Glasgow Works 1 cable laying tram

Glasgow Corporation Tramways Mains no. 1 is a good example of the type of vehicle that was developed in order to assist in the construction and maintenance of the early electric tramways around the country.  It was built by the Corporation’s own workshops at Coplawhill in 1905, and incorporated parts from the Room and Kitchen single-deckers which were being scrapped at the time. An imposing vehicle, No.1 is essentially a large electrically powered van that was designed to house and transport the very large electrical cable drums that were needed in order to lay, and subsequently maintain, the extensive networks of underground electric cable that enabled the system to operate.  It was officially described as a Cable Laying and Withdrawing Car.

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As one of the largest tramway operators in Europe, with over one thousand tramcars and an eventual spread of over one hundred route miles (by 1922), Glasgow Corporation Tramways had already, by 1911, laid down just under 470 miles of cable of various dimensions.  These carried the electrical current from the Pinkston power station (opened in 1901) to the five sub-stations that were located at Coplawhill, Dalhousie, Kinning Park, Partick and Whitevale.

Glasgow Mains no. 1 formed part of a large fleet of works cars and was originally provided with its own small four-wheeled trailer, which accompanied it into preservation.  In common with the rest of the works fleet, it would initially have been turned out in the regular works livery of either crimson lake or dark brown with lining out in yellow edged with red and fine inner white lining.  Lettering was in yellow.  This only lasted until the 1930s, however, after which the lining and, ultimately, the lettering also, were discontinued.

The vehicle continued to perform the task for which it was designed and built throughout its working life and even gained a new lease of life in 1949 when it helped to install the new electrical equipment that was required for the city’s trolleybus fleet that gradually took over some of its tram services as and when these were discontinued.  After this it spent some time in storage until the abandonment of the tramway in 1962, whereupon it was taken into preservation.

It was initially taken to a site near Aberdeen, where some restoration was undertaken, before moving to Crich in 1965.  The trailer has proved useful at times, but shortage of space meant that No.1 spent most of the next two decades languishing at the back of the depots before being placed in storage off-site in 1982, in order to make room in the depot for other tramcars. Its motors were fitted to Leicester 76 during the restoration of that tram.

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