Bucharest Says Goodbye to Iconic Tatra Trams After 53 Years; Some to Join Museum

After more than half a century of service, the Tatra trams, a symbol of public transportation in Bucharest, are ceasing operations. Mayor Ciprian Ciucu announced the farewell on Sunday, July 19, following a meeting with veteran workers from the Militari Depot who maintained these trams since the 1970s and 80s.

Ciucu stated that approximately 30 Tatra trams remain in the city. Those in good condition will be preserved for the future Museum of Public Transport. He expressed his surprise at the large number of enthusiasts, particularly young people, who gathered at the Militari Depot for a final ride, sharing memories with the depot's senior staff.

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Today we say goodbye to the Tatra trams, which, after 53 years of transporting multiple generations of passengers, will no longer run on Bucharest's lines. We still have about 30 such trams. Those in good condition will be preserved for the future Museum of Public Transport.

"Today we say goodbye to the Tatra trams, which, after 53 years of transporting multiple generations of passengers, will no longer run on Bucharest's lines," Ciucu wrote on Facebook. He added that he enjoyed meeting the seniors from the Militari Depot, who worked under difficult conditions to keep the trams running daily. The mayor noted that these individuals still maintain contact and form a "beautiful collective."

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Very many people, many young people came today to Depoul Militari to take a last trip through Bucharest with a Tatra tram. It was a great pleasure for me to meet the seniors of Depoul Militari as well, those who worked in extremely difficult conditions in the 70s and 80s to repair these trams and be able to take them out daily on the route. They showed me photo albums and reminisced. And today they keep in touch and form a beautiful collective.