The DoI says it will cost over £3m to partially restore the Douglas Bay Horse Tramway to the Sea Terminal.
While the historic double track has been consigned to the pages of history, a single track line is still proposed.
The DoI’s business case recommends installing a single line of tram tracks from Broadway to the Sea Terminal, with a budget of £3,036,170, including a 25% optimism bias contingency recommended by Treasury.
However, while members voted in April for a capital funding request and full business case, the motion from the DoI is only asking Tynwald to note the “draft business case” and support “its progress through the capital project procedures in accordance with financial regulations”.
Investment
The department acknowledges the project does not offer a financial return on investment.
However, the proposal follows a unanimous Tynwald vote in March requiring the department to bring forward a capital funding request, implementation plan and full business case for reinstating the tramway along the full length of Douglas Promenade.
The track itself was purchased in 2015 but has deteriorated in storage. “The rail will be machine ground pre and post installation to remove the worst of the corrosion from the running surface,” the report notes.
Works are scheduled to take 40 weeks, with completion expected in the second half of 2027.
The department also acknowledges that there will be “criticism that the money could be better spent on island priorities such as health or education”.
Opportunity
Visit Isle of Man Agency has backed the extension, describing it as “a significant commercial opportunity for the visitor economy” with a focus on cruise ship market growth.
The Agency said: “Visit believes there would be a significant return on investment in both monetary terms and in terms of customer satisfaction.”
Passenger numbers on the horse trams recovered from 45,000 in 2023 to more than 51,000 in 2025. The business case estimates a reinstated track could push numbers above 100,000 per year.