen outside the county of London. Apart from operating the Leyton system, there were connections and joint running arrangements with the neighbouring company and municipal systems. This brought council trams to Purley
Purley, London
Purley is a place in the London Borough of Croydon, England. It is a suburban development situated 11.7 miles south of Charing Cross.The name derives from "pirlea", which means 'Peartree lea'. Purley has a population of about 72,000....

 on the Croydon Corporation
County Borough of Croydon
Croydon was a local government district in north east Surrey, England from 1849 to 1965.-History:A local board of health was formed for the parish of Croydon St John the Baptist in 1849. On March 9, 1883 the town received a charter of incorporation to become a municipal borough...

 system, Barnet
Barnet
High Barnet or Chipping Barnet is a place in the London Borough of Barnet, North London, England. It is a suburban development built around a twelfth-century settlement and is located north north-west of Charing Cross. Its name is often abbreviated to Barnet, which is also the name of the London...

 and Enfield
Enfield Town
Enfield Town is the historic town centre of Enfield, formerly in the county of Middlesex and now in the London Borough of Enfield. It is north north-east of Charing Cross...

 on that of Metropolitan Electric Tramways
Metropolitan Electric Tramways
The Metropolitan Electric Tramways Company Limited operated electric tram services in suburban areas of Middlesex and Hertfordshire from 1904 to 1933, when its services passed to the London Passenger Transport Board....

, and Hampton Court on London United Tramways
London United Tramways
London United Tramways Company Limited was an operator of trams and trolleybuses in the western and southern suburbs of London, UK, from 1894 to 1933, when it passed to the London Passenger Transport Board.-Origins:...

 metals.

The council opened a coal-fired power station for the tramways on the Thames at Greenwich
Greenwich Power Station
Greenwich Power Station is a standby oil, gas, and formerly coal-fired power station on the River Thames at Greenwich in south-east London. Despite being over one hundred years old, the station is still available as a back-up electricity source for the London Underground...

 in 1906. As well as 22 tram depots around the county, refurbishment and maintenance works were opened at Charlton
Charlton, London
Charlton is a district of south London, England, and part of the London Borough of Greenwich. It is located east-southeast of Charing Cross. Charlton next Woolwich was an ancient parish in the county of Kent, which became part of the metropolitan area of London in 1855. It is home to Charlton...

 in 1909.

Transfer to LPTB

On 1 July 1933 the London County Council Tramways passed to the London Passenger Transport Board
London Passenger Transport Board
The London Passenger Transport Board was the organisation responsible for public transport in London, UK, and its environs from 1933 to 1948...

(LPTB), known as London Transport.

Sources

London's Trams and Trolleybuses, John R Day, published by London Transport in 1979
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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