History
The origins of route 75 lie in separate tram lines, Australia's first cable tram from Bourke Street to Hawthorn Bridge and a horse tram from Hawthorn Bridge to Auburn Road, which was converted to an electric line and extended over many years to its current terminus at Vermont South.
The first cable tram line opened by the Melbourne Tramway and Omnibus Company was from Bourke Street to Hawthorn Bridge along Spencer Street, Flinders Street, Wellington Parade and Bridge Road opened on 11 November 1885. On 27 January 1889 a horse tram from Hawthorn Bridge to Auburn Road, travelling Burwood Road, Power Street and Riversdale Road was opened.
The Hawthorn Tramways Trust closed the horse tramway for conversion to electric traction on 31 January 1916, with the electric line opening in two stages; Power Street to Auburn Road along Riversdale Road opening on 7 May 1916, and from Hawthorn Bridge to Riversdale Road along Burwood Road and Power Street on 21 June 1916. The Riversdale Road line was extended by the Hawthorn Tramways Trust to Bowen Street, Camberwell along Riversdale Road and Camberwell Road, passing through Camberwell Junction, opening on 31 May 1916, it was extended again to Boundary Road (now Warrigal Road) along Camberwell Road and Norwood Road (now Toorak Road) on 10 June 1916.
The Melbourne and Metropolitan Tramways Board converted the Bourke Street to Hawthorn Bridge cable line to electric traction in three stages, closing the line on 29 June 1927. Reopening with electric trams running from Lonsdale Street – a short electric extension to the previous cable terminus of Bourke Street – to Swanston Street on 14 July 1927, from Swanston Street to Simpson Street on 17 September 1927, and Simpson Street to Hawthorn Bridge on 4 December 1927.
The lines City terminus was extended slightly north to its current terminus at La Trobe Street, when the Melbourne and Metropolitan Tramways Board opened the La Trobe Street line on 15 January 1951.
On 19 July 1978, the route was extended from Warrigal Road to Middleborough Road, Burwood East, Victoria, on 8 July 1993 to Blackburn Road, and on 25 July 2005 to its current terminus at Vermont South Shopping Centre, Vermont South.
Read more about this topic: Melbourne Tram Route 75
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