Trolleybuses in Lucerne

The Lucerne trolleybus system () forms part of the public transport network of Lucerne, which is the capital city of the canton of Lucerne in Switzerland. Opened in 1941, the system had replaced the Lucerne tramway network by 1961.

As of the end of 2013, the system consists of seven 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 , and carried 27 million passengers annually as of 2011. 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:

7 December 1941 Bahnhof Luzern–Allmend (2.59 km) Bahnhof Luzern–Breitenlachen:now line 4 Breitenlachen–Allmend:decommissioned since 2005 New connection 25 January 1942 Bahnhof Luzern–Dietschiberg now lines 6 and 8 New connection 20 May 1951 Luzernerhof–Wesemlinrain now line 1 Motor bus replacement 15 November 1959 Dietschiberg–Würzenbach (1.05 km) Bundesplatz–Emmenbrücke (4.38 km) now lines 6 and 8 now line 2 Motor bus replacementTramway replacement 11 November 1961 Pilatusplatz–Kriens Busschleife Wesemlinrain–Maihof now line 1 Tramway replacement 11 November 1962 Breitenlachen–Hubelmatt now line 4 New connection 10 April 1966 Bundesplatz–Matthof Wartegg–Biregghof now line 6 now line 7 New connection 2 July 1986 Schönbühl–Hirtenhof now line 8 New connection 5 November 1990 Kriens Busschleife–Obernau Dorf Emmenbrücke–Sprengi now line 1 now line 2 Motor bus replacementNew connection 23 August 2004 Wesemlinrain–Unterlöchli now line 7 New connection15 December 2013 Brüelstrasse–Büttenenhalde now line 6 Motor bus replacement12 December 2016 Kriens-Emmenbruecke now line 5 New connection (75th anniversary)

Lines The present system is made up of the following lines:

1 Obernau Dorf–Ebikon, Fildern cross-city route 38 stops every 7.5 minutes Bi-articulated buses 2 Sprengi–Bahnhof Luzern radial route 16 stops every 7.5 minutes Bi-articulated buses 4 Hubelmatt–Bahnhof Luzern radial route 9 stops every 10 minutes Articulated buses 5 Kriens–Emmenbrücke cross-city route 20 stops peak times every 7.5 minutes / off peak every 15 minutes Articulated buses 6 Matthof–Büttenenhalde cross-city route 23/24 stops rush hour every 10 minutes / off-peak every 15 minutes Articulated buses 7 Biregghof–Unterlöchli cross-city route 23/24 stops every 7.5 minutes / off-peak every 15 minutes Articulated buses 8 Hirtenhof–Würzenbach cross-city route 19/20 stops rush hour every 10 minutes / off-peak every 15 minutes Bi-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 had 20 rigid, 26 articulated, and three bi-articulated vehicles There were also 16 trailers that can be used in combination with the rigid buses.

The system's first double-articulated trolleybuses were purchased in 2006 and were among the first such vehicles in Switzerland (apart from a 2003 prototype);Trolleybus Magazine No. 268 (July–August 2006), p. 91. National Trolleybus Association (UK). the three vehicles were delivered at the end of 2006 and given numbers 231–233.Trolleybus Magazine No. 273 (May–June 2007), p. 70. National Trolleybus Association (UK).

In the 2010s, the Lucerne system was one of only two trolleybus systems worldwide, along with the Lausanne trolleybus system, that still operated trolleybuses towing passenger trailers. However, trailer use on the Lucerne system ended on 10 October 2017,Trolleybus Magazine No. 337 (January–February 2018), p. 37. following the delivery of more new articulated trolleybuses, and such usage also ended in Lausanne – the last trolleybus system in the world to use trailers – on 4 May 2021.Trolleybus Magazine No. 358 (July–August 2021), p. 162.

Image Fleet nos. Quantity Manufacturer Electrics Type Configuration Low-floor Built 201–226 26 Hess Vossloh Kiepe BGT-N2C Articulated yes 2004–2009 231–233 3 Hess Vossloh Kiepe BGGT-N2C Bi-articulated yes 2006 234–242 9 Hess Vossloh Kiepe BGGT-N2D Bi-articulated yes 2014 252–254, 257–280 27 NAW / Hess Siemens BT 5-25 Rigid no 1989 (no. 251 built 1987–88) 301–316 16 Lanz + Marti / Hess none APM 5.6-13 Trailer yes 1998–2005

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.Trolleybus Magazine No. 320 (March–April 2015), p. 54. .

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

Trolleybuses in Lucerne

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