Tampere light rail
The Tampere light rail (), branded as Tampere Tram (), is a public transport system in Tampere, Finland. In November 2016, the Tampere city council approved plans to construct a 330-million-euro light rail system on the route from the city centre to Hervanta and to the Tampere University Hospital. Traffic on the first two lines of the route (lines 1 and 3) began on 9 August 2021. An extension from the city centre to Lentävänniemi is also under construction. It is aimed to be finished in 2024. Along the route to Lentävänniemi, an artificial island called "Näsisaari  (Näsi Island") near the shore of Lake Näsijärvi is also under construction, and it is planned to be mainly serve the structure of light rail. There is also an extension under construction from Pyynikintori to Santalahti, which is scheduled to open in 2023. Unlike Turku, another Finnish city that is planning a new light rail system (see Turku light rail), Tampere had not had a previously existing tram or light rail system. The construction of a tram system in Tampere was seriously studied between the years 1907 and 1929, but left unrealised due to the high price of constructing such  a system. History. 1907–1929: tram system planning. The first official plans for a tram system in Tampere were made in 1907, when a committee was formed to study the construction of the tram system. The study, completed in 1909, found the construction of a tram system relatively expensive, but during the first years of the next decade, it seemed that Tampere would get a tram system. Eventually, the plans were shelved due to World War I. Around the same time, plans for tram systems were also made in other Finnish cities: Turku tram was opened in 1908, Vyborg tram in  1912, while Lahti (1907–17) and Riihimäki (1922) also made serious studies into the matter, though their systems, too, were left unbuilt. After the war, subsequent plans for a tram system in Tampere were made as late as 1929, but these, again, were not realised. 2001–2004: TramTrain proposal. The construction of a light rail system for Tampere had been discussed since the 1970s, but the decision-makers of the city were hesitant to make any decisions without collaboration with other cities in Finland to keep down costs. In 2001, the city took the initiative in planning a light rail network when  a rail traffic project group was formed to study the construction of such a system by the Finnish Ministry of Traffic & Communication, VR Group and various cities in the Greater Tampere area. The group completed its work in 2004, recommending a tram-train system utilising pre-existing railroad sections, newly built track and a tunnel section under central Tampere to avoid traffic jams. The proposed system was named TamTrain as a pun on Tram-Train. The TamTrain proposal created some criticism as existing urban areas in the region are around major roads, not railroads, and the proposed system would have , in fact, worsened public transport connections in many areas. The tunnel under the center of the city was also found problematic, as constructing such a tunnel would have forced the light rail lines to completely bypass important traffic hubs such as TAYS (Tampere University Hospital). Additionally, the tunnel section, which would have included only three stops, would have constituted 29% of the total price of the system. TASE 2025 light rail plan. The intermediary TASE 2025 report published in 2007 recommended the creation of a light rail system running alongside major roads linking central Tampere to the suburbs of Vuores  and Hervanta in phase 1 (by 2015), Lielahti and Lentävänniemi in phase 2 (2015–25), with links to Koilliskeskus, Ojala-Lamminrahka and Pirkkala in phase 3 (after 2025). There are also plans to continue light rail to the town of Ylöjärvi. In addition to the light rail system, the study recommended the creation of a commuter rail line utilising pre-existing railroad lines as well as improvements into pre-existing bus connections in areas not covered by either rail option. According to these recommendations, the initial parts of the light rail system would be opened in 2015. Although technically a light  rail system, the system proposed in TASE 2025 is referred to in Finnish as "katuraitiotie", "street tramway", as opposed to the term "pikaraitiotie", literally "rapid tramway", which is a commonly used word for all kinds of light rail systems in Finnish, but which has been used almost exclusively for TramTrain-esque systems with a tunnel in the city centre in Tampere. The length of the proposed light rail system would be in phase 1, in phase 2 and in phase 3. The total cost of the system would be €298 million. The light rail system is projected to make  approximately €10 million of yearly profit, whereas the current all-bus based system generates average losses of €10 million every year. A subsequent intermediary report submitted on 5 March 2009 proposed four different alternatives for the future development of public transport in Tampere, all of which included the realisation of a light rail system. The initial phase in all four alternatives was the same, but the precise routes and lengths of the subsequent extensions were different. Construction. The city of Tampere asked for tenders from consultants with experience in designing light rail/tram systems during the summer of  2010. The deadline for submitting tenders was on 16 August 2010, after which a consultant was chosen. The plan was that the consultant's report should be ready by the end of April 2011, after which the city council will make the decision on whether or not to proceed with the construction of a light rail system. A final decision was made in the city council on 7 November 2016 to start construction and to purchase trams. The tram supplier will be Transtech, a Finnish subsidiary of Škoda Transportation. The rail gauge is 1435 mm, which makes vehicle purchase easier , because producers generally have developed trams for this gauge. Construction commenced in 2017 and the first phase (city centre to TAYS and Hervanta) was opened in 2021. The cost, including rolling stock, was estimated at €330 million. After construction of the first phase was completed, the Tampere municipal council announced that the final cost of the project was €34 million under the revised budget of €300 million. Keolis, Länsilinjat and VR were shortlisted to operate the tramway, with the contract awarded to VR in April 2019 for a period of 10 years, with an option to extend  for a further three years. Rolling stock. Škoda Transtech builds the rolling stock for Tampere light rail (Artic X34). The design of the trams was finalized in 2018. The first of the 19 vehicles for phase 1 was delivered in May 2020.