An age-old symbol of the Portuguese capital, Lisbon’s rickety yellow trams have become such a magnet for tourists that some locals complain they can no longer grab a ride.
Lisbon began operating trams in the late 19th-century to transport passengers up the steep and narrow streets criss-crossing the hilly old city.
Today’s visitors travel back in time admiring the wooden flooring and old-fashioned appearance of carriages that offer spectacular views of the Tagus River and picturesque pastel-colored buildings.
Photo: AFP
However, as visitors flock to the capital in larger numbers — almost 9 million last year — some residents are growing exasperated with the effects of mass tourism.
“The tram? It’s not for us anymore, it’s reserved for tourists,” said Luisa Costa, a resident of the working-class neighborhood of Mouraria who is in her 60s.
With foreign visitors cramming the carriages, Costa now waits at a stop for electric minibuses put on by Lisbon transport firm Carris for residents who take the same route.
At Martim Moniz square in central Lisbon, passengers sometimes line up for more than an hour at a tram stop on line 28, the most popular route which winds through the most photogenic spots.
Red trams aimed at tourists have also been created, but are less popular due to their higher costs.
Other tram lines have been put back into service after being scrapped during the 20th century with the development of the urban bus network.
Despite the measures, “the situation keeps getting worse,” 82-year-old pensioner Fatima Valente said.
Trams have become “a toy” for tourists to fill their Instagram stories at the expense of residents who “really need” them, journalist Fernanda Cancio wrote in the Diario de Noticias daily earlier this month.
Local associations have for years demanded a more reliable public transport system for both residents and tourists.
Carris secretary-general Ema Favila Vieira conceded that reconciling the needs of tourists and residents “can be difficult,” as the trams are a “much sought-after cultural facility.”
Five historic tram routes connect Lisbon, with a sixth line equipped with longer and more modern carriages running along the river.
Four people jailed in the landmark Hong Kong national security trial of "47 democrats" accused of conspiracy to commit subversion were freed today after more than four years behind bars, the second group to be released in a month. Among those freed was long-time political and LGBTQ activist Jimmy Sham (岑子杰), who also led one of Hong Kong’s largest pro-democracy groups, the Civil Human Rights Front, which disbanded in 2021. "Let me spend some time with my family," Sham said after arriving at his home in the Kowloon district of Jordan. "I don’t know how to plan ahead because, to me, it feels
‘A THREAT’: Guyanese President Irfan Ali called on Venezuela to follow international court rulings over the region, whose border Guyana says was ratified back in 1899 Misael Zapara said he would vote in Venezuela’s first elections yesterday for the territory of Essequibo, despite living more than 100km away from the oil-rich Guyana-administered region. Both countries lay claim to Essequibo, which makes up two-thirds of Guyana’s territory and is home to 125,000 of its 800,000 citizens. Guyana has administered the region for decades. The centuries-old dispute has intensified since ExxonMobil discovered massive offshore oil deposits a decade ago, giving Guyana the largest crude oil reserves per capita in the world. Venezuela would elect a governor, eight National Assembly deputies and regional councilors in a newly created constituency for the 160,000
North Korea has detained another official over last week’s failed launch of a warship, which damaged the naval destroyer, state media reported yesterday. Pyongyang announced “a serious accident” at Wednesday last week’s launch ceremony, which crushed sections of the bottom of the new destroyer. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un called the mishap a “criminal act caused by absolute carelessness.” Ri Hyong-son, vice department director of the Munitions Industry Department of the Party Central Committee, was summoned and detained on Sunday, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. He was “greatly responsible for the occurrence of the serious accident,” it said. Ri is the fourth person
Poland is set to hold a presidential runoff election today between two candidates offering starkly different visions for the country’s future. The winner would succeed Polish President Andrzej Duda, a conservative who is finishing his second and final term. The outcome would determine whether Poland embraces a nationalist populist trajectory or pivots more fully toward liberal, pro-European policies. An exit poll by Ipsos would be released when polls close today at 9pm local time, with a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points. Final results are expected tomorrow. Whoever wins can be expected to either help or hinder the
RSS