One of the main concerns about having electric
tramways in a city like Bath, is the appearance
of the overhead wires; but this need not be as much of a problem
in practice as is first supposed.
Only the section of the City Centre Circle
between the Theatre Royal and Manvers Street will be in a visually
sensitive location. By using lightweight wire and accepting slightly
increased maintenance costs, the overhead system can be made practically
invisible over this section. Along the Grand
Parade, the use of decorative poles which also serve for street
lighting and other purposes would be visually acceptable and,
if placed close to the Empire Hotel Building, these would be out
of sight from the weir and Parade Gardens area.
Article on the design of overhead wiring by David Hartland
The tramway track can be made practically unnoticeable
on a tarmac road surface if required. The most recent mastic encapsulation
system allows the top surface of the rail to be edged with roadstone
chippings which exactly match those used on the rest of the road
surface, only a narrow band of steel is left showing.
It is more usual, on grounds of safety, to ensure that the route
is clearly marked, often with different coloured paving, so as
to indicate the area which will be swept by the tram. Out side
this area, pedestrians and other road users can be confident that
they are completely safe from any possibility of being struck
by passing trams. In some Continental towns, cafe tables are placed
right at the pavement edge and diners are untroubled by trams
almost brushing the table-cloths as they pass.
