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Coronation cars
Blackpool's post-war single-deckers, named for the 1953 Coronation: big, heavy cars with Charles Roberts bodies and the Vambac control system. Costly to run, they were withdrawn between 1968 and 1975.
Drawing to come
- Type
- Tram, single-deck, centre entrance, double-ended
- Builder
- Charles Roberts (bodies)
- Built
- 1952–1954
- In service
- 1952–1975
- Lines
- Blackpool Tramway
- Formation
- One long single-deck car, numbered 304-328 (641-664 from 1968)
- Trains in fleet
- 25
- Power
- 550 V DC overhead; Vambac control at first, replaced on many cars by conventional controllers · how it works
- Profile
- tram
- Status
- Withdrawn from 1968 to 1975 (Fylde Transport Trust). Heritage: 304, 660 and 663 survive at Rigby Road. 660 last carried passengers in 2010 and 304 in 2014; neither has run in public since (British Trams Online, 3 October 2026). No heritage tram carried the public in Blackpool in 2026 after the Frigate's last Illumination Tours on 2 and 3 January (British Trams Online, 13 July and 1 September 2026); Blackpool Transport says the operational heritage cars need welding, electrical and axle repairs first, and 2027 is the earliest return.
- Preserved
- 304, 660 and 663 in Blackpool
unverified Some of these figures haven’t yet been checked against an official source or a published history. What’s in doubt ↓
Sources
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- Coronation Car 304 Fylde Transport Trust, read 12 October 2026Charles Roberts bodies, Vambac, the name from 1953, 304's arrival and first service in 1952, withdrawals 1968-1975
- Blackpool Tramway fleet list British Trams Online, updated 3 October 2026304, 660 and 663 at Rigby Road and the year each last ran
unverified
- The number built, 25 (304-328): no checked primary source; the Fylde Transport Trust names the class but not its size
- Built 1952-1954: the first arrived in June 1952 (Fylde Transport Trust); the last year is not in a checked source
- The 1968 numbers (641-664): 304 became 641 (Fylde Transport Trust); the range is not in a checked source
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