Asia's oldest operating trams see slow death in India

Passengers commute in a tram along a street in Kolkata. Introduced in the sprawling eastern city in 1873 during the early days of the imperial British Raj, trams in Kolkata were initially horse-drawn, then steam-driven. Electric-powered trams took to the streets in 1900. The single-storey trams -- painted in uniform stripes of bright blue and white, with a sunshine yellow top -- trundle at best at around 20 kilometres (12 miles) per hour, if not snarled in traffic blocking its route. - AFP

KOLKATTA (AFP): The dinging bell of a tram rattling through the streets of the Indian city of Kolkata is all it takes for Deep Das to have the "happiest moment" of his day.

"There were times when there were frequent buses... but I still waited for the trams," the 18-year-old student said.