page_title: W-class Melbourne tram
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: W-class Melbourne tram / History
caption_attribution_description: English: A Victorian Tram with HCF's ad in 1969 - just before it closed its office in Victoria before 1970 due to a result of introducing National Health Act 1970.
context_page_description: The W-class trams are a family of electric trams built by the Melbourne & Metropolitan Tramways Board between 1923 and 1956. Over the 33 years of production, 752 vehicles spanning 12 sub-classes were constructed, the majority at the MMTB's Preston Workshops.
  A small fleet continue to operate on the tramway network of Melbourne, Australia, where they are used on the City Circle tourist route and the Colonial Tramcar Restaurant service. The W-class tram is a cultural icon to Melbourne, those that remain in Melbourne are classified by the National Trust of Australia.
  As well as Melbourne, W-class trams operate on tourist and heritage systems across the world. A number of older variants have been withdrawn from service and later sent to cities such as Copenhagen, Savannah and Seattle, and by private enthusiasts. In 2018, 134 W-class trams were offered to the Australian public for new uses.
context_section_description: W-class trams were introduced to Melbourne in 1923 as a new standard design. They had a dual bogie layout and were characterised by a substantial timber frame supplanted by a steel underframe, a simple rugged design, and fine craftsmanship (particularly the older models). The W class was the mainstay of Melbourne's tramways system for 60 years. A total of 752 trams of all variants were built.
  The W2 variant was supplemented in the late 1930s by 120 W5 (or "Clyde") class trams with wider cabins, and more powerful motors. However, they were notorious for being difficult to drive smoothly. The W6 followed on, and became the most popular W-class tram with crews and passengers alike, because they were fast, smooth and comfortable, compared with earlier W variants. Construction came to a halt for some years, with the final 40 W-class trams emerging from the Preston Workshops in 1956, when the need to provide something more capable of dealing with Olympic Games crowds than Bourke Street's buses prompted the last expansion of the network.
  In April 1971, W7 1024 became the first tram to carry all over advertising livery when it was painted for the State Electricity Commission of Victoria, followed by Heinz (June 1971), Preston Market (August 1971), and Channel 0 (October 1971). It was fitted with 400 light bulbs on its roofline. It was joined by W6 900 in 1973. In 1977 W2 546 was fitted with an experimental Siemens pantograph.
  The W7 class with its pneumatic sliding doors and softer suspension proved popular with passengers. It was not until the 1990s that the W class was finally considered surplus to rolling stock requirements.
caption: A W5 class tram, 1969
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