Editing Tram stop (section)

== Types of tram stops ==
=== Tram stops without platforms ===
Many tram or streetcar stops, especially on older tram lines street-running on narrower streets, have no dedicated platforms. Instead, stops are located in the middle of the roadway. Passengers need to cross lanes for motor vehicles to board or alight from trams.

Examples of systems with this type of stops include:

North America

* Toronto, ON, Canada: Most stops on all [[Toronto streetcar system|TTC streetcar]] routes except 509, 510, and 512
* San Francisco, CA, United States: [[Muni Metro]] Lines J, K, L, M, and N and [[San Francisco cable car system|cable cars]]
* Philadelphia, PA, United States: [[SEPTA]] Routes 11, 13, 14, 15, 34, 36, 101, and 102.
* Dallas, TX, United States: [[M-Line Trolley]]
* New Orleans, LA, United States: [[St. Charles Streetcar Line|St. Charles Streetcar]] (in [[New Orleans Central Business District|Central Business District]])
* Boston, MA, United States: [[Green Line E branch|MBTA Green Line E Branch]] (3 stops) 
Europe

* Berlin, Germany: [[Trams in Berlin|Berlin Trams]]
* Frankfurt am Main, Germany: [[Trams in Frankfurt am Main|Frankfurt Trams]]
* Vienna, Austria: [[Trams in Vienna|Vienna Trams]]
* Lisbon, Portugal: [[Trams in Lisbon|Lisbon Trams]]
Oceania

* Melbourne, VIC, Australia: [[Trams in Melbourne|Melbourne Trams]] (many stops outside CBD)
Asia

* Hiroshima, Japan: [[Hiroshima Electric Railway]] ([[Koami-cho Station|Koami-cho station]])
* Okayama, Japan: [[Okayama Electric Tramway]] (Chunagon and Kobashi stations)
* Takaoka, Japan: [[Man'yōsen Takaoka Kidō Line|Manyosen Takaoka Kido Line]] (Kataharamachi, Yochihisa, Shin-Yoshihisa stations)
* Hong Kong SAR: [[Hong Kong Tramways]] (6 stops)
* Dalian, China: [[Trams in Dalian|Dalian Tram Route 201]]
* Kolkata, India: [[Trams in Kolkata|Kolkata Tram]]
In most jurisdictions, to protect passengers' safety, at stops without a safety zone or designated platform, traffic cannot legally pass a tram or streetcar whose doors are open.<ref>{{cite web |title=Road Rules: Trams |url=https://www.vicroads.vic.gov.au/safety-and-road-rules/road-rules/a-to-z-of-road-rules/trams |website=Vicroads |publisher=Victoria State Government |access-date=11 July 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=When the streetcar stops, you need to stop too |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/toronto/when-the-streetcar-stops-you-need-to-stop-too/article33532864/#:~:text=When%20a%20streetcar%20stops%20and,two%20metres%20behind%20the%20doors. |website=The Globe and Mail |publisher=The Globe and Mail |access-date=11 July 2024 |language=en-CA |date=6 January 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Transport Department - Pedestrians |url=https://www.td.gov.hk/en/road_safety/road_users_code/index/chapter_5_for_all_drivers/pedestrians_/index.html |website=www.td.gov.hk |publisher=Transport Department, Hong Kong |access-date=11 July 2024}}</ref>

=== Tram stops with high-level platforms ===
Several light rail systems have high-platform stops or stations with dedicated platforms at [[railway platform height]]. Reasons for this include systems being created from former [[heavy rail]] routes (as in the case of the [[Manchester Metrolink|Metrolink]] system in [[Greater Manchester]], England), or to provide a more [[rapid transit]]-like commuting experience (such as the [[Los Angeles Metro Rail|Metro Rail]] system in [[Los Angeles]], California). Such trams also stop at dedicated platform stops on [[Stadtbahn]] systems in Germany, especially in underground stations in city centres.

