Trams in Asunción

The Asunción tramway network (Spanish: Tranvía de Asunción) formed part of the public transport system in Asunción, Paraguay for almost 125 years, from 1871 to 1995. Electric trams were introduced in 1913, eventually replacing the horse-drawn trams used originally. Various private companies built and operated the system until 1948, when the national government took it over. At different times during the period of electric operation, the fleet of trams included cars built by English, American, Italian and Argentinian manufacturers, and during the system's final two decades trams acquired secondhand from the Brussels tram system, in Belgium, provided most of the service. From a maximum extent of 10 routes in the 1930s, the system shrunk to just one route by the end of the 1970s. Service ended around 1995, and the system was formally closed in 1997.