Trolleybuses in Lucerne

The Lucerne trolleybus system (Alemannic German: Trolleybussystem Luzern) forms part of the public transport network of Lucerne, capital city of the canton of Lucerne, Switzerland. Opened in 1941, the system had replaced the Lucerne tramway network by 1961.[1]

Lucerne trolleybus system
A Hess Swisstrolley crossing the Reuss, 2005.
Operation
LocaleLucerne, Switzerland
Open7 December 1941 (1941-12-07)
StatusOpen
Routes6
Operator(s)Verkehrsbetriebe Luzern (VBL)
Infrastructure
Electrification600 V DC parallel overhead lines
Statistics
Route length37.634 km (23.385 mi)
Overview
WebsiteVerkehrsbetriebe Luzern (VBL) (in German)

As of the end of 2013, the system consists of six lines, one of which leads across the city boundary into the neighbouring towns of Emmen, Horw and Kriens. It is currently operated by Verkehrsbetriebe Luzern (VBL), has a total route length of 37.634 km (23.385 mi),[2] and as of about 2011 was carrying 27 million passengers annually.[3] The system is supplemented by various motor bus lines operated by the same transport company.

History

The system's individual trolleybus line sections went into service as follows:[1]

7 December 1941Bahnhof Luzern–Allmend (2.59 km)Bahnhof Luzern–Breitenlachen:
now line 4
Breitenlachen–Allmend:
decommissioned since 2005		New connection
25 January 1942Bahnhof Luzern–Dietschibergnow lines 6 and 8New connection
20 May 1951Luzernerhof–Wesemlinrainnow line 1Motor bus replacement
15 November 1959Dietschiberg–Würzenbach (1.05 km)
Bundesplatz–Emmenbrücke (4.38 km)		now lines 6 and 8
now line 2		Motor bus replacement
Tramway replacement
11 November 1961Pilatusplatz–Kriens Busschleife
Wesemlinrain–Maihof		now line 1Tramway replacement
11 November 1962Breitenlachen–Hubelmattnow line 4New connection
10 April 1966Bundesplatz–Matthof
Wartegg–Biregghof		now line 6
now line 7		New connection
2 July 1986Schönbühl–Hirtenhofnow line 8New connection
5 November 1990Kriens Busschleife–Obernau Dorf
Emmenbrücke–Sprengi		now line 1
now line 2		Motor bus replacement
New connection
23 August 2004Wesemlinrain–Unterlöchlinow line 7New connection
15 December 2013Brüelstrasse–Büttenenhaldenow line 6Motor bus replacement
12 December 2016Kriens-Emmenbrueckenow line 5New connection (75th anniversary)

Lines

The present system is made up of the following lines:

1Obernau Dorf–Maihofcross-city route27 stopsrush hour every 5 minutes / off-peak every 7.5 minutesBi-articulated buses and rigid buses + trailers
2Sprengi–Bahnhof Luzernradial route18 stopsevery 7.5 minutesArticulated buses (motor buses)
4Hubelmatt–Bahnhof Luzernradial route09 stopsevery 10 minutesArticulated buses
5Kriens-Emmenbrueckecross-city route21 stopspeak times every 7.5 minutes / off peak every 15 minutesArticulated buses
6Matthof–Büttenenhaldecross-city route23/24 stopsrush hour every 10 minutes / off-peak every 15 minutesArticulated buses
7Biregghof–Unterlöchlicross-city route23/24 stopsevery 7.5 minutesArticulated buses
8Hirtenhof–Würzenbachcross-city route19/20 stopsrush hour every 10 minutes / off-peak every 15 minutesRigid buses + trailers and articulated buses

Lines 6 and 8 operate on the same overhead wires between Brüelstrasse and Schönbühl, so that on this section there are trolleybuses at 5-minute intervals during rush hour, and at 7.5-minute intervals at off-peak times. This combined section is described as double-line 6/8.

Fleet

As of 31 December 2013, the VBL trolleybus fleet has 20 rigid, 26 articulated, and three bi-articulated vehicles There are also 16 trailers that can be used in combination with the rigid buses.[2]

Along with the Lausanne trolleybus system, the Lucerne system is one of only two trolleybus systems worldwide that still utilise the rigid concave bus and the trailer consortium form of operation. In addition, the Lucerne system is, along with the Le-Fond-De-L'eau and Lausanne systems, one of only three trolleybus systems in Switzerland still using rigid vehicles. An ongoing process called 'Operation Dismantle' projects re-use parts of the long-serving buses as gifts to the Cuban transportation system.

ImageFleet nos.QuantityManufacturerElectricsTypeConfigurationLow-floorBuilt
201–22626HessKiepeBGT-N2CArticulatedyes2004–2009
231–23303HessKiepeBGGT-N2CBi-articulatedyes2006
234–24209HessKiepeBGGT-N2DBi-articulatedyes2014
252–254,
257–280		27NAW / HessSiemensBT 5-25Rigidno1989 (no. 251 built 1987–88)
301–31616Lanz + Marti / HessnoneAPM 5.6-13Traileryes1998–2005

Type BGT 5-25 originally comprised 20 vehicles, nos. 181-200.

Of the 30 rigid versions of that type, the BT 5-25, to be acquired by the VBL, three vehicles had been retired by 2012: nos. 251, 255 and 256. In 2014, ten vehicles from that series were sold to the Valparaíso trolleybus system, in Chile: Nos. 265, 266, 268–270, 272, 273, 275, 276, 278.[4]

Depot

The Weinbergli depot is located on the route of lines 6, 7 and 8.

See also

References

Notes
  1. "Trolleybusstadt: Luzern (Schweiz) - Geschichte History" [Trolleybus city: Lucerne (Switzerland) - History] (in German). TrolleyMotion. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  2. "Die Fakten" [The facts] (in German). Verkehrsbetriebe Luzern. Retrieved 25 November 2015.
  3. Brugger Kalfidis, Pia Maria. "Luzern setzt auf Trolleybusse" [Lucerne relies on trolleybuses] (PDF) (in German). Regionale Schienen. Retrieved 14 January 2012.
  4. Trolleybus Magazine No. 320 (March–April 2015), p. 54. ISSN 0266-7452.

Further reading
  • Schwandl, Robert (2010). Schwandl's Tram Atlas Schweiz & Österreich. Berlin: Robert Schwandl Verlag. ISBN 978 3 936573 27 5. (in German and English)

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