Re: Trams are Cars?

[Dave McL <davemcl@AXE*THISiprolink.co.nz>]

Peter Deighan wrote:
 
> The reason they were called cars was that the melbourne cable system was
> originally laid down by yanks.  IFIRC, francis boardman clapp was one of
> the gentleman.  So they used american terminology.
> Thus cars, not trams.

I disagree. Trams were "tramcars" or "cars" in many places, not just
Melbourne but in the UK and New Zealand. I agree Melbourne seemed
unusual with having the term on the stops. Sydney eg used Tram Stop,
while the Brisbane stops said Hail Trams Here. 

I've got a photo of a Christhcurch NZ tram somewhere (can't find it at
the moment) with a sign saying "Citizens! Use Your Cars!"  It meant the
tramcars, not the private cars which eventually drove the trams off the
road.

In the US, trams were called streetcars or trolleys (the latter not to
be confused with trolleybuses). The cable cars in San Francisco are
called cable cars not cars.


David McLoughlin
Auckland New Zealand