However, when Train started laying lines on top of the highway in London, he was arrested and fined, although he thought he had obtained official permission.

[4] It authorised local boroughs or urban district councils to grant a 21-year concession to a private tramway operator.

The local authority could construct the track themselves if they wished to retain complete control of the highway, but they were not allowed to operate trams.

At the conclusion of the lease, the local authority could purchase the complete undertaking, including the trams and horses (or, in the case of a steam tramway, the locomotives and trailers).

Most notably, local authorities were given the right to construct and operate their own tramways under the newer Acts, and municipal ownership became the norm when the original concessions expired.