Isle of Man's popular horse trams return after three years

The first horse tram to run on the new tracks went down Douglas promenade on Friday

The Isle of Man's distinctive horse trams have returned to action for the first time since 2019, to the delight of heritage fans.

The 1876 tramway had been suspended for three years during large-scale works to redevelop Douglas promenade.

The trams officially reopened earlier and will run until 30 October along a newly-laid shorter track.

Infrastructure Minister Chris Thomas said the "unique" horse trams were "more than just a tourist attraction"

"I'd put the horse trams and the heritage rail in the context of TT, Manx cats, Tynwald. They're that important", he said.

Isle of Man Railways chief engineer Andy Cowie said the horses had "done a lot of work to get themselves fit" for the restart, including training on the beach and some preliminary runs on the promenade.

The new tramlines, constructed as part of the Douglas promenade scheme, run from the Strathallan tram depot across a new signal-controlled junction, before terminating at Broadway.

A crowd gathered in Douglas to witness the reopening of the tramway

A new timetable has been announced with daily services scheduled to run until 30 October.

The sight of the trams running once again was greeted by crowds of fans on the island for the Summer Heritage Transport Festival.

Jimmy Kelly said he enjoyed seeing heritage transport

Jimmy Kelly, who has been visiting the island since 1993, said he was happy to see the horses "all done up, that's how a Clydesdale should be".

Alan Kirkman said he was "relieved" the trams were running again after fearing they could be closed permanently, and said he had enjoyed travelling on them since his first trip to the island in 1961.

Alan Kirkman said he did have concerns Manx politicians were going to scrap the trams

Mr Thomas said a decision on whether to seek funds to reinstate the track to the Sea Terminal would be considered in 2023, after the Department of Infrastructure previously used money allocated for this section elsewhere.