Which countries still have trams?

List of town tramway systems
  • Austria.
  • Belarus.
  • Belgium.
  • Bulgaria.
  • Croatia.
  • Czech Republic.
  • Denmark.
  • Estonia.




As of 2026, tram and light rail systems are experiencing a global "renaissance" as cities seek sustainable transit. Europe remains the stronghold, with Germany (Berlin, Munich), Austria (Vienna), The Netherlands (Amsterdam), and France (Lyon, Bordeaux) maintaining some of the most extensive networks. Melbourne, Australia, famously operates the world's largest tram network. in the United States, "Streetcar" systems have returned to cities like Portland, New Orleans, and Seattle. Japan retains traditional trams in cities like Hiroshima and Kumamoto. Interestingly, China has rapidly expanded modern tram lines in cities like Shanghai and Suzhou to complement their subways. Emerging systems in 2026 include new networks in Italy (Bologna) and the first modern tram line in South Korea (Seoul's Wirye Line) since the 1960s. Even African nations are joining the trend, with Morocco (Casablanca, Rabat) and Ethiopia (Addis Ababa) operating successful light rail systems that serve as models for urban development across the continent.

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The advent of personal motor vehicles and the improvements in motorized buses caused the rapid disappearance of the tram from most western and Asian countries by the end of the 1950s (for example the first major UK city to completely abandon its trams was Manchester by January 1949).

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Lyon, France Lyon won the gold for being home to the best performing tram system in large cities across the world.

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The 10 largest tram networks in the world
  1. Melbourne, Australia: 250km.
  2. St. ...
  3. Berlin, Germany: 193km. ...
  4. Moscow, Russia: 182km. ...
  5. Milan, Italy: 181.8 km. ...
  6. Katowice (upper Silesia), Poland: 178km. ...
  7. Vienna, Austria: 176.9km. ...
  8. Budapest, Hungary: 174km. ...


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Operating systems
  • Blackpool.
  • Edinburgh.
  • South London.
  • Manchester.
  • Nottingham.
  • Sheffield.
  • Tyne and Wear.
  • West Midlands.


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The world's largest tram system is situated in Melbourne in Australia, pictured above. The system began operation with horse drawn trams in 1884. Today the system consists of 487 electric trams which run on 250 kilometers of track which are served by 27 routes and 1,763 stops.

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Europe's very first public tramway was opened in the Wirral town of Birkenhead in August 1860 and ran four horse drawn public service routes until the service was electrified in 1901. The service eventually ceased operation in 1937 in favour of petrol driven buses.

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But the trams had become a political football (in Leeds it was Labour that did for them, in Liverpool it was the Conservatives). They were unwanted clutter from the past at a time when operating costs of public transport networks were rising and meeting housing targets was the big priority for investment.

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London had streets that were too narrow, unlike continental cities; London's housing developments were too far away from tram routes; authorities were prejudiced against trams.

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The smallest tram in the world we could find is the Volk's Electric Railway at 1.02km built in 1883.

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# The single line, 2.3km long, was the shortest in the world for years. It is located on the shores of Lake Traunsee in Austria, at about 400 meters above sea level, the smallest town in the world to have an urban tram line. It is called Gmunden and has 13,199 inhabitants.

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