The Leicester Tramways Company operated a horse-drawn tramway service in Leicester from 1874 to 1901.
8-458: The Leicester Tramways Company was incorporated under the Tramways Act 1870 ( 33 & 34 Vict. c. 78) in 1872 with power to raise capital of £40,000. The company employed the well-regarded engineer Joseph Kincaid and entered into an agreement with William Turton to construct the tramways at a cost of £32,500 (equivalent to £4,940,000 in 2023). Construction was slower than expected and once
16-543: A disincentive to investment and improvement in later years, and in some locations was even said to be a disincentive to the capitalisation of new undertakings. Several sections of the Act were later repealed or superseded by other legislation, including the Light Railways Act 1896 . Most notably, local authorities were given the right to construct and operate their own tramways under the newer Acts, and municipal ownership became
24-555: The United States, and were introduced to UK by George Francis Train in the 1860s, the first recorded installation being a short line from Woodside Ferry to Birkenhead Park in the town of Birkenhead . However, when Train started laying lines on top of the highway in London, he was arrested and fined, although he thought he had obtained official permission. The Act attempted to promote this new means of transport by clarifying and regulating
32-611: The directors had received 3 of their cars, a trial trip was carried out on the first line on 23 December 1874 from the Clock Tower to the Folly Inn in Belgrave . Public services started the following day, 24 December 1874 with a flat fare of 2d. The line to Humberstone opened on 22 March 1875 and the London Road section was opened on 13 August 1875. This completed the network that the company
40-435: The highway, but they were not allowed to operate trams . At the conclusion of the lease, the local authority could purchase the complete undertaking, including the trams and horses (or, in the case of a steam tramway , the locomotives and trailers). This was at a normal asset valuation , which took account of depreciation , and not a valuation of the business as a going concern. The so-called "scrap iron clause" proved to be
48-418: The legal position. It authorised local boroughs or urban district councils to grant a 21-year concession to a private tramway operator. The operator could construct the track as part of the concession but was responsible for the repair of the public highway between the tracks and a short distance either side. The local authority could construct the track themselves if they wished to retain complete control of
56-689: Was originally authorised to construct. In 1876 the company attempted a trial of a Hughes steam locomotive built at the Falcon works at Loughborough. However, the company did not progress with this beyond the trial and retained horse power for the rest of the life of the company. In 1878 there were further extensions of the Victoria Park line for 1 mile along London Road to Knighton Lane, and new arterial routes along Welford Road and Aylestone Road to Grace Road on 7 June 1878, and along Church Gate, Sanvey Gate and Woodgate to Groby Road on 20 August 1878. The company
64-466: Was purchased on 31 December 1901 by Leicester Corporation for the sum of £134,110 (equivalent to £18,390,000 in 2023) and they set up Leicester Corporation Tramways to electrify and extend the system. Tramways Act 1870 The Tramways Act 1870 ( 33 & 34 Vict. c. 78) was an important step in the development of urban transport in United Kingdom. Street tramways had originated in
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