page_title: Verkehrsbetriebe Zürich
section_title: Trams
hierarchical_section_title: Verkehrsbetriebe Zürich / Operations / Trams
caption_attribution_description: Glattalbahn train station Glattzentrum in Wallisellen (Switzerland)
context_page_description: Verkehrsbetriebe Zürich is a public transport operator in the Swiss city of Zürich, and is wholly owned by the city. Previously known as the Städtische Strassenbahn Zürich, the organisation was founded in 1896 and adopted its current name in 1950.
  The VBZ owns and operates trams, trolleybuses, buses, and a funicular. It also operates, but does not own, a further funicular, a rack railway, and the Stadtbahn Glattal light rail system.
  All of VBZ's passenger services are operated within the tariff and ticketing system provided by the cantonal public transport authority Zürcher Verkehrsverbund. The ZVV tariff also covers other passenger transport services in and around the city, including the Zürich S-Bahn, although these are not operated by the VBZ.
context_section_description: Trams make an important contribution to public transport in the city, with the tram network serving most city neighbourhoods, and are the backbone of public transport within the city. Most of the tram routes run from suburb to suburb via the city centre.
  The VBZ owns the tram infrastructure within the city, and operates trams both over its own infrastructure and over the infrastructure of the Stadtbahn Glattal, a light rail system situated to the north of the city and owned by the Verkehrsbetriebe Glattal (VBG). Whilst some of the routes operated over the Stadtbahn Glattal are branded as VBG routes, all such services are actually operated by the VBZ under contract to the VBG.
  The joint tram network of the VBZ and VBG comprises 15 separate routes. The network operates on meter gauge track, electrified using overhead line at 600 V DC. The VBZ infrastructure is largely street based, with  varying degrees of segregation from other street traffic but little use of dedicated rights of way for the trams with the notable exception of a tram tunnel in north-east Zürich that was originally built for an abortive metro system, and modified for tram usage. By contrast, on VBG infrastructure, VBZ trams operate on long stretches of dedicated track.
  The independent Forchbahn (FB) railway uses VBZ trackwork to reach the centre of Zürich from the eastern edge of the city. The FB trains operate largely in the street for this section of their route, sharing track with VBZ tram routes, but are categorised as part of the city's S-Bahn railway network rather than as part of the tram network. Two membership associations, the Tram-Museum Zürich and the Aktion Pro Sächsitram, also use VBZ tracks to operate occasional heritage tram services.
  The VBZ owns 313 tram vehicles, which between them cover over 16 million vehicle-kilometres per year. Of these, 88 are modern low-floor Bombardier Cobra trams delivered between 2001 and 2010. All the remaining trams in regular passenger service are of the Tram 2000 design, of which 201 vehicles were delivered between 1976 and 1992. Whilst the Tram 2000 is a high-floor design, 23 trams have been rebuilt with the addition of a low-floor centre section. Unlike the five-section Cobras, which normally only operate singly, the Tram 2000 vehicles are composed of one, two, or (in the case of rebuilt units) three sections, and in most cases operate in multiple.
  The tram network carries 202 million passengers trips per year, adding up to 368 million passenger-kilometres.
caption: A Bombardier Cobra low floor tram in VBG livery on Stadtbahn Glattal right of way
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