Trolleybuses in Basel

The Basel trolleybus system (Alemannic German: Trolleybussystem Basel) was part of the public transport network of Basel, Switzerland, for nearly six decades. Opened in 1941, it combined after 1997 with the Basel Regional S-Bahn, the Basel tramway network and Basel's urban motorbus network to form an integrated all-four style scheme until its closure in 2008.

Basel trolleybus system
Basel Neoplan trolleybus no. 929
on line 31, August 2005.
Operation
LocaleBasel, Switzerland
Open31 July 1941 (1941-07-31)
Close30 June 2008 (2008-06-30)
StatusClosed
Routes3 (max)
Operator(s)Basler Verkehrs-Betriebe (BVB)
Infrastructure
Electrification600 V DC
WebsiteBasler Verkehrs-Betriebe (in German)

The trolleybus system was operated by Basler Verkehrs-Betriebe (BVB), which also operates Basel's motorbus network and some of the trams on its tramway network. At its height, the trolleybus system consisted of three lines, two of which ran into the neighbouring municipality of Riehen, north of Basel.

History

The individual sections of the Basel trolleybus system went into service as follows:[1]

31 July 1941Claraplatz–Rosengartenweg–Friedhof am HörnliLine A (to 1948)
Line 31 (from 1948)		Replacement for motor bus line A
25 October 1948Friedhof am Hörnli–HabermattenLine 31Extension over new section
9 February 1956Rosengartenweg–KäferholzstrasseLine 34Replacement for motor bus line 34
24 October 1968Wanderstrasse–Badischer BahnhofLine 33Replacement for motor bus line 33
(to 4 July 1966: Tram line 2)
18 April 1973Käferholzstrasse–HabermattenLine 34Extension over new section

Line 34 was converted to motorbus operation on 9 September 2000. A conversion of line 33 followed on 13 December 2004. After the latter closure, Basel's only remaining trolleybus line was the 4.9 km (3.0 mi) long line 31.

A popular initiative to rescue the trolleybuses then occurred, but on 17 June 2007 the initiative was rejected by a 27,403 to 23,645 (53.7%) majority of the voting citizens. