Independent Transport Videos - Europe

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In this 12th. volume in our German Tram series we cover five tramway systems; Heidelberg, Frankfurt am Main, Mainz, Bonn and Köln. All but Bonn have been visited before in previous volumes in this series but this is an opportunity to update the scene, as this footage was filmed in July 2019.

The trams in Heidelberg are operated by RNV (Rhein-Neckar-Verkehr GmbH) who also operate the trams in Mannheim and Ludwigshafen. A common livery of white, orange and dark blue is being introduced across the system. Some older Heidelberg Duewag trams are seen in their former white and pale blue livery. The rolling stock of the system is made up of various types of Duewag and Bombardier RNV6 and RNV8 Variobahn trams.

We begin in Heidelberg at the busy tram interchange at Bismarckplatz. Our cameras then travel to Hans-Thoma-Platz on board former Mannheim Bombardier RNV6 Variobahn 5761, returning to Bismarckplatz on similar, but former OEG 4129.

Frankfurt am Main is our next location. The trams are operated by VGF (VerkehrsGesellschaft Frankfurt am Main) and the fleet consists of Duewag R types and Bombardier Flexity Swift trams. Filming begins at the busy Hauptbahnhof tram stop. We take tram rides to Willy-Brandt-Platz, Schweizer/Gartenstraße, Schwanthalerstraße and Lokalbahnhof. On our return to the Hauptbahnhof look out for 1977 built Duewag Pt trams, 128, 138 and 720, 727 in both the current aquamarine livery and the former orange, cream and brown colours! Mainz is our next location where the trams are operated by MVG (Mainzer Verkehrsgesellschaft). This small system operates a mix of Duewag, Adtranz/AEG and Stadler Variobahn trams. Unfortunately at the time of our visit, major track replacement was being undertaken at the Hauptbahnhof meaning that only half the system was operational with buses replacing trams on the other half.

We commence filming at the Hauptbahnhof and then we take tram rides on Bombardier Flexity Classic, 202, 234 and 249 to Finthen (Romerquelle), Wilhelm-Raabe-Straße and Bismarckplatz with a return to the Hauptbahnhof. Some tram replacement buses are filmed at Schillerplatz and Schillerstraße. Bonn is our fourth location on this programme. Here the trams are operated by SWB (Stadtwerke Bonn GmbH)/SSB. The fleet is made up of Duewag type R1.1 which are low-floor trams and Duewag B type high-floor light rail trams that operate on both street and light rail – railway alignment routes, lines 16 & 18 operate through to Köln. Stops in the town consist of central platforms with both high and low profiles catering for both types of tramway operation. Filming begins at the busy Bertha-von-Suttner-Platz stop. Our cameras take rides on the Duewag low-floor trams to Bonn Hauptbahnhof, Ramersdorf, Beuel Bahnhof, Beuel Rathaus and Stadthaus. Filming concludes along the busy Oxfordstraße.

Our final destination on this DVD programme is Köln. Here the trams are operated by KVB (Kölner Verkehrs-Betriebe AG). Like Bonn the fleet is made up of both low-floor and high-floor trams and as mentioned above high-floor trams on lines 16 & 18 operate to Bonn. The low-floor fleet is made up of Bombardier Flexity Swift trams, the high-floor fleet are Duewag and Bombardier K5000 Flexity Swift trams. Our filming commences at the main line DB Hauptbahnhof before going underground to see a high-floor Flexity Swift arriving at Breslauer Platz platform. Filming continues at the busy Neumarkt tram stop as well as Hahnenstraße and Rudolfplatz. On the day of filming in Köln the temperature was 40 degrees centigrade so we see tram drivers having bottles of water passed to them. We conclude our filming at Neumarkt with a fine view of maintenance car 6405 a 1966 Duewag formed from cars 3865a and 3869a and is known as the ‘Alte Lady’ (Old Lady).

Availability: AVAILABLE
Filmed by/when: 2019, Dennis Strange
First published on DVD: 2020
Screen aspect ratio: 16:9 SD
Classification: Exempt
Number of discs: 1 DVD-R
Media Format: DVD-R

Running Time: 103-mins (1hr 43min) , Colour
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Ref: IT1371D

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The city of Luxembourg is the capital of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, a small country that is surrounded by Belgium, France and Germany. French is the official language along with German and the country is home to a number of European institutions. The first-generation electric tramway operated from 1908 until 1964 on metre-gauge track covering some 24km.

