There are hopes that the capital’s historic horse trams could finally run to Douglas Sea Terminal once more.

The trams last reached the Sea Terminal in 2018 before they were halted for the Douglas promenade improvement works.

But as redevelopment plans for Douglas promenade fell behind schedule, it was announced in June 2020 that parts of the proposed scheme would be scrapped - including the plan for horse trams to run the full length to the Sea Terminal and back.

The Treasury had earmarked £1.2m for the full length of the horse tram track to be reinstated however, the plans are yet to materialise.

At this week’s Tynwald sitting, Arbory, Castletown and Malew MHK Tim Glover asked the Infrastructure Minister Dr Michelle Haywood when her Department will honour the Tynwald resolution in April 2017 that a single line tram track be laid between the Sea Terminal and the War Memorial.

Dr Haywood confirmed work is ongoing within her department to bring forward plans to reinstate the full track.

She said: ‘The department has been working on a design project plan and business case for a single line of tram tracks to the Sea Terminal. It is under consideration by the department and a policy development meeting was held on April 8.

‘Once the business case has been completed it will be presented to the Treasury for consideration before being presented to Tynwald.’

The refurbishment of the prom was beset by delays, due in part of the Covid pandemic and a number of defects which reared their head during the work.

It meant that the money earmarked to reinstate the full length of the horse tram track was redirected to other parts of the promenade project.

Last year the then Infrastructure Minister Tim Crookall said the tracks bought for the extension of the tram route were corroding in storage but ‘still useable’.