West Ham Corporation Tramways

West Ham Corporation Tramways began operations in 1901. They took over the horse drawn tram services of North Metropolitan Tramways and converted them to electric, with the first electric services running in 1904. They became the biggest municipal tram operator in London apart from LCC [1] with an eventual fleet of 134 tramcars. West Ham Corporation Tramways was absorbed by the London Passenger Transport Board in 1933.

Preserved tram 102 at the London Transport Museum

Information for 1910 series
Number built:	6
Built:	1910
Builder:	United Electric Car Company of Preston
Motor:	Westinghouse electric motors (DC OHLE / conduit)
Power:	70 hp (52 kW)

Tram number 102, which has been preserved at the London Transport Museum, is one of six built in 1910 with Peckham trucks and General Electric and Westinghouse electrical equipment. The tram was built for overhead electric collection but later converted to use underground conduit collection on lines between Stratford and Aldgate.

West Ham Corporation Tramways set up a dedicated telephone system in 1916 to allow the traffic controller to contact traffic regulators at various important parts of the system [2], thought to have been the first such system on a tram network. This allowed for much faster fault and accident reporting and contingency planning.

A Traffic Regulator on the telephone [2]

[1] R.W. Kidner, The London Tramcar 1861-1952 (Oakwood Press, 1992) p. 101

[2] "West Ham Telephone Control System", Electric Railway Journal Vol. 54 No. 8 (August 23 1919) p. 397