Watch The Runaway Tram Car, Please!

Watch The Runaway
Tram Car, Please

As the greater Philadelphia area shivers in Mother Nature's bone-chilling deep freeze, it is easy for our thoughts to quickly turn to warmer temperatures and summer at the seashore. One more thing to warm our hearts this winter is a new roller coaster ride on the Wildwood boardwalk coming this summer.

Morey's Piers, which is celebrating fifty years on the iconic Wildwood boards, will debut
a new ride on Surfside Pier, and they did not have to look very far for the inspiration for the attraction. The new family-friendly roller coaster the Runaway Tram Car will be themed after the Wildwood Sightseer Tramcar, a mainstay on the boardwalk for decades.

The tramcar debuted nearly 70 years ago on June 11, 1949, as a trackless transport for
passengers to travel from one end of the boardwalk to the other. The tram was originally built for the 1939 New York World's Fair before it was relocated to the Jersey shore resort. Today the Sightseer transports families along a two-mile stretch of boardwalk from Wildwood Crest to North Wildwood complete with its pre-recorded phrase “watch the tramcar please,” which is sounded repeatedly as a friendly warning for unsuspecting people strolling in the path of the tram.

Jack Morey, second generation partner of Morey's Piers said the decision to theme a new
attraction after the beloved tramcar was the right thing to do. “It made complete sense to pay homage to this Jersey shore staple as we celebrate 50 years on the piers,” Morey noted. In a world of competition for the tourist dollar at the shore Morey said, “to keep our family business ever-evolving, we strive to celebrate innovative new experiences for our guests that honor the history of Wildwood.”

The boardwalk entertainment company is investing four million dollars in the project. The Runaway Tram will climb 40 feet into the air before coasting, twisting and turning riders along 922 feet of track. The Force 280 coaster was manufactured by Zierer and features one train
with 10 two-person passenger cars. Morey's says Attraction Design Company JRA is custom designing the ride's train and station. The Tramcar is a variation of Zierer's “Force” family coaster model. It will be the second of its kind following Legoland Billund's Flying Eagle, which opened last year.

In September 2018, Morey's retired the popular Flitzer coaster. A number of the company's original rides have been taken out of service over the last few years including the Wipeout, the Golden Nugget, the Haunted House and the Jumbo Jet.

To make room for the new ride, Morey's Piers had to move seven rides and completely
reconfigure Surfside Pier. With the addition of the new ride this summer, Morey's will have seven roller coasters as part of more than 100 rides and attractions it offers visitors spanning six beach
blocks.

The Runaway Tram Car attraction is expected to be ready in time for the start of the summer tourism season at the Jersey shore.