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First Seminar - Tramways in France and Great Britain (Paris, 10-11 May 2012)Trams have made a remarkable comeback in France since the 1980s. In Britain, their return has been more modest in scale. How is this to be explained, given that both countries face the same demands concerning sustainable urban development? In France, tramways have become a symbol of a cultural mutation in urban development planning, which is perhaps less the case in Britain. The aim of this seminar is to look at the urban development policies in both countries. It asks whether this form of transport reflects different links which are emerging between industry and urban development, as well as local and central government. Comparisons of urban transport which are frequently made between France and Germany often suggest that France is &#8220;behind&#8221; in implementing policies of sustainable mobility. Does a comparison with Great Britain merely reflect similar time lags, or are two different urban development strategies being pursued?Thursday 10 MaySession 1 (14:00-16:00): The return of the tram, turning point or point of no return?    Pierre-Henri Emangard (Universit&#233; du Havre):&#160; &#8220;A Geo-History of Tramways in Europe&#8221;    Mark Smith (Prifysgol Bangor / Bangor University), Olivier Sykes (University of Liverpool) and Thomas Fischer (University of Liverpool): &#8220;Why Have there been so Many Failures in the Return to Tramways in Great Britain? &#8211; lessons from the case of Merseytram&#8221;    Arnaud Passalacqua (Universit&#233; Paris Diderot): &#8220;Surface Transports and Me&#173;tropolitan Areas: Tramways and Other Types of Transport in Paris and London (1890-1950)&#8221; Session 2 (16:30-18:30): Tramways as a Tool for Regenerating Towns and Districts in Decline     Xavier Desjardins (Universit&#233; Paris 1): &#8220;Transport projects and urban regeneration: an introduction&#8221;    Antoine Plard (Urban Transport Organisation Authority, SITURV): &#8220;The case of Valenciennes tramway&#8221;    Stefan Vorberg (University of Paris 1): &#8220;Tramways in Eastern Germany since the 1990s&#8221;Friday 11 MaySession 3 (9:00 - 12:00): Visits to tramways in Greater Paris Session 4 (14:00-16:00): Evaluating the Utility of Tramway Projects: Comparative Constructions of Political and Technical Arguments     Thomas Fischer (University of Liverpool): &#8220;The A Priori Assessment of Urban Transport Projects in Great Britain and Germany&#8221;    Cyprien Richer et Sophie Hasiak (CETE Nord-Picardie), &#171;Territorial opportunities of tram-based systems : comparative analysis between Nottingham (GB) and Va&#173;lenciennes (FRA)&#187;     Bryan Matthews (University of Leeds): &#8220;The Socio-Economic Assessment of Transport Projects&#8221;InformationsOrganisers    Xavier Desjardins (Head of CRIA, UMR G&#233;ographie-Cit&#233;s, Universit&#233; Paris 1)        Olivier Sykes (University of Liverpool)        Juliette Maulat (UMR G&#233;ographie-Cit&#233;s, CRIA, Universit&#233; Paris 1, R&#233;seau Ferr&#233; de France)To register for the seminar, please contact us at: urbanrails2012@gmail.comSecond seminar - Building Territories Adapted to Networks: the Challenges of rail-oriented development (Liverpool, October 2012)