In 2014 a tramway project was approved to build a new line from the south west of the city centre to the Kirchberg area with an option to extend to the airport, which is nearby. Opened in December 2017 the line currently terminates in the north-east at Luxexpo, where the depot is situated. This was the section that was built first and at the time of our filming in July 2019 the line continued south to Stäreplaz/Place de l’Etolle near the city centre. The section from Rout Bréck-Pafendall over the Grand Duchess Charlotte Bridge to Stäreplaz/Place de l’Etolle runs catenary-free, the trams having supercapacitor accumulator technology for ground level rapid charging at stations along the line. The fleet is made up of 21 CAF Urbos 3 trams of which a further 12 have been ordered for when the system is complete by the end of 2021. They are finished in a striking black and silver livery with different coloured glass in the doors, which give the trams a colourful interior when the sun shines in. The fleet name is ‘Luxtram’. The independent transport videos cameras have filmed the entire route for you to enjoy.

We begin at Alphonse Weicker and travel to Luxexpo where the trams run into the depot to change tracks. Our cameras then travel the route getting off at various stations to film the trams in operation. One such stop is at Rout Bréck-Pafendall where the trams connect with a brand new funicular railway. Known as the CFL Pfaffenthal – Kirchberg Funicular Railway, our cameras capture the cars operating this service.

We then see the trams operating over the Grand Duchess Charlotte Bridge and running into the Theater stop, which was still under construction. From the current terminus at Stäreplaz/Place de l’Etolle we make our way back to Alphonse Weicker travelling on trams 106, 102 and 110 to see the driver’s eye view of the route and stopping off at various stations to change trams.

To conclude our visit to Luxembourg we visit the tram museum. Here we see the superbly built 1:8 scale models of tramcars from the first-generation system starting with number 1 from 1908 in the exhibition room. In the main depot we then see in some detail the actual preserved cars, number 34 from 1931, motorcar 26 from 1938 and trailer car 121 from 1937. Also trailer car 112 which began life as motorcar number 12. A visit to Luxembourg is a must for the tram enthusiast to see this superb modern system developing and enjoy the sights of this lovely European city.

Availability: AVAILABLE
Filmed by/when: 2019
First published on DVD: 2020
Screen aspect ratio: 16:9 SD
Classification: Exempt
Number of discs: 1 DVD-R
Media Format: DVD-R

Running Time: 54-mins (0hr 54min) , Colour
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Ref: IT177D

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Ref: IT176D

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Ref: IT179D

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Ref: it1118d

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The Dutch city of Amsterdam is noted for its yellow liveried trams for many years. Trams have plied the streets of this historic city since 1875. This DVD gives you a flavour of the fleet in a period from 1990 to 2002. Our programme starts in 1990 with some archive video footage from the collection of Bob Webster. Filmed in various locations in central Amsterdam we see the familiar Schindler cars, Werkspoor cars and Belgium built BN cars in regular service. We then move forward a few years to 1996 where we present footage from the independent transport videos archive, filmed mostly in central Amsterdam. In the third section, our cameras visited Amsterdam in 2002 for a more intense look at the tram operations. Here we can witness the gradual change in livery from the familiar yellow hue to the latest white and blue scheme. It also fits in with the introduction of the latest Siemens Combino low floor trams that entered service in 2001. Our locations include; Centraal Station, Stadhouderskade, Damrak and central Amsterdam. We also have short rides on LHB car 792, Siemens car 2007 and Werkspoor car 673.

We then take a brief visit to the East Anglian Transport Museum to see former Amsterdam 474 in action. This excellent museum at Carlton Colville in Suffolk is home to many fine trolleybuses and trams mostly from the UK, but also other parts of Europe.

Our programme concludes with a Photo Gallery of Amsterdam trams from the camera of Brian Speller. The photographs were taken over the years from 1993 to 1995 and depict some of the trams seen in service elsewhere on this programme. It also includes a photo of a Duisburg (Germany) tram on demonstration with the Amsterdam undertaking.

An interesting and varied DVD for your enjoyment, filmed in a vibrant city full of life and great interest for the transport enthusiast.

Availability: AVAILABLE
Filmed by/when: Dennis Strange, 1990, 1996 & 2002
First published on DVD: 2003
Screen aspect ratio: 4:3 SD
Classification: Exempt
Number of discs: 1 DVD-R
Media Format: DVD-R

Running Time: 60-mins (1hr 0min) approx , Colour
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