The Bologna trolleybus system () is part of the public transport network of the city and comune of Bologna, in the region of Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy. While being in operation since 1991, the current system comprises five urban routes: 13, 14, 15, 32 and 33. Additional routes are presently under construction.

Bologna has had two earlier trolleybus systems. The first one opened in 1940 and lasted only until 1945.Murray, Alan (2000). World Trolleybus Encyclopaedia, p. 69. Yateley, Hampshire, UK: Trolleybooks. .

The second earlier system opened in 1955 and was closed in 1982. At the time of its maximum extent in the 1960s and 1970s, it had a total of six routes.

The current trolleybus network reaches beyond Bologna's territory, extending into the neighbouring municipalities of San Lazzaro di Savena (line 15) and Pianoro (line 13). Line 15 opened in 2020 and uses optical guidance as trolleybuses arrive at stops.

History

The first Bologna trolleybus system was opened in October 1940, to integrate with the tramway, as in many other Italian cities. This system, however, lasted only a few years until closed in 1945, as a result of damage sustained to its infrastructure during World War II.

The second trolleybus system was opened in 1955, in anticipation of the total replacement of trams (which were completely eliminated in 1963). However, the second system never reached a large extent, always remaining a minor network compared to the diesel powered bus network.

At the time of its maximum extent (in the 1960s and 1970s), the second system was composed of two circular and four radial lines:

32 Circolare esterna destra (right external circular, i.e. clockwise); 33 Circolare esterna sinistra (left external circular; i.e. counterclockwise); 41 Via Lame – Villaggio INA Casa (Borgo Panigale); 42 Piazza Malpighi – Casalecchio; 43 Piazza Maggiore – Villaggio CEP (Quartiere Barca); 46 Piazza Minghetti – San Ruffillo.

Line 42, with an outer terminus in Casalecchio di Reno, was the only one to exit the municipal area; it provided a service that was integrated with the Casalecchio–Vignola railway, until the latter was later on temporarily closed to passenger traffic and reopened in the early 2000s.

The radial lines had reversing loops at intermediate points on the route: on line 41 at Palasport, at Cinta Daziaria and at Borgo Panigale (Via della Salute); on line 42 at Croce di Casalecchio; on line 43 at Stadio; on line 46 at Chiesa Nuova and in Via della Direttissima.

As in other Italian cities, the trolleybus system experienced a decline in the second half of the 1970s, with the phasing out of the lines (converted to bus lines), with line 46 closing (converted to buses) on 1 August 1977; followed by lines 32, 33 and 43 on 30 September 1979; and line 42 on 30 September 1981. The final closure was of line 41 on 1 June 1982 — a "temporary" withdrawal of trolleybuses for the summer which was made permanent on 16 September 1982. Another source gives the last day of service as 14 June 1982. The fleet was eventually disposed of.

1990s revival The overhead wires, however, were left intact, so as to allow for a possible future decision to reopen the system.Trolleybus Magazine No. 128 (March 1983), p. 43. National Trolleybus Association (UK). . By 1985, it had been tentatively decided that trolleybus service in Bologna should be revived, with a new fleet of vehicles.Trolleybus Magazine No. 141 (May–June 1985), p. 71. In 1988, orders were placed for a fleet of 20 new trolleybuses: 10 from Menarini and 10 from Breda.Trolleybus Magazine No. 163 (January–February 1989), p. 21. It was decided that the first line of the reactivated system would be line 13, which was a union of the old lines 41 and 46, with some changes in the city centre portions to connect the two — in particular, new wiring along Via San Felice, Via Rizzoli, Via Santo Stefano and other streets for eastbound trolleybuses.Trolleybus Magazine No. 176 (March–April 1991), p. 43. Line 13 would now be a cross-city radial line from Borgo Panigale to San Ruffillo via the city centre.Trolleybus Magazine No. 171 (May–June 1990), p. 71. The long-disused overhead wires along former routes 41 and 46 were refurbished in preparation for a planned 1990 reopening. By spring 1990, delivery of both types of new trolleybuses had begun. A ceremonial "inauguration" event took place on 20 April 1990, in connection with a transport conference being held, with one trolleybus of each type running over a short section of the route that was temporarily energised for the occasion.

The first passenger service on the reopened trolleybus system, on new line 13, began on 4 January 1991 or 2 January. Route 13 remained the only trolleybus line until 2002.

On 14 October 2002, the second stage of expansion was reached, with the reactivation of the circular lines 32 and 33, following the same routings as in the previous trolleybus system, but with refurbished overhead wiring.Trolleybus Magazine No. 247 (January–February 2003), p. 19.

Construction of an extension of line 13 within the San Ruffillo district, from Ponte Savena to Via Pavese, began in 2003, and the new section opened for trolleybuses on 13 September 2007.Trolleybus Magazine No. 277 (January–February 2008), p. 16. National Trolleybus Association (UK). . The 1991-reopened loop at Ponte Savena was dismantled.Trolleybus Magazine No. 275 (September–October 2007), pp. 113–114. National Trolleybus Association (UK).

