Carris's headquarters (above, left) are in the Rua 1 de Maio, no.101, at Santo Amaro, on tram
route 15, about 15/20 minutes' ride from Praça da Figueira. At Santo
Amaro, too, is its tram shed and museum, situated almost directly beneath the
enormous Ponte 25 de Abril suspension bridge across the River Tagus. Its other tram depot, Arco do Cego, on the Avenida Duque de Ávila, was vacated and converted into Lisbon's main coach station but that has now moved to Sete Rios; for details, see the Lisbon Suburban Bus and Coach page. At one time, Arco do Cego housed the entire fleet with Santo Amaro being chiefly a repair depot. Arco do Cego is now being transformed into a park. Another former depot at Amoreiras, opened in 1937 and closed in 1981, is now the site of a major shopping centre. New depots were opened at Pontinha (1975) and Musgueira (1981), whilst a large complex was opened by the President of Portugal at Miraflores in June 1983.
Carris Museum
Left to Right: Carris tram 904 in the museum at Santo Amaro; the Carris tram shed at Santo Amaro. Click on images for larger versions.
A museum of Lisbon trams and other forms of transport operated by Carris opened on 12 January 1999 within the Santo Amaro depot, which is sited directly under the concrete pillars of the Ponte 25 de Abril. The opening times are 1000-1700 on weekdays and Saturdays. The museum can be reached easily from central Lisbon (P. Figueira, P. do Comércio or Cais do Sodré) in about 15 minutes by tram route 15, and tram route 18 goes very close by, as do several bus services (numbers 714,727,732,742,49,751,56).
The museum's fleet comprised the following trams at the time of opening: #260,283,329,330,506,508,535,549,741,777,802,904 and trailer #101.
Since then tram #747 and works-car (zorra) #68 have been added. All of the trams are beautifully restored in period liveries and in running order. Indeed, numbers
283,330,508,535 and 802 were all put into service on 18 September 1999 to coincide with use of the museum for a function to celebrate the 126th
anniversary of Carris services. Also housed in the museum are AEC double-decker buses #217,301 and 486 and single-decker #76. Daimler double-deckers #837 and 851 are also displayed.
L to R: Bogie tram 802; tram 535; Daimler bus 851 - all in the Carris museum.
The museum is located in two 'núcleos' (buildings) which are linked by a short, free ride in an historic tram, normally numbers 1-9, the vehicles which provide the tourist tram services in Lisbon. Visitors purchase tickets in a building on the street which is physically separate from the museum itself. To find the museum itself, exit the tiecket office, turn left and then left again through the gates towards the circular control building just inside the gates. This lies to the left of the main tram-shed. Next, turn immediately right, the museum is entered by a door which is hidden from the street by the building's frontage. Once inside the museum, one is able to wander freely in Núcleo 1, although Portuguese-speaking guides are on hand. Here there are exhibits of tram tickets, photographs, uniforms, models, maps and other artefacts. Once a suitable number of visitors has accumulated, the group is escorted through a door to the waiting tourist tram for the short ride through the depot yard to Núcleo 2 where the trams and buses are housed. A museum shop is now open and there are plans to expand the exhibition area.
The second building comprises two adjoining sheds of historic trams and buses. A guided tour is given in Portuguese and photography is quite explicitly allowed. Visitors are also sometimes invited to view a short black and white comic film, again in Portuguese, (c1950s), which was made to show passengers how to queue and use public transport responsibly. There is also a small shop, on a balcony within the main shed, which sells souvenirs which include postcards, pens, oven-gloves, etc.
The visitor is permitted to board several of the exhibits, including both trams and double-deck buses. There are also some exhibits from the former Carris power station and of some track-laying equipment. Some interesting historic photos adorn the walls, including depictions of accidents.
During its first year of operation the Carris museum welcomed 15,473 visitors (to 31 December 1999).
In 2007 the museum was open from Monday to Saturday. It opens from 10am to 5pm with last admission being at 4.30pm but on Saturdays it closes for lunch from 1pm to 2pm. Entry in 2006 cost 2.50 Euros for adults and half-price for children and over 65s. A family ticket for two adults and two children costs 4 Euros.
Carristur
Carristur is the tourist-orientated wing of Carris and it operates both open-top bus tours and tourist trams. The fleets of both are expanding rapidly to tap this market. Both run from the Praça do Comércio. Bus trips are the "Circuito Tejo", which goes out to Belém as well as other parts of the city, or the (Expresso Oriente" which visits the Parque das Naç¦es. The tram does the "Circuito das Colinas" (Hill Circuit) which embraces the 28 route through Alfama. It also visits Estrela to the west of the city. Whilst costly, the advantage of the tourist tram is the audio guided tour and the fact that you will get a seat and not have to stand. Also, the historic trams are decked out in "historic" upholstery and fittings. Trams also operate a Circuito dos Descobrimentos to Belém.
Carris's Statistics
At 31 December 2005, Carris employed employed 2,787 staff, comprising 1598 drivers 165 tram drivers. Its fleet comprises 785 buses, 58 trams, 6 funiculars and 2 elevators.
Carris's Livery
From left: A Carris tram (#720), running without advertising on its bodywork; Carris Daimler Fleetline bus, now withdrawn; trams and trailers can no longer be seen, other than in the Carris museum.
