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[email protected] PLEASE NOTE: Every care is taken in the preparation of this publication, but the PWI cannot be held responsible for the claims of contributors nor for the accuracy of the contents, or any consequence thereof. Sheffield tram train pilot One year on – lessons learned AUTHOR INTRODUCTION AND 3. Gauge passenger perception and BACKGROUND acceptance of a light rail Tram Train service; 4. Determine the practical and operational Ian Ambrose In 2006, the DfT and Network Rail set up an issues of extending Tram Trains from the Senior Engineer initiative to explore innovative vehicle options national rail network to a tramway system; Light Rail for urban and rural services as part of the 5. Devise a business case to support the long- Network Rail replacement programme for the current fleet. term operation of Tram Train services in During this exercise, the Tram Train concept was Sheffield/Rotherham and the wider UK; Ian entered the railway revisited following earlier attempts to apply it by 6. Deliver the project within an agreed budget; industry in 1985 as an BR Research in the 1990s. 7. Gain direct experience of the processes that IT specialist involved in would allow Tram Train technology to be the design of vehicle, A Tram Train vehicle is best defined as a tramcar utilised elsewhere in Great Britain infrastructure, operations and commercial capable of running both on street tramway and systems.