Sheffield Supertram - Sheffield Supertram Increasing Use and Decline - B

Sheffield Supertram - B

Sheffield Supertram Increasing Use - and Decline

There were initially plans for Supertram to extend services to a greater area of South Yorkshire, such as lines to Barnsley and Doncaster, but progress has been restricted. According to BBC News, frustration was expressed amongst people outside of Sheffield that they were paying for something they do not use.

However, by 2014 plans to extend Supertram were in various stages of action, and patronage had gone up, from 7.8 million passenger journeys in 1996/97, to 15.0 million during 2011/12. The increase in usage was credited to various factors. Industry publication Rail pointed towards changes to route patterns, the introduction of onboard conductors, ticket simplification and refurbishment of the trams themselves as having generated greater appeal amongst the public.

Between 2012 and 2017, the number of passengers and operating revenue declined, during 2016/17, the network carried 12.6 million passengers. Reasons presented for the reduction included the disruptive rail replacement effort across the network, which involved partial closures and the use of buses as temporary replacements, as well as the impact of cheaper petrol.

Sheffield Supertram New Tram-Train Services

The tram-train extension to Rotherham opened on 25 October 2018, using seven new Vossloh-built Class 399 Citylink articulated electric multiple units. Trams operate on Network Rail's line from Tinsley to Rotherham station and beyond to the Parkgate shopping centre, where services terminate on a short spur at the side of the railway, after travelling on the Supertram line from Cathedral to Meadowhall South/Tinsley.

The station at Rotherham Central is a combined tram stop and railway station, with platforms 1 and 2 at Rotherham Central extended, with the new extensions numbered platforms 3 and 4 respectively. The stop at Parkgate is a single platform terminus. The first test run of the tram-train service (as far as Magna) was performed in the early hours of 10 May 2018, and the first gauging run all the way to Parkgate occurred in the early hours of 5 June 2018.

The existing Siemens-Duewag Supertram fleet were not upgraded for tram-train operation, so were not registered under TOPS and cannot be used on the line as they lack the relevant Network Rail safety systems and crashworthiness. The tram-train scheme was first planned to be in service by 2015 but was delayed.

The Class 399 units were built in 2015/16 with the first delivered in December 2015. Until the completion of the tram-train line, some were used to provide increased capacity on the existing Supertram network. They first entered service on 14 September 2017.

On the opening day of tram-train passenger operations the service was suspended following a road traffic collision on the tram network involving one of the tram-train vehicles. The incident was caused by lorry operated by Ability Handling passing a red traffic light and caused the tram to be derailed.

The service has also been suspended twice after faults were found on the Citylink units. The first suspension was on 9 April 2019, when the fleet was withdrawn to undergo safety checks, although service resumed the next day. The service was later suspended again on 14 December 2019, resuming three days later on 17 December. Services have also operated on a reduced frequency several times whilst work has been undertaken on the Citylink fleet.

Sheffield Supertram Return to Public Operation

On 18 October 2022 the South Yorkshire Mayor Oliver Coppard announced that the service will return to public operation once Stagecoach's contract expires in March 2024, alongside a £100 million grant by the central government to modernise parts of the system. Coppard's authority will establish a publicly-owned arm's length organisation to manage the tram service.

Sheffield Supertram Summary of Opening Dates

21 March 1994: Fitzalan Square to Meadowhall
22 August 1994: Fitzalan Square to Spring Lane
5 December 1994: Spring Lane to Gleadless Townend
18 February 1995: Fitzalan Square to Cathedral
27 February 1995: Cathedral to Shalesmoor
27 March 1995: Gleadless Townend to Halfway
3 April 1995: Gleadless Townend to Herdings Park
23 October 1995: Shalesmoor to Middlewood/Malin Bridge
25 October 2018: Tinsley/Meadowhall South to Parkgate (tram-train)

Sheffield Supertram Overview

Sheffield Supertram Owner: South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive

Sheffield Supertram Area Served:

Rotherham

Sheffield

Locale

South Yorkshire

Derbyshire (bypass)

Sheffield Supertram Transit Type:

Light rail

Tram

Tram-train

Sheffield Supertram Number of Lines: 4

Sheffield Supertram Number of Stations: 50

Sheffield Supertram Annual Ridership:

8.4 million (2022/23)

Sheffield Supertram Increase: 21.7%

Sheffield Supertram Chief Executive: Tim Bilby

Sheffield Supertram Headquarters:

Nunnery Depot

Woodbourn Road

Sheffield

S9 3LS

Sheffield Supertram Operation:

Sheffield Supertram Began Operation: 21 March 1994, 29 years ago

Sheffield Supertram Operator(s): Stagecoach

Sheffield Supertram umber of Vehicles:

25 Siemens-Duewag Supertram

7 Class 399 Stadler Citylink

Sheffield Supertram System Length: 34.6 km (21.5 mi)

Sheffield Supertram Track Gauge: 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge

Sheffield Supertram Electrification: 750 V DC overhead line

Sheffield Supertram Top Speed: 55 mph (89 km/h)

Sheffield Supertram Map

Middlewood

Leppings Lane

Hillsborough Park

Malin Bridge

Hillsborough

Bamforth Street

Langsett/Primrose View

Infirmary Road

Shalesmoor

Netherthorpe Road

Brook Hill Underpass

University of Sheffield

West Street

City Hall

Cathedral

Castle Square

Fitzalan Square/Ponds Forge

Park Square Bridge

Viaduct alongside Sheffield Parkway

Hyde Park

Cricket Inn Road

Nunnery Square

Woodburn Road

Attercliffe

Arena/Olympic Legacy Park

Valley Centertainment

Carbrook

Meadowhall South/Tinsley

Meadowhall Interchange

Rotherham Central

Parkgate

Sheffield Station/Sheffield Hallam University

Granville Road/The Sheffield College

Viaduct over Norfolk Park Road

Park Grange Croft

Park Grange

Arbourthorne Road

Spring Lane

Manor Top/Elm Tree

Hollinsend

Gleadless Townend

Herdings/Leighton Road

Herdings Park

White Lane

Birley Lane

Birley Moor Road

Hackenthorpe

Donetsk Way

Moss Way

Crystal Peaks

Beighton/Drakehouse Lane

Waterthorpe

Westfield

Halfway

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