western australia

A 1927 tramcar has a new career

@JudyEv (339953)

Rockingham, Australia

January 31, 2022 5:51pm CST

Another item on display at the Crooked Carrot café was an old Melbourne Tramcar. It is officially a W2, number 556, and was built in 1927. Melbourne got rid of their tramcars many years ago. No. 556 was withdrawn from service in 1987, after 60 years on the tracks. Trams were first used in the mid-to-late 1920s. At one stage, there were 406 trams in operation. Poor old 556 arrived at the Castro farm in 2015, it was rusty, had termite damage, a badly leaking roof, rotting timber, etc. Its last known use had been as a hamburger stand. A local restorer aimed at preserving the original state as much as possible. It was moved to its present location in 2018. Edit: Big error!!! Melbourne still has trams. I'd forgotten that.

18 people like this

16 responses

@arunima25 (87806)

• Bangalore, India

1 Feb 22

We still have those tram cars in the city of Kolkata. They are few in number but they are still operational. We had a ride on them when we visited there.

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@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

1 Feb 22

I had forgotten that they still have them in Melbourne too.

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@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

2 Feb 22

@arunima25 A lot of people use them in Melbourne.

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@arunima25 (87806)

• Bangalore, India

2 Feb 22

@JudyEv It would be fun to ride them in this era. Enjoying something from the heritage.

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Valerie J. Routhieaux

@just4him (317041)

• Green Bay, Wisconsin

1 Feb 22

It found a new home. I'm sure people love touring it.

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Valerie J. Routhieaux

@just4him (317041)

• Green Bay, Wisconsin

1 Feb 22

@JudyEv I was surprised to see the colors, green and gold, they're Green Bay's colors. The Packers are green and gold. Nearly everything in Green Bay is green and gold the same as your tram.

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@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

1 Feb 22

@just4him I think green and gold are Australia's colours too. We have a lot of untouched country although a lot of that is red! And our national flower is the wattle which is yellow. I'm sure our Olympic teams are always decked out in green and gold.

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@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

1 Feb 22

It's nice to see it positioned here and with a roof over it.

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@averygirl72 (37845)

• Philippines

1 Feb 22

It still looks like in good condition. Is it the same with trains? the tram cars

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@averygirl72 (37845)

• Philippines

1 Feb 22

@JudyEv Yes train wagons. Do they need railways?

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@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

1 Feb 22

@averygirl72 Yes, they need railway lines if that's what you mean.

@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

1 Feb 22

The train wagons are quite similar.

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@RebeccasFarm (89882)

• Arvada, Colorado

1 Feb 22

Aw reminds me of the trams Mama and I used ride

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@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

1 Feb 22

Our son rides them regularly in Melbourne. I forgot they still have them there.

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@RebeccasFarm (89882)

• Arvada, Colorado

1 Feb 22

@JudyEv we called them street cars

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@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

1 Feb 22

@RebeccasFarm As in 'A Streetcar Called Desire'.

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@LadyDuck (471500)

• Switzerland

1 Feb 22

I love this tram, there are still trams in Milan, here in Switzerland they have trams in Zürich, I do not remember the colour, but I think blue and yellow.

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@LadyDuck (471500)

• Switzerland

2 Feb 22

@JudyEv - I checked those in Zürich are blue and white, in Basel yellow and white.

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@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

1 Feb 22

I think those in Melbourne are red now.

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@CarolDM (203422)

• Nashville, Tennessee

1 Feb 22

How cool to have this restored.

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@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

1 Feb 22

It is looking pretty good really for its age.

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@CarolDM (203422)

• Nashville, Tennessee

1 Feb 22

@JudyEv I agree.

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@BarBaraPrz (47313)

• St. Catharines, Ontario

1 Feb 22

Many cities did away with trams/street cars because of undue influence from big oil.

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@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

1 Feb 22

I forgot that Melbourne does still have trams. I'm amended the discussion now.

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@rebelann (112878)

• El Paso, Texas

1 Feb 22

I've never been on a tram but it could be fun if there weren't a lot of people on it .... I don't like crowds

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@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

1 Feb 22

The ones in Melbourne get crowded. Country areas are much better.

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@DaddyEvil (137259)

• United States

1 Feb 22

What are they using it for at the Crooked Carrot café?

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@DaddyEvil (137259)

• United States

1 Feb 22

@JudyEv Oh, I see...

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@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

1 Feb 22

One end has the remnants of a kitchen but it is closed off to the public.

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@RasmaSandra (79858)

• Daytona Beach, Florida

1 Feb 22

That is a very nice looking tramcar, You know if you could get electricity in it and do some remodeling it could serve as a nice little office,

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@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

1 Feb 22

We have a friend who lives in something similar although it's a railway carriage. He has his bed one end and his kitchen the other. He does have a separate bathroom area outside.

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@franxav (13837)

• India

1 Feb 22

Trams still rumble around in Kolkata city. They are the cheapest mode of travel in the city.

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@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

1 Feb 22

I've just edited my post. I'd forgotten that trams are still running in Melbourne.

I don't know if they are cheap or not but a lot of people use them.

@LindaOHio (178568)

• United States

1 Feb 22

The tram looks really good now.

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@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

1 Feb 22

It is under a roof so should last a few more years now.

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@Kandae11 (55016)

•

1 Feb 22

Is that the restored Tramcar in the picture ?. It looked brand new.

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@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

1 Feb 22

Yes, that's it. I might edit it to say so.

@qianamalayeka (84)

• Indonesia

1 Feb 22

the trams are still good and well-maintained, in Indonesia there are no more trams, the last one was in 1960

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@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

1 Feb 22

I guess the tracks take a lot of maintenance.

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@kaylachan (69709)

• Daytona Beach, Florida

31 Jan 22

I'm glad to hear it was able to be reused.

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@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

1 Feb 22

It's nice to see it having a new life.

@Juliaacv (51193)

• Canada

31 Jan 22

Not far from here there are a group of retired railroad workers who restore old cars and engines. They run a small business taking children and families on a small scenic tour on an old closed line. Its amazing the things that they can come up with for these old relics.

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@JudyEv (339953)

• Rockingham, Australia

1 Feb 22

There are similar groups here who try to keep steam engines functional and run tours from time to time. We went on one in Pemberton some years ago.

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