December 15, 1929: The company running the Malta Tramways ceased its operations and ‘it-tramm’ was no longer to be seen on Maltese roads after this date. The company then went into liquidation the following year, leaving debts totalling about £15,000.

The three tram lines operating from Valletta to Birkirkara, Żebbuġ and Cospicua. Photo: En-Wikipedia.org

Malta had been served by a railway since 1883, but 1905 saw the beginning of another mode of public transport: the tramways. The intention behind its inception was to service areas that were not on the railway route. Preparations had been going on since July 2, 1903, when the local government gave a 99-year-long concession to Macartney, McElroy & Co. Ltd to run electric tramways on the island.

The intention behind its inception was to service areas that were not on the railway route

A year and a half later, on the afternoon of Thursday, February 23, 1905, the Governor of Malta, Sir Charles Mansfield Clarke, declared the Malta Tramways open, while the dynamos to feed the power lines were switched on by Lady Clarke. Three hundred guests were then taken to Valletta in a convoy of trams, led by a suitably-decorated leading car. For the rest of the day, the public benefited from free transport. Thus a new form of transport was inaugurated in Malta.

The inauguration of the Malta Tramways in 1905. Photo: Commons.Wikipedia.com

Originally, it was planned that a line would extend from Valletta to the Three Cities of Cottonera. From Spencer Monument at Blata l-Bajda, a second route was to branch out to Ħamrun, Qormi and end at Żebbuġ. It was planned that a third track would service Mosta. Of the three routes, the only one to be completed as originally planned was the Żebbuġ route. The Cottonera line ended near the dockyard gate at Cospicua while the Mosta route stopped at Birkirkara due to difficulties encountered with the railway company with regard to the crossing of lines.

The tram rails at St Anne Street, Floriana, photographed c. 1910. Photo: Wikiwand.com

A Valletta-Żebbuġ workers’ tram photographed in January 1927. Photo: En-Wikipedia.com

A Malta Tramways saloon car in St Joseph High Road, Ħamrun. Photo: Timesofmalta.com

A Malta Tramways car exiting Ħamrun’s Main Street from Mile End, which is completely different to how it is nowadays. Photo: Wikiwand.com

A Malta Tramways saloon car photographed at Fleur-de Lys, Sta Venera. Photo: Wikiwand.com

The depot was at Zammit Dock in Marsa where a power station was installed, which included two water-tube boilers, two 365 horse-power engines and two Allen dynamos, all supplied by Babcock and Wilcox. By October 1904, the Cospicua route was ready and the Żebbuġ track had been completed as far as Qormi. The Birkirkara line was completed in May 1905 while the Żebbuġ route was finished a few months later.

A Malta Tramways car undergoing repairs at the depot on May 6, 1927. Photo: Flickr.com

Great opposition to the introduction of the tramways was encountered from cab (karozzin) owners, who contended – with a certain amount of truth – that their livelihood was at stake. On the eve of the grand inauguration, a number of overhead power lines were cut, ostensibly to prevent the service from opening as scheduled. Accusing fingers pointed to cab owners but nothing could be proved and, anyway, this incident did not prevent the inauguration from going ahead as planned.

Opposition continued, however, even to the extent of the use of firearms. On April 9, 1905, there was a power failure and the trams stopped for a short while. The cab owners then had a field day and a partial revenge by charging exorbitant fees for cab rides along the tram routes.

Malta Tramways saloon car number 1, photographed c. 1905. Photo: Wikiwand.com

A Malta Tramways passenger ticket showing the fare and the tram destinations. Photo: En-Wikipedia.org

On inauguration month, 1905, the tram fleet consisted of 16 double-deck cars made up of six saloon and 10-cross-bench trams. The saloon cars were of English design and were enclosed by six windows on each side. The others were workmen’s cars with open sides. All were built by the British Electric Car Co. on American Brill 21E trucks.

An early but undated group photograph of the tramways employees and the owners, Messrs McCartney and Mclroy. Photo: Timesofmalta.com

Badges dated 1906 of the tramways’ motormen and conductors. Photo: Guidemalta.com

The fleet was increased by five new trams in 1906 after they had already been ordered the previous November. Tram transport soon became very popular because, although it was not a very fast means of travelling, it was certainly better than walking or driving horse-drawn or similar vehicles. In fact, this new form of transport became so popular that the initial 21 cars were not enough to cope with the volume of passengers using the tram service. Consequently, another four cars were ordered in 1907 from the United Electric Car Co. This ‘boom’ continued for more than another 10 years, till just after the end of World War I in 1918.

The initial 21 cars were not enough to cope with the volume of passengers using the tram service

A set of four MaltaPost postage stamps commemorating the Malta Tramways. They were designed by Debbie Caruana Dingli and issued on July 14, 2004.

In common with all forms of transport, the tramways had their fair share of accidents and mishaps. The worst one occurred on September 30, 1905, when the brakes of a Cottonera-bound car (Tram No. 4) failed; the car jumped the rails at Għajn Dwieli and ended in a field. Four people were killed, six were seriously hurt while all the other passengers, 23 in all, suffered various other injuries. An inquiry was held, and it was concluded that the accident was caused by grit on the lines resulting from the very poor and dusty road surface.

The inquiry board also recommended a change in the Cospicua route – a short diversion through Paola Square – to help ease the gradient, which was quite steep. Therefore, one can understand why the company employed a substantial number of workmen not only to effect repairs to the rails but also to keep them clean and free from grit. In 1907, sprinkler tram-cars were introduced to sprinkle water over the dusty roads.

The Barrakka Lift (not the one in operation nowadays), which helped to pay off the Malta Tramways’ debts. Photo: En-Wikipedia.com

The heyday of the trams came to an end just after the end of World War I when a large number of motor bus chassis were imported and fitted with bodies locally. The tramways suffered serious financial losses but the company managed to survive for a time because of the profits accruing from the operation of the 197-foot-high Barrakka Lift (not the one in operation nowadays), which the company had inaugurated on January 1, 1906, to carry passengers between the Upper Barrakka and the Customs House at Lascaris Wharf.

But the introduction of motor vehicles for public transport eventually spelt the doom and sounded the death knell of the tramways, and they were taken out of service on December 15, 1929. The Barrakka Lift continued to operate till January 31, 1973, and it was only through their profitable operations that the company ensured the full payment of all its debts by 1946.

Joseph F. Grima is a retired casual history lecturer and Assistant Director of Education