Penang Trams, Trolleybuses, and Railways: Municipal Transport History, 1880s-1963

Penang was one of the first urban centres in Southeast Asia to operate steam trams, horse trams, electric trams and trolleybuses. When the Municipal Commission established its own electrical supply, it took over the tram service and started the electric trams in 1906. This gave the local population excellent public transport around George Town, with one line going up to Ayer Itam town in the centre of the island. In the late 1920s, the Municipality replaced trams with trolleybuses, experimenting with re-conditioned double decker buses from London Transport.

The Municipality also operated two railways - firstly, the Penang Hill Raiway which was considered an engineering marvel when it was first built, and secondly, the electric railway which transported supplies and tin ingots for Penang's foremost smelting works.

With over 100 archival photographs, maps and illustrations, this book gives a pictorial history of the various forms of public transport used in George Town, Penang from the 1880s to 1963, and the role that the transport network played in the development and growth of the island's economy, social and cultural life.