Line 1 runs from a terminus opposite Nottingham's main Midland railway station, and then follows the existing heavy rail route linking the city with Hucknall, Mansfield and Worksop, widely known as 'The Robin Hood Line'. In addition to the Hucknall terminus, major 'park and ride' interchanges will also be provided at four other strategic locations, Phoenix Park, the terminus of the short branch serving Cinderhill, Moor Bridge, serving the large conurbation of Bestwood, south of Hucknall, and Wilkinson Street, close to the city's ring road. In the city centre itself, much of the tram's route has already been cleared of road traffic by a long-established pedestrianisation scheme, and the railway will pass close to the Victoria and Broad Marsh centres, the city's two large and popular shopping complexes. The original plan to buy 16 Adtranz-built Eurotrams has been abandoned in favour of the company's Incentro design, whose ease of loading meets tight UK safety access regulations. The Incentro is comprises five modules with all traction and electrical equipment mounted underfloor to save space.
Access is via five wide single sliding doors.
The design has already been chosen for Nantes, France, and is also earmarked for Milan. Nottingham's trams will be built just 16 miles away, at Adtranz' Derby plant. Although the system has a mixture of on-street running, and sharing existing rail corridors, it will be controlled by a single signalling system. This will incorporate automatic train . The system will be overseen by staff in a central control room on the same site as the principal maintenance depot.