In 1902, the Tramlot strike shook Geneva
The American boss of the CGTE causes chaos and the general strike.
Illustration from the Geneva satirical newspaper “Guguss” on the attacks of the population against the trams in 1902.
GENEVA LIBRARY
In Geneva, we say traminot, and in France, traminot. This is how the employees of the trams of the past are called. While the two days of TPG strikes ended with an agreement that calmed things down, the 1902 trammel conflict lasted for months and led to a general strike in a canton that had never known one before. The company in charge of public transport was then called the Geneva Electric Tramway Company (CGTE). It became Transports publics genevois (TPG) in 1977. Founded in 1899, the CGTE was still very young when a strike broke out that was to take on the appearance of a revolution. The troop will be called to the rescue, we will fight in the streets, the wagons will be targeted by projectiles, police bicycles will fly in the Rhone.