Douglas promenade work delays horse tram season

The Isle of Man government took over the running of the Douglas Bay horse trams in 2016

A promenade refurbishment scheme has delayed the start of the Douglas horse tram season, it has been confirmed.

The service was due to start on 25 April, but is now expected to start in "mid to late May", the Department of Infrastructure (DOI) said.

Tracks needed to be reinstalled and "horse training" had to be completed before services could resume, a spokesman said.

The £25m refurbishment project is due to be completed by September 2020.

The DOI spokesman said the work was "weather-dependent" and it was "not unusual for projects of this scale to encounter delays for many reasons".

"The horse trams are expected to start mid to late May and the length of the route will be confirmed in due course."

Once up and running, passenger services are expected to run until 3 November, "subject to the progress of the works on the promenade", he added.

The tramway runs along Douglas promenade for 1.6 miles (2.6 km) from the Strathallan terminal to the Sea Terminal.

The heritage horse trams, which go along a 1.6 mile (2.6km) route between the Strathallan and Sea terminals, have been in running for more than 140 years.