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| "EuskoTran" by Leland at the English language Wikipedia. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:EuskoTran.jpg#/media/File:EuskoTran.jpg |
This is a photo of a tram in Bilbao, Spain. Like trams in many European cities - Barcelona, Saint-Etienne, Strasbourg, Prague, Basel, Brussels, Bordeaux and Lyon for example - it runs on grassed track. This was first used in Liverpool in 1924. Grass is not the only vegetation that can be used. Low growing wild flowers can be incorporated. Le Mans and Manchester have used sedum.
Grassed track is not suitable for use in places where other vehicles also use the space but where they don't - even for short sections - it offers considerable advantages.
It muffles traffic noise, absorbs fine dust particles and improves air quality. It reduces the urban 'heat island' effect - unlike brick and concrete it does not store heat during the day and release it at night. Rainwater is absorbed reducing the pressure on drainage systems. It provides habitats for insects and invertebrates. It also makes it obvious that other vehicles should not use that route.
And it looks wonderful!
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Report - Effect and Function of Green Tracks
Report - Green Tram Tracks
inhabitat.com/europes-grass-lined-green-railways-good-urban-design
http://citytransport.info/Lawn.htm
http://www.amusingplanet.com/2013/06/grass-covered-tram-tracks-in-europe.html
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