Mit einer sanften Bewegung am sogenannten Sollwertgeber stellt Jennifer Gebel die Bremsstärke ein. Wenige Sekunden später stoppt die Straßenbahn vor der Schranke auf dem Willy-Brandt-Platz, aber die kommt ein paar Meter zu früh zum Stehen. Das bedeutet null von 500 möglichen Punkten für das Team der Verkehrsgesellschaft Frankfurt (VGF) bei der Europameisterschaft der Tramfahrer, die am Samstag mitten in Frankfurt ausgetragen wird.
Nach sechs Disziplinen auf dem rund 170 Meter langen Parcours stehen nur 700 von 3000 Punkten für die Frankfurter auf der Anzeigetafel. Der Zeitbonus bringt ihnen weitere 200 Zähler ein. Zwar haben sie an diesem Samstagvormittag erst den ersten von zwei Läufen absolviert, doch um Gold werden Gebel und Benedikt Pfaff mit 900 Punkten nicht mehr fahren, das scheint jetzt schon klar zu sein.
Tatsächlich geht das Rennen auch so aus, die Gastgeber können den Vorteil, dass sie mit den Fahrzeugen am besten vertraut sind, nicht nutzen. Den Titel als Europas beste Fahrer holen sich die Straßenbahnfahrer aus Budapest. Für das Duo des Gastgebers VGF reicht es nur zu Rang 16, Mittelfeld unter den 26 Teams. Der weitaus größere Erfolg für die Frankfurter: Die kuriose Meisterschaft hat scharenweise Publikum angezogen, Jung und Alt fieberte mit den Teams, der Spaß war groß, viele filmten, Herzen flogen für die Tramfahrer durch Social Media.
The two VGF drivers also contributed to this in the morning when they scored 400 out of 500 points in the first task, a completely new discipline in this almost traditional competition. It was developed by the organizers for the eleventh edition of the European Tram Championship, which premiered in Dresden in 2012: During the “Stop and Go” a container filled with water is attached to the tram. The drivers have to set the tram in motion and bring it to a stop three times. The less liquid is spilled during this balancing act, the more points are awarded.
In tram billiards, for example, the teams from Milan, Brussels and Budapest do better. Here, the tram approaches a billiard table at a slow speed and is supposed to hit the cue so that it sets a ball in motion. When it is the Frankfurt team’s turn, they show too much emotion and the 40-ton, 30-meter-long tram stops too early.
The moderators of the event repeatedly bring in figures like these and knowledge about the tram and its history. The Frankfurt tram had its maiden voyage in 1872. It was pulled by a horse. Twelve years later, the first electrically powered tram followed. It had 12.5 horsepower (hp), a maximum permissible speed of 12 kilometers per hour and had space for 24 passengers.
The S-car, which will be used at the European Championships on Saturday, has 64 seats and 115 standing places. Four 140 hp engines accelerate the tram to up to 70 kilometers per hour. However, 25 kilometers per hour is enough to score points on the day of the competition. From this speed, the driver must initiate an emergency stop as soon as a traffic light turns red. The referees then measure the reaction time, assuming the speed was correct beforehand. The drivers must practically feel the 25 kilometers per hour, the speedometer is hidden.
In fact, there is more braking than driving on this day. The aim of the fourth task, the “Perfect Stop”, is to bring the vehicle to a stop so that the rear door is positioned exactly in a marked area. Some teams stop too early. The brakes on the German tram are harder than at home, says European Championship participant Caroline Holmgren from Gothenburg. Her team is in 21st place after the first run, but later catches up with the leading group.
The 26 duos – each made up of a woman and a man – from 21 nations arrived with small delegations. The Finns have the loudest fan block behind them. Susanna Viherlento came with friends from Helsinki to support her colleagues, the team from Tampere.
Davide Miani has traveled a little shorter. The doctoral student in molecular biology comes from Trieste. Miani waves an oversized flag in the national colors of Italy. In the middle is a golden eagle, the symbol of his home region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia. Below it is a blue and white tram. The narrow-gauge railway, which serves a five-kilometer route, is the only tram in Trieste, says Miani. Its drivers are not competing in Frankfurt, however; here the Italian is cheering on the Milanese.
But his grandfather was a tram mechanic, he says. Perhaps that’s where his love for these vehicles comes from. He likes travelling by public transport in general because, unlike when driving a car, you “don’t have to think” on the train or bus. For Miani, this is the second European Tram Championship that he has attended.
Sophia also discovered her love of trams two years ago when she moved to Cologne. The 29-year-old clothing technician grew up in a village in Upper Franconia. She sews her own clothes, inspired by the fashion of the late 19th and early 20th centuries – the time when the electric tram was developed and became popular.
More than a hundred years later, the mechanical noises from the early days have disappeared. The trams glide quietly over the tracks this Saturday. Instead, you can hear the ahs and ohs of spectators when a tram stops just outside a marking. Davide Miani is satisfied with Team Milan’s seventh place in the end. He said he had no expectations, laughing. Next year, Miani wants to travel to Vienna. The first tram world championship will be held there in 2025.
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