News

22^nd January 2006
News - December 2005

15^th November 2005
News - November 2005

16^th March 2005
16 March 2005 - Arrival of W7 1013

8^th February 2005
Buses added to fleet list
A few new photos added (192, 381).

New fares, effective 26^th December 2004

Adults
Children (4-14) / Concessions
Children under 4

$10
$7
Free

2004 Events
14^th March 2004 - 30^th Anniversary of Museum Operations

19^th September 2003
The next public run of trams at St Kilda will be on Sunday 5^th October 2003. On that date, prices will return to:

Adults
Children (4-14) / Concessions
Children under 4

$10
$6
Free

7^th September 2003
Thanks to the generous assistance of the South Australian Government and the Salisbury Council, we will soon be able to resume public operations. We are still a static Museum, but as soon as the necessary steps have been taken the trams will be running again. Watch this site for more details.

1^st May 2003
Due to a more than tenfold increase in the cost of Public Liability Insurance, the Museum is no longer able to operate it's historic trams. (Even if we could afford the policy, we could not afford the excess for claims which has also been significantly increased.)

After nearly 30 years of operations, we have had to revert back to a static Museum. We have accordingly adjusted our entrance fees as follows:

Adults
Children (4-14) / Concessions
Children under 4

$6
$4
Free

Even as a static Museum, we still have a great deal to offer. In fact, we have more trams on display than ever before. There are also regular guided tours around the working areas of the Museum.

26^th October 2002
Due to an increase in our operating costs, we have had to raise our admission charges. As from 1^st September 2002, the new prices were:

Adults
Children (4-14) / Concessions
Children under 4

$10
$6
Free

Over the past months we have been busy in a number of areas. Our biggest concern is Public Liability Insurance. The current information is that the premium for next year could be more than 10 times what we paid this year. We have no capacity to pay this type of amount. There is a possibility that we will be forced to cease operations when our current policy expires on 30^th April 2003.

Despite this gloomy news, we persevere. We have almost completed the installation of the point to access the new shed. All the rail work has been completed, and it is 75% concreted. All that remains is to install the switch lever and equipment and finish the concreting. The point is sufficiently advanced to allow us to move trams in and out of the new shed.

We have been fortunate enough to receive a grant from SA Tourism. This will enable us to put enough of a floor down in the new shed to open it to the public. This floor should be down by the end of the year. The grant also covers the creation of a display area in the new shed, which will appear in stages once the floor is down.

In preparation for laying the floor, we have rearranged the fleet a little. C 186 has been moved to the Main Shed, while D 192 is now out in the Body Shop. Horse Tram 18 is now in the South Tram Shed. Moving this delicate vehicle was a major operation. It took 7 of us 2 hours to move it less than 200 meters. We intend to leave it at the end of Road 7, next to the unrestored body of Horse Tram 15. This area will be redeveloped into the Horse Tram Display.

There are a few photos of the shifting on the Photo Gallery page, as well as new photos of Horse Tram 18, D 192, F1 282, G 303 and H1 381.

21^st May 2002
The new Member's Lounge and Office were opened on 5^th May and are now in use. They are definetly a major improvement on the old facilites. Many thanks to the dedicated team who built these new areas.

The AGM was held in the new Member's Lounge on the afternoon of Saturday, 11^th May. There were no suprises at the meeting, which ran quite smoothly and only lasted about 90 minutes. Due to an increase in operating costs, admission fees will be rising shortly. The new fees will be set at the next Committee meeting in early June. The AGM was followed by a barbecue and some tram rides. Nos A 1, E1 111 and W2 294 looked quite resplendent sitting on the fan in the evening.

The fleet was somewhat rearranged on 20^th May. B 42 has been moved to the Body Shop for some minor body work. Ballarat 21 has been moved out of the Main shed and is now on display in the South Tram Shed. The fleet page has been updated to reflect these and other changes made over the past two months.

There is a new line of Souvenir Photos available in the Bookshop. The initial set are photos of E1 111, F1 264, W2 294 and H 360. There are also a range of second hand book for sale.

A couple of new photos of F1 264 and H 360 have been uploaded. More will follow shortly. Follow the fleet link to find these new photos.

26^th February 2002
The body of Adelaide A Type No 17 arrived at the Museum last Friday. There are a few photos of the event on the updated 17 page.

11^th February 2002
There will be a Special Day on the 10^th March 2002 to launch the new book by the late Neville Smith. The book, "The Southern Lines", is the fifth in the series compiled by Neville. There will be second hand book stalls and a number of other activities as well as the usual Museum operations.

10^th January 2002
355 and the Brill 21E truck have arrived in Bendigo safely. It was a very tight fit, but they did manage to get this huge (for Bendigo) 17 metre tram in to the shed. (The shed was built in 1901 and designed around the trams of the day, which were less than 10 metres long).

I have added a small number of extra photos (42, 118, 294 and 354).

7^th January 2002
355 and the Brill 21E truck departed for Bendigo today. There are a few photos of the loading operation on the updated 355 page. I will upload a few more in the next couple of weeks.

31^st December 2001
A lot has happened recently. The new shed progresses smoothly. There is still no floor and it remains closed to the public, but a large amount of work has been done on what will be the Archives.

Meanwhile, out in the body shop, 118 has been partially painted and one controller has been installed, along with a large amount of other restoration work. The wheel lathe has been busy preparing the wheels from one of the maximum traction trucks to be used under 118.

We had a big day emptying out Road 6a in the Tram Storage Shed to get 355 out in preparation for it's trip to Bendigo. As always, the tram you want is at the rear of the shed. In front of it were the body of 14 and several trucks, some of which were stored covered on the track just in from of the shed. Each of these had to be individually towed from the Storage Shed, through the Main Shed and the yard and some distance out on to the main line. By the time 355 was finally out in the Member's carpark and emptied, it was time for a well deserved lunch break. At that point I had to leave for the day, so I missed the afternoon activity. 355 was towed out to the main line and then back on to another track in the yard. Then all the other items were individually towed back from the main line to the Storage Shed, except the Brill 21E truck that came with 42 which was shunted into the yard. Finally, 355 and the Brill 21E truck were towed down the main line and back in to the Main Shed, where they await departure.

All of this shunting effort is the result of a recent deal we have reached with the Bendigo Tramways. 355 is being sent to Bendigo for them to restore and use. In exchange, they will restore our Brill 21E truck, make up a second and equip both for us. These two trucks will then be ready for use under the two A Type trams we restore as a Bib & Bub set.

10^th November 2001
The first of the two tracks in the new shed (North Tram Shed) has been completed sufficiently to be used for housing some of our fleet. On the 1^st November, five trams were moved on to this new track: 192, 282, 303, 381 and Horse Tram 18. As the overhead has not yet been installed these trams were moved in place with the tractor.

While the shed is now suitable for storing trams, it is not yet sufficiently advanced for public access and so these trams are currently not available for viewing. It is not intended that they remain "hidden" for any longer than is possible.

29^th September 2001
News page created.