In this week's UK tram and light rail round-up: West Midlands Metro names Midlands Air Ambulance as Charity of the Year, Sheffield Supertram driver marks 30 years of service and Blackpool Transport freezes popular tram and bus tickets for third year running. Plus, Prime Minister and Welsh First Minister visit Transport for Wales depot, Heritage Tramway Committee highlights safety, skills and guidance priorities and Mainspring European Light Rail Congress 2026 programme confi

The recent UKTram Heritage Tramway Committee meeting reviewed progress across several priority workstreams supporting the safe and sustainable operation of heritage tramways. The meeting, held online on Tuesday, 27th January 2026, confirmed continued strong engagement from across the UK’s heritage tramway sector, with regular attendance from operators, the Isle of Man tramways and representation from ORR/HMRI. 

On Tuesday 31st March, UKTram will bring together members of the Light Rail Engineering Group (LREG) and the supply trade for an online Trade & Trams session focused on shared learning, engineering insight and practical experience from across the light rail sector.

UKTram has appointed Colin Robey as Honorary President in recognition of his exceptional and longstanding contributions to the organisation and the broader light rail sector. Colin has spent over sixty years working in heavy and light rail, including almost twenty years with UKTram. During this time, he has shaped strategy, development, governance and professional standards.

The UKTram Centre of Excellence met to review progress on several technical and strategic projects. The focus was on tramway design guidance and developing skills and apprenticeship pathways for the light rail sector. 

In the final light rail round-up of January 2026: Blackpool Transport takes tram safety messages into local schools, Transport for London sets out plans for tram fleet replacement and DLR extensions and West Yorkshire launches consultation on aligning Mass Transit with future development. Plus, international collaboration on major event readiness at DLR, funding secured to restart Heaton Park Tramway, student travel offers and service updates from NET, heritage investment and

UKTram has confirmed the appointment of new and returning Board members following its Annual General Meeting, held on Wednesday, 28th January 2026, as the organisation continues to strengthen leadership and long-term direction for the light rail sector. 

Young Rail Professionals West Midlands will host a Question Time–style panel discussion in February, exploring the role of politics, policy and regional decision-making in shaping the future of rail across the West Midlands. 

UKTram attended an online seminar on Coventry Very Light Rail on 22nd January 2026, delivered as part of a joint event hosted by the Institution of Civil Engineers West Midlands (Coventry and Warwickshire branch) and the Railway Civil Engineers Association. 

UKTram’s Owners and Authorities Group (OAG) held its first meeting of the year on Wednesday, 13th January. The meeting was chaired by group Chair Chris Hopkinson and Vice Chair Stuart Lowrie and representatives from across the sector met online to align priorities and progress workstreams. 

UKTram has officially launched its new Members Hub, a dedicated online space designed to share resources, insight and collaboration tools for light rail professionals across the UK and Ireland.

UKTram is pleased to welcome Tim Bilby to the team as Stakeholder & Innovation Manager, strengthening our capacity to support innovation and engagement across the light rail sector.

 As 2025 draws to a close, UKTram is reflecting on a brilliant year for both the organisation and the wider light rail sector. We've had record engagement across functional groups, growing government confidence in light rail investment, and rail patronage across England totalling more than 231 million, with systems outside London seeing a 6% uplift and vehicle miles increasing by 4%.

UKTram has been featured in the latest Rail Director article published by Rail Business Daily, with Managing Director James Hammett reflecting on a pivotal year for the UK light rail sector and the opportunities ahead.

UKTram is pleased to announce the official launch of Tram Talks, our new members’ magazine, created to provide a dedicated space for insight and shared learning across the light rail community.

The latest meetings of the Light Rail Engineering Group (LREG) and the accompanying Best Practice Day made for two days of constructive discussion in Manchester on the 20th and 21st of November 2025.  

This year, the UKTram and LRSSB teams have taken a new approach to their usual Secret Santa tradition by joining forces to support Toys4Bham, a city-wide Christmas appeal providing gifts for vulnerable children and young people across Birmingham.

UKTram is delighted to share that Chelsea Branch, UKTram's Digital Marketing Manager, has been selected for Women in Transport’s Advance mentoring programme, now entering its largest cohort to date, with more than 100 participants taking part. 

UKTram played an active role at the RIA (Railway Industry Association) Light Rail Member Interest Group yesterday (Monday 24 November), where industry leaders and supply chain partners came together at Arup’s Birmingham office to discuss the growing opportunities within the UK’s evolving light rail landscape. The session, kindly hosted by Arup, brought a cross-section of organisations focused on the future of tramways and wider guided transport. 

As a corporate partner of Women in Transport, UKTram is pleased to support the organisation’s latest research initiative examining how women’s safety is being considered across the wider transport system, including walking routes, station environments, interchanges, and public transport.