Paris has a new tram line connecting the outer edges of the 13th, 14th and 15th arrondissements, the first tram within city limits since 1937. The T3 line replaces part of a beleaguered bus route that travels the city’s busy ring road, the Boulevard Périphérique, and will eventually encircle the the whole city. Right-wing opponents of Socialist Mayor Bertrand Delanoë slammed the $400 million project as a waste of public funds, and boycotted the inauguration on Saturday, but Delanoë was unfazed, stating: “We need to respond to pollution with action, it’s a necessity of public health and civilization.” “Half of the planet’s population lives in towns today, so we need to make behavior evolve.” (Right on, Bertrand.) The electric trams will ferry 100,000 people a day through some of Paris’ most populated neighborhoods, along tracks that have been laid with grass and lined with borders of trees. Here’s an interactive map showing the route and connections to the Metro and RER systems.

– “Paris welcomes trams back to town” (BBC)
– “Paris tram slides into action after 70 years” (Sydney Morning Herald)
– RATP interactive map