The Carris fleet of trams has traditionally been painted in yellow and white but advertizing liveries which once made any plain yellow and white vehicles a rarity have now largely diappeared. The new articulated trams are all totally covered by advertising liveries which in most cases also cover the windows. Buses are now being painted yellow with green trim, having been orange and mushroom coloured for some years. That livery replaced a dark green livery prevalent into the mid-1970s. By 2005 the yellow bus livery was having additional coloured dots incorporated below window level.
Tickets
Although there is an array of tickets and passes available to users of public transport in Lisbon, for the visitor, things have ben simplified by the new Sete Colinas (7 Hills) pass. (The title is an allusion to the belief that Lisbon is built on 7 hills, like Rome).
This has replaced the Tourist Pass (bilhete turístico) which could be acquired for either a four or seven-day period. The Sete Colinas pass costs half a Euro and is then charged up for a selected number of days to allow unfettered transport on all of the Carris and Metro network. In summer 2005, five days travel cost 12.10 Euros in top of the half-Euro for the card itself. All vehicles and Metro turnstiles have card readers. The card need only be held over the sensor to register and, indeed, can even be left in a wallet when doing this. The card can be purchased at any Metro station and at Carris kiosks. (NB Much more publicised to tourists is the Lisboa/Lisbon card, which is much more expensive as its main benefit is to give discount admission to tourist attractions - see below).
From 9 September 2006 the old BUC pre-purchased transport ticket was withdrawn by Carris and replaced by the electronic
"7 Colinas - Bilhete 1 Zona” at the same cost. The new one-zone ticket is valid for one hour after its first validation. A"2 Zonas" version allows travel in two city zones for up to 2 hours. The card is validated inside vehicles by holding it about 5cm from the validator. In September 2006 the cost of a “Bilhete 1 Zona” was 0,75€ and the two-zone version was 1,50€. They can also be bought in 5 or 10 units, with a discount.
There are also many combined passes available to locals; these permit travel on Carris services as well as those of suburban bus firms such as TST; other combined passes cover Carris routes and suburban railway services to Sintra, Azambuja, Cascais and the Sado area
near Setúbal. There is even a combined ticket covering the river ferries and Carris services.
Carris tickets bought from bus or tram drivers are charged at the 'Tarifa de bordo' ('On-board tariff'). Currently (2005), individually-purchased journey tickets on Carris start at 1.30 Euros. These and the modular tickets regularly change in colour and design. All tickets should be cancelled on boarding trams and buses, using the on-board machines. On the articulated trams, tickets can be bought from on-board machines, as the driver does not sell tickets or check passes. Coins are required for the machines. Sete Colinas passes should be "shown" to the automatic readers on all services.
Transporlis is a useful portal covering all modes of Lisbon transport which contains timetable and fares information.
An alternative for tourists who wish to Lisbon's museums is the Lisbon Card,
which gives unlimited use of Carris services (except the Aerobus, tourist bus and
tram-tour route, as well as free use of the Metro and of the Cascais
railway line from C. Sodré to Belém. In addition it provides free
entry to 26 Lisbon museums and monuments. Amongst the museums covered are the
Maritime Museum, Coach Museum
and Air Museum. The Card may be purchased in City Tourist Offices and other outlets.
Routes
A map of the Carris transport
system may be found on their Web site. Further details of their bus, tram, funicular and
elevator services may be found by clicking on the appropriate link
below.
Other Lisbon Museums
Other museums (most of which are closed on Mondays) which are well worth a visit include:
The Air Museum- Museu do Ar next door to Alverca railway station
on the Azambuja railway line from Oriente.
The Ancient Art Museum : Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga - Lisbon's major art gallery. Near to
tram routes 15, 18 and to Alcântara-Terra railway station.
The Aquário Vasco da Gama - at Dafundo, a five minute walk from Algés tram terminal. Though small, this is a fascinating alternative to the much larger aquarium at the Parque das Naçoes.
The Historic Coaches Museum: Museu dos Coches at
Belém. Houses renowned collection of state and other carriages. On tram
route 15.
The Ceramic Tile Museum: The Museu Nacional do Azulejo at Rua de Madre de Deus 4, on
bus routes 18, 39A, 42, 104, 105.
The Chiado Museum: Museu do Chiado, a fine museum of 19th- and
20th-century art, near Baixa-Chiado Metro station and tram route 28. Has an excellent
small outdoor café.
The Electricity Museum: Museu da Electricidade at Belém, near the
railway station, housed in a former power-generating station.
The Gulbenkian Museum: Museu Calouste Gulbenkian near
Palhavã and São Sebastião Metro stations. This has a world-famous
collection of art and artefacts, including Egyptology and lalique-ware.
The Lisbon City Museum: Museu da Cidade in the Palaácio
Pimenta at Campo Grande.
The Maritime Museum: Museu de Marinha at Belém.
The Military Museum: Museu Militar, which stands opposite the main
entrance to Sta Apolónia railway station.
The Modern Art Centre: Centro de Arte Moderna at the Gulbenkian,
near Palhavã and São Sebastião Metro stations.
The Popular Art Museum: Museu de Arte Popular, opposite the Centro
Cultural de Belém, a folklore museum.
Copyright: ©
Compiled by John Laidlar
5 September 2006 (partly)
Left: The old Carris logo as worn by the Glória funicular in 1998.