=== Tram stops with mixed-level platforms ===

Several tram stops have mixed platform heights for various reasons.
 [[File:Randstadrail RegioCitadis Forepark.jpg|thumb|right|Photo taken from the high-level platform of [[Forepark RandstadRail station|Forepark Station]], showing passengers boarding a tram from the low-level platform]]
In [[The Hague|The Hague, Netherlands]], on [[RandstadRail#Lines 3, 4 and 34|tram lines 3, 4, and 34]], between [[Den Haag Laan van NOI railway station|Laan van NOI]] and [[Leidschenveen RandstadRail station|Leidschenveen]] stops, platforms feature mixed heights to accommodate both the high-floor [[Rotterdam_Metro#Line_E|Rotterdam Metro line E]] and the low-floor standard tram vehicles. 

[[File:Metro Brussel Boileau.jpg|thumb|right|Platforms of [[Boileau premetro station|Boileau]] ''premetro'' station, showing the dual platform heights]]

Some stops in the [[Trams in Brussels|pre-metro network]] in [[Brussels]] feature high platforms with cutouts along the edge. This allows passengers to board low-floor trams while maintaining the potential for future upgrade to full-scale metro operations. The cutouts act as access points for low-floor vehicles, ensuring the station can easily transition to a fully high-platform configuration when necessary.

The [[Muni Metro]] system in San Francisco utilizes high-floor [[light rail vehicles]] (LRVs). To ensure accessibility for wheelchair users, many street-level stations feature ramps for level boarding. Non-wheelchair users, however, access the LRV by climbing the interior steps from the street-level platform.

=== Tram stops with triangular platforms===

Triangular tram stops, where three tracks form a single triangular platform in the middle, are possible due to the shorter length of trams compared to heavy rail trains which does not require an excessively large area. Notable examples of triangular tram stops include platforms 1, 4, and 5 at [[Siu Hong stop]] on the [[Light Rail (MTR)|Hong Kong Light Rail]], and tracks A1, B1, and C1 at Königsplatz on the [[Trams in Augsburg|Augsburg Tram]] system. 

[[File:LRT_Siu_Hong_Stop_in_July_2022.jpg|thumb|right|[[Siu Hong Stop]] of [[Light Rail (MTR)|Hong Kong Light Rail]], showing the triangular platform in the middle]]

Such configuration allows [[cross-platform interchange]] across three lines as opposed to two on traditional island platforms, increasing the likelihood of convenient cross-platform transfers. 

However, triangular tram stop layout necessitates three [[Level junction|flat junctions]] immediately at each end of the platform, introducing additional operational complexities and the potential for delays, particularly during periods of heavy tram traffic, as a tram heading in one direction may have to wait for trains heading in another direction to clear the junction before it can cross. In addition, to reach the platforms, trams must make sharp turns, typically by about 30 degrees, which poses issues such as slow speeds and noise.

=== Sunday tram stops ===

Not all tram stops are served full-time. In the 1920s, Toronto created Sunday stops in addition to regular stops along its streetcar routes. Sunday stops were only used on a Sunday and, with few exceptions, were always near a Christian church. There were also a few Sunday stops near subway stations that were usable only before 9 am, the Sunday opening time of the subway system. However, the [[Toronto Transit Commission]] decided to close all Sunday stops on June 7, 2015. The TTC found that Sunday stops slow down streetcars making it more difficult to maintain schedules. Also, Sunday stops were also unfair to non-Christian places of worship which never had the equivalent of a Sunday stop. By 2015, most Sunday stops were along current and former streetcar routes.<ref name=TorStar2015-05-07>
{{cite news 
| url         = https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2015/05/07/sunday-streetcar-stops-near-churches-to-be-shuttered-in-june.html
| title       = Sunday streetcar stops near churches to be shuttered in June
| publisher   = [[Toronto Star]]
| author      = Eric Andrew-Gee, reporter
| date        = 2015-05-07
| access-date  = 2015-05-07
}}
</ref>
=== Tram stops with platform screen doors ===
The [[Dubai Tram]], which opened on 12 November 2014,<ref name="Dubai Tram's first passengers: Excitement, emotion, euphoria">{{cite news|url=http://www.emirates247.com/news/emirates/dubai-tram-s-first-passengers-excitement-emotion-euphoria-2014-11-12-1.569791|title=Dubai Tram's first passengers: Excitement, emotion, euphoria|website=www.emirates247.com|date=November 12, 2014}}</ref> became the world's first tram system to feature [[platform screen doors]] at its tram stops. Lussail LRT and Tel Aviv Light Rail both have platform screen doors at underground stops.