YORKSHIRE NOW ALMOST TRAMLESS
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FOR many years, the West Riding of Yorkshire was regarded as a stronghold of the tramcar, but, in recent years, an almost complete change-over to motorbuses, or trolleybuses, has taken place and considerable progress has been made, recently, in the elimination of the relatively few remaining tram routes.
With the putting into service, on December 4, of a bus service between Leeds, Stanningley and PucIsey, the last of the " out-town " tramway routes in Leeds was abandoned.
It was in 1934 that the corporation replaced, with motorbuses, its trams on the Tingley-Bruntcliffe-Guiseley route, and in May of this year the Rodley route was similarly dealt with.
In addition to the replacement of these long-distance tramway services, several routes within the city have been abandoned, notably, Hyde Park circular, South Accommodation Road circular, Cardigan Road and Domestic Street.
Trams in Leeds are now confined to relatively short, congested routes, in the city, many of which run largely on sleeper tracks and are more in the nature of light railways. Motorbuses in use now number, approximately, 300 —an increase of just over 100 vehicles since 1934.
A further withdrawal of the few remaining inter-urban tram routes will shortly take place when Halifax Corporation withdraws its last trams. Halifax previously operated an extensive tramways system but, like Leeds, it now favours motorbuses, the majority of which are A.E.C. doubledeck vehicles.
Huddersfield Corporation has, during recent months, completed the abandonment of its trams. Bradford Corporation was one of the pioneers, in this country, of trolleybuses, the first appearing in 1911.
The non-municipal operators in Yorkshire have also been well to the fore in abandoning their trams, the result being that there are now no company-operated services left.