The old MTB-82 tram was a real gem on the streets of Kharkiv. It was used for city sightseeing tours.

It was manufactured in Riga in 1952 and was restored in 2006 to mark the 100th anniversary of the Kharkiv tram network.

To be fair, it’s worth noting that the 2006 restoration wasn’t 100% authentic.

The doors and partition of the cab are from the Tatra T3, the seats are from the T6B5, and the front emblem is from the RVZ-6.

In general, the MTV-82 operated on passenger routes in Kharkiv from 1953 to 1977.

It was a good, reliable, and simple tram.

Many of them were converted into maintenance cars and other service cars, which are still in use today.

Overall, the MTV-82 was produced from 1947 to 1961, and the story behind its creation is quite amusing.

In 1946, the 82nd Tushino Plant exceeded its production quota for MTB-82 trolleybus bodies and didn’t know what to do with them.

The trolleybus bodies were lengthened, and trams were built based on them.

The body design, in turn, was a creatively reworked version of the 1940 Yellow Coach (owned by General Motors since 1943).

A more modern version of this bus was produced from 1946 to 1950 as the ZiS-154.

The tram was destroyed during the bombing of the tram depot by Russian forces on March 3, 2022.