European Railroad Discussion > I've never seen this before: Single rail tram in Venice, Italy

When walking through Venice, Italy on the way to the train station, I went left when I should have gone right and came across this rather unique tram (streetcar) operation. A single rail? Fascinating. The 'switches' have no moving parts, just a gap to the diverging rail.

1. A modern tram arriving at the final stop, Piazzale Roma, on the northwest side of Venice.

2. And stopped for loading and unloading with the bus terminal in the right background.

3. This is my favorite shot. Sort of a what-is-wrong-with-this-picture or how does this work exactly?

---

---

---

4. A slightly broader view of the tram at the station.

5. This was to be an image of the tram departing and negotiating the crossover, which it is doing, but before the front became visible in the left background, the crosswalk was cleared and the pedestrians blocked the view. Should have taken a video. I know it looks like slots in this image, but it is a recessed rail.

---

---

It's one of these French things, it's a bit like the shuttles you see at airports. Definitely not a tram in the traditional sense of the word.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Translohr



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/09/25 22:08 by 86235.

These are rubber tire vehicles "steered" by the central rail. As I recall, they were first installed in the French city that's the headquarters for Michelin, the tire company. What a coincidence. I've heard that they have more problems than conventional light rail, and when they do there's only one company that can fix them (or supply parts), the one that made them.

I believe the intent was for something that was quieter then your standard steel wheels on steel rails LRV.

There are a couple of these Translohr systems around.  In addition to the one you saw in Venezia-Mestre, there is also one in nearby Padova (Padua).  Think there are 2 in France - Paris and Clermont-Ferrand, and one in Medellin, Colombia.