After the opening of circular line 32/33 in 2002, another 10 years passed before the next trolleybus line was opened. This occurred on 24 September 2012,Trolleybus Magazine No. 307 (January–February 2013), pp. 22–24. National Trolleybus Association (UK). with the partial conversion to trolleybuses of bus line 14, Piazza Giovanni XXIII – Due Madonne Depot (bus garage) via the city centre. The western half of line 14 had been line 43 of the previous system (the terminus having been called Barca during that period, but following exactly the same routing to Piazza Giovanni XXIII), so this was a reactivation of former line 43, now as part of line 14. The eastern half of line 14 had never previously been a trolleybus line. Initially, service on line 14 remained mostly operated with motorbuses, with trolleybus serving only about one-quarter of its trips, due partly to there being too few trolleybuses available in the fleet and partly to the fact that line 14 has three branches at its eastern end, two of which are not equipped with trolleybus wiring. The trolleybuses in the current fleet have diesel engines enabling them to operate away from the trolley wires, but only to a limited extent. In 2012, only the 11 newest trolleybuses, delivered in 2010 by Solaris Bus & Coach, had sufficiently powerful diesel engines to serve route 14, and diesel buses continued to serve most trips. In December 2017, after all of a batch of 49 new Iveco Crealis trolleybuses had entered service, route 14 finally began using trolleybuses on the majority of its runs.Trolleybus Magazine No. 339 (May–June 2018), pp. 108, 110. National Trolleybus Association (UK).

On 1 February 2012, ATC transferred operation of Bologna's public transport system to TPER (Trasporto Passeggeri Emilia-Romagna), a new entity formed by the merger ATC's operations division with Ferrovie Emilia Romagna (FER).

Construction of a 1.1-km extension of route 13 from San Ruffillo to Rastignano began in 2014.Trolleybus Magazine No. 316 (July–August 2014), p. 104. National Trolleybus Association (UK). The new section opened for trolleybus service on 15 September 2017Trolleybus Magazine No. 336 (November–December 2017), p. 226. National Trolleybus Association (UK). (three months after the service had been extended but temporarily operated solely by motorbuses because the new overhead wiring had not yet received certification for use).Trolleybus Magazine No. 335 (September–October 2017), p. 188. National Trolleybus Association (UK).

Services

Overview The six routes comprising the present Bologna trolleybus system are: 13 13 Borgo Panigale – centro (city centre) – San Ruffillo (Via Pavese) 13A Borgo Panigale - San Ruffillo – Rastignano di Pianoro (13A) 14 14A Piazza Giovanni XXIII – Due Madonne (partially trolleybus-operated; mostly motorbus-operated currently) 14B Piazza Giovanni XXIII - Z. I. Roveri (partially trolleybus-operated; mostly motorbus-operated currently) 14C Piazza Giovanni XXIII - Pilastro (partially trolleybus-operated; mostly motorbus-operated currently) 15 Piazza XX Settembre-Via Rizzoli-Via Mazzini-San Lazzaro di Savena 32 Circolare destra (clockwise circular) 33 Circolare sinistra (counterclockwise circular)

Currently, all lines in service are equipped with special devices located on the same remote to transmit a "wire fall or break alarm" resulting in a precautionary tripping of power switches. It is also planned to raise the line voltage from 650 to 750 V.

During Saturdays, Sundays and Public Holidays, the City Council of Bologna has implemented a policy closing Via Ugo Bassi, Via Rizzoli, part of Strada Maggiore and half of Via Indipendenza to regular traffic, with routes 13 and 14 travelling through Via Ugo Bassi (13, 14), Via Rizzoli (13, 14) and Strada Maggiore (14). As a result, route 13 is divided into two branches, one starting in Via Lame to Borgo Panigale and the other one starting from Piazza Cavour to San Ruffillo (Via Pavese) and Rastignano. Trolleybuses are used only on the branch between Via Lame and Borgo Panigale, with the trolleybus poles being lowered for the short distance between Via San Felice and Via Lame. Route 14 is diverted on its eastbound routes through Via Marconi, Via dei Mille and Via Irnerio, and therefore cannot use trolleybuses due to the potential damages these vehicles can face when running on their own engines for long distances.

Line 13

This line was born from the union of the previous lines 41 and 46 and was activated for testing in 1990 on the route San Ruffillo (Ponte Savena) – Borgo Panigale (INA Normandia), with regular public service being introduced on 4 January 1991.

The line was initially powered by five electrical substations (Borgo Panigale, Tofane, Avesella, Carducci, Murri). In 2005, the Avesella substation was dismantled (due to its incompatibility with the urban electrical network), and the electrical sections Timavo–Centro and Centro–Porta Santo Stefano were combined into a single Timavo–Porta Santo Stefano section.

In 2003, work began on the extension of the line by about to Via Pavese, with the consequent shifting of line 13's San Ruffillo terminus from Ponte Savena to Via Pavese, and the construction of a new electrical substation at Via Pavese to provide power for the extension. The work was completed during the first half of 2007, and the extension was opened for service on 13 September 2007, to coincide with the introduction of the new winter schedule.

Since 2017, line 13's southern terminus has been Rastignano, after the construction of a new section of overhead wiring beyond San Ruffillo. The route's service was extended to Rastigano on 8 June 2017 (using motorbuses), but trolleybus service was not introduced until 15 September. Alternate journeys continue to terminate on Via Pavese in San Ruffillo.

The evenings extensions to Carteria di Sesto (13A) and Lavino di Mezzo, which operate in both directions during weekdays and to Via Lame or Piazza Cavour on weekends, are operated by motor buses. Route 13A's last departure at 1.30 am from Piazza Cavour on weekends is extended to Pianoro Vecchio to serve the latter when route 96 finishes to operate.