CHINA: The first phase of the Huangshi tram network in Hubei province was formally inaugurated with a ceremony at Huangshi Bei station on the morning of December 28. Public services began at 12.30, with free travel being offered until January 31.
The 26·9 km route with 29 stops serves the western and southern part of the city. Starting from Shenjiaying Avenue in the old town, the line heads west along the shore of Ci Lake to Huangshi Bei railway station, before turning south and east to reach Huangshi Xi station. The route then runs south through a 1·5 km tunnel under Huangjing Mountain to terminate with a large single track loop around the Olympic Sports Centre and Garden Expo on the banks of Daye Lake.
Located on the south bank of the River Yangtze, midway between Wuhan and Jiujiang, the city has been planning to develop a tram network since September 2013.
The 4·6bn yuan project was formally approved by the National Development & Reform Commission and the Ministry of Finance in February 2019, and a loan financing package enabled construction to begin in September 2020.
CRRC has supplied a fleet of 32 four-section low-floor trams with an entrance height of 320 mm above rail. The vehicles are 36·6 m long and 2 650 mm wide, with capacity for 340 standing and 68 seated passengers. Each tram has six double-leaf and two single-leaf doors per side to facilitate rapid boarding and alighting.
Designed to run at up to 70 km/h, the trams are equipped with batteries and supercapacitor energy storage for catenary-free operation, recharging from a short section of rigid overhead rail at each stop.
