Amid India's EV buzz, Kolkata's electric trams struggle to keep rolling

The tram service has shrunk due to work on the metro, reconstruction or maintenance of bridges, traffic, and state policies

As environment-friendly electric vehicles (EVs) become popular in India, a century-old electric transport system that too ticks the “green” box is fading in Kolkata: the tram car. The city had 14 tram routes in 2017-18, reduced to five in 2020, and three remain now.

Debasish Bhattacharyya, president of Calcutta Tram User Association (CTUA), which is fighting to secure the transport system, said there were about 36 routes originally.

“Roads account for only 6 per cent of the land in the city. Given the population density of Kolkata and vehicles on the road, it’s impossible to run trams everywhere,” West Bengal