Buổi 77: Reading – Bài dài: matching information (sự trở lại của tàu điện mặt đất)

The return of the tram

(Bài đọc tự viết; các thành phố, tuyến tàu và nhân vật là giả định.)

A In the first half of the twentieth century, trams were a familiar sight in many cities around the world. Then, in many places, they disappeared. Rising car ownership, the flexibility of buses and the cost of maintaining old tracks persuaded city authorities that trams belonged to the past. Rails were torn up or simply covered with asphalt, and the space given to trams was handed over to cars.

B Over recent decades, however, a number of cities have reintroduced trams, often under the name “light rail”. The motives vary. In some cases, the aim is to reduce congestion by offering an alternative to driving that is faster and more reliable than buses stuck in the same traffic. In others, it is to cut air pollution, since modern trams run on electricity. And in many cities, trams have been promoted as a tool of urban regeneration, linking neglected districts to the city centre and encouraging investment along the route.

C The hypothetical city of Varenna offers a typical example. Its first modern tram line, opened twelve years ago, runs from the central railway station to a former industrial area on the eastern edge of the city. At the time, critics complained that the project was far too expensive for a district that few people visited. Today, the area served by the line contains new housing, a university campus and offices built on land previously occupied by warehouses. Supporters of the scheme argue that this development would not have happened without the tram, although sceptics point out that the city was growing anyway.

D Compared with buses, trams have several advantages. A single tram can carry far more passengers than a bus, which reduces the number of drivers needed on busy routes and therefore lowers running costs per passenger. Trams also tend to offer a smoother, quieter ride, and many people seem to find them more attractive than buses, even when the journey times are similar. Transport planners sometimes refer to this as the “rail factor”: the observation that people are more willing to switch from cars to a service running on rails, perhaps because the fixed tracks give an impression of permanence and reliability.

E The disadvantages, however, are considerable. Building a tram line requires laying track, moving underground pipes and cables, and often rebuilding the street above. Construction can take years, causing disruption for residents and businesses along the route; in Varenna, several shops located on the main construction route closed before the line opened. Trams are also inflexible. A bus route can be changed overnight, whereas a tram line, once built, is effectively permanent – which is an advantage only if the route has been well chosen.

F Experience suggests that the success of a tram system depends less on the vehicles themselves than on the decisions surrounding them. Trams running in mixed traffic, sharing lanes with cars, lose much of their speed advantage. The most effective schemes give trams dedicated lanes and priority at traffic lights. Integration matters too: a tram line that does not connect conveniently with buses, trains and cycle routes may struggle to attract passengers. Ticket prices play a role as well; in Varenna, ridership rose noticeably after the city introduced a single ticket valid on both trams and buses.

G Some transport experts question whether trams are the best use of limited public money. Bus rapid transit systems – buses operating in their own lanes with stations similar to tram stops – can offer many of the same benefits at a fraction of the cost, and they can be built more quickly. Their critics respond that such systems are often gradually weakened over time, as dedicated lanes are reopened to cars, whereas the physical presence of tram tracks makes this harder.

H The choice, in the end, is not simply technical but political. A tram line represents a long-term commitment by a city to a particular vision of its future, one in which public transport, rather than the private car, shapes how people move. Whether that commitment is worth the cost depends on local conditions – and on whether city leaders are prepared to make the difficult decisions, such as removing road space from cars, that allow trams to work as intended.