On Whitsunday, META, the umbrella organisation of Flemish associations that care for the preservation of old trams and buses, together with partners De Lijn (the Flemish public transport company), the local tram museum VLATRAM and others, celebrated a big tram festival at Eilande in Antwerp. To mark the 150th anniversary of trams in Antwerp, a vehicle parade was held from the Havenhuis to Eilande at 11.30 am, accompanied by many photographers. After the conclusion of the parade, round trips on six historic trams were offered until 6 pm: The trip went from Eilande (MAS) via Meirbrug, Nationale Bank, Opera back to the London stop at the beginning of the operating route to Eilande. In addition, there were trips with horse-drawn trams and horse-drawn omnibuses around the event site. On the above-mentioned operating route between Eilande and London, the vehicles of the parade that were not used for the round trips were lined up – from the open Tw 200, built in 1899, to the vehicles currently being delivered “Stadtsliner” by CAF, built in 2023.
The following picture gallery gives an impression of the event. The next tram festival “Tramfeest” is already planned: For the 150th anniversary in Ghent on 19 May 2024. More information about both events can be found here.
