Istanbul nostalgic tramways different from Istanbul Tram
The Istanbul nostalgic tramways are two heritage tramlines in the city of Istanbul, Turkey. The city has two completely separate heritage tram systems, one on the European side (the Taksim-Tünel Nostalgia Tramway, aka. T2 line), the other on the Asian side (T3 line, aka. the Kadıköy-Moda Nostalgia Tramway).
Istanbul, the former capital of Turkey, once had a large tramway network on both the Asian and European sides. These started as horse trams in 1871, but gradually changed to electric. Many routes were built step by step, and the network reached its greatest extent in 1956 with 108 million passengers in 270 cars on 56 lines. But as happened in most cities around the world, tram service in Istanbul began to close in 1956, and ended completely in 1966.
Trams returned to Istanbul in 1990, with the opening of the Taksim-Tünel Nostalgia Tramway (T2 line). The city is divided between Asia and Europe, and while the Asian side has a heritage tram system (T3 line, which opened in 2003), the European side has both a heritage tram (T2 line) and a modern tram system (T1 and T4 lines, which opened in 1992 and 2007, respectively).History
After closing the tram network in the mid-1960s, the people of Istanbul thought that transport within the city would move faster than before, but this proved false some years later. The uncontrolled increase of petrol vehicles such as buses, taxis, and private cars started choking the streets of Istanbul. Turkey suffered many of the problems of developing countries, including pollution, traffic jams, illegal migration, low literacy, and rapid increase of population. A growing population increased the urbanization of Istanbul, and with it more motor vehicles which increased air and sound pollution, traffic jams and smog.From the early 1970s, these problems increased and by the mid-1980s Istanbulians realized that lack of control of motor vehicles and the closure of the tram network were great mistakes. Due to constantly increasing traffic jams and air pollution, Istanbul became one of the most polluted Eurasian cities during the mid-1980s. Many cities around the world like Tunis, Sydney, Buenos Aires etc. also understood that error, and like them, Istanbul also planned for the return of trams.Looking at examples in other cities around the world (e.g. Lima and Buenos Aires), the authorities planned to bring trams back to Istanbul. By then, the number of cars and buses had increased so much that starting a completely new tramway was not possible at that time. Instead they planned an experimental heritage tramway, mindful of the lower installation cost, mainly as tourist attraction, and as a test system to see how trams would be accepted by the younger generations in Istanbul.The original Istanbul tram network was almost completely destroyed, including depots, termini, electric power stations, etc., except for some of the rolling stock which had been preserved in transport museums. The Authority wished to re-introduce heritage trams in Istanbul using the same type of rolling stock which was running in the European part until 1962, and in the Asian part until 1966. Using old photographs, people's memories, and other sources, some rolling stock was built for the European side resembling pre-1962 European-side tram stock, including the size, shape, interior, color scheme etc. The prototypes had originally been built in 1915.Around 1990, the Istiklal Caddesi became a pedestrian zone, and the tram was restored and revived in 1990, in the form of the Taksim-Tünel Nostalgia Tramway. After a 24-year absence, trams returned to Istanbul. The length of the line is 1.64 kilometers (1.02 mi) and there are 5 stops.
After the Taksim-Tünel Nostalgia Tramway gained in popularity, mainly among tourists, another heritage tramway opened in 2003 on the Asian side of Istanbul, as what is now known as the T3 line (or the Kadıköy-Moda Nostalgia Tramway). In the case of the T3 line, first-generation trams were not re-installed along the route. Instead, secondhand trams from Germany were acquired, mostly from the Jena tram system, which were built in the Berlin area or in Gotha (see Rolling stock section, below).
Trams on the T3 line run on a clockwise circular loop, following roughly the old tram Route 20. The length of the line is 2.6 kilometers (1.6 mi) and there are 10 stops.Tram lines
There are two heritage tramways in Istanbul – the European side tramway, Taksim-Tünel Nostalgia Tramway (also sometimes called the T2 line), runs from Taksim to Tünel; the Asian side tramway, the T3 line (also called the Kadıköy-Moda Nostalgia Tramway), runs as a clockwise circular route from Kadıköy to Moda and back to Kadıköy. The European side T2 tramline follows an alignment of Istanbul's previous historic tram network, which was served by Routes 10, 11, 12, 15, 16, 17. The Asian side T3 tramline uses the previous Route 20 (operating on a portion of that route).