Tram named after steam rail line

The ceremony was conducted by rail enthusiast Pete Waterman

One of Greater Manchester's Metrolink trams has been renamed in honour of a tourist steam railway line.

Tram number 1007 was renamed as East Lancashire Railway (ELR) at a ceremony at Bury Interchange on Sunday.

ELR bosses hope the tram will attract more tourists to the 12-mile line, which runs steam trains between Rawtenstall and Bury.

Tram 1007 became the only modern tram to appear at an ELR heritage event when it was displayed in 1992.

Line reopened

ELR general manager Andy Coward said: "Millions of people travel on Metrolink each year and many of our visitors travel to Bury by tram.

"Hopefully, people who may not know we are here will see the East Lancashire Railway tram, use Metrolink to take a trip to Bury and then come on to the ELR to travel behind one of our heritage steam or diesel locomotives."

ELR is one of England's heritage lines and currently serves about 120,000 passengers a year.

The original route closed to regular passengers in the 1970s but reopened in 1987 between Ramsbottom and Bury.

It was extended to Rawtenstall, followed by the Heywood link in 2003.