Trams in Magnitogorsk

First trams appeared in Magnitogorsk in 1935, and throughout the Soviet period, the Magnitogorsk tram was a departmental enterprise owned by Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works.^[1]

In 1938, every tram stop was equipped with a metal plate to inform people about the timetable.^[2] By the end of the 1930s, the interval in the tram service had reduced from 30 to 7 min and the maximum potential speed, according to the technical documentation, had increased up to 40 km/h. However, in reality, in 1940 the tram operated at an average speed of 16.3 km/h.^[3]

During the war, the Magnitogorsk tram system was used to transport passengers, as well as to transport wounded soldiers from the front. The trams picked up the wounded at the railway station and transported them to several hospitals.^[2]

The development of the tram service recommenced in the post-war period when the layout of the city underwent drastic changes. The tram line connecting the left and right banks of the river was put into operation in 1948.^[1] The inefficiency of alternative ways of moving around the city meant that by 1950, the tram had become the main means of transportation from home to work and back.^[2]

Magnitogorsk introduced a season ticket in 1955. Later, the fare was unified, and after the 1961 monetary reform it amounted to 3 kopecks.^[1]

In 2009, the municipal enterprise Maggortrans was established on the basis of the municipal enterprise Trust Electrotransport.

In the spring of 2019, the construction of a new tram line along Karl Marx Avenue from Truda Street to Zelenyi Log Street was started. The contractor was the municipal enterprise Magnitogorskinveststroy. Construction costs amounted to 191 million rubles.

31 routes are operated; 12 of which are ring routes.