Horse-drawn trams Brno was the third largest city of the Austrian part of the former
Austro-Hungarian Empire and is today part of the Czech Republic. It was the first to install a horse-drawn tram service, which began on 17 August 1869. Its route ran to Lažanskýplatz (now called Moravské náměstí, or Moravian Square) in the north of the city center, which was still at the time an independent municipality known as
Královo Pole. Its operator was the 'Brno Tramway Society' for passenger and cargo transportation. By 1870, there were 52
cars, which carried passengers on four lines. There was an interruption in horse-drawn tram service between 1875 and 1877. The company known today as Brno Tramway was launched in June 1876, with its first route running from
the main station to Pisárky. A short while after that, a second route was launched. Due to its unprofitability, horse-drawn tram operation was terminated on 3 October 1880.
The steam tram Steam trams began operation on 24 May 1884, under the name Steam Tramway Brno. In the 1910s, the conversion from steam to electrical power began, but steam locomotives were still used, until 1914, to transport goods.
The beginning of the electric tram The first of the
electric rail lines in Brno were put into operation on 21 June 1900. These new lines included 41
railcars and 12
trailers, as well as another 29 trailers gradually modified from the horse and steam tramway periods. Within the first year of operation several new lines were constructed, and soon a total of five lines were offered as part of the system. In the years that followed, the main focus was on track reconstruction and the addition of a second track; in 1910, the first tram loop in Brno was opened at the Pisárky terminus. In 1914, the operator began to experience financial difficulties and was taken over by the Austrian electricity delivery group
Aktiengesellschaft from Vienna. During
World War I further expansion was considered, resulting in the extension of one line to a hospital.
Prime of the Brno tram After the formation of
Czechoslovakia in 1918, the Society of Brno Trams (
Společnost brněnských elektrických pouličních drah) was established. The Society's first task was to renovate the cars and tracks that had dilapidated during the war. Beginning in 1924 new lines were built, and a few years later the Society of Brno Trams began to focus on the construction of a second track for far-lane routes. By 1938, a total of eight routes were in operation. In 1942, a classic train was transferred and transformed into a train capable of traveling by a
streetcar track. Since the 1960s the network has been gradually been upgraded to
light rail standards. New sections were built with dedicated right-of-way and designed for maximum speeds of 80 km/h, however such speeds were never put in practice.
Future For a long time, Brno metro and underground railway have both been considered, to create a second metro in the
Czech Republic after the
Prague Metro. As of 2025, no plans have been confirmed. In 2020s, a short line to Masaryk University campus and a university hospital was opened. Another extension from Bystrc to Kamechy is under construction. Both these extensions include tunnels. == Routes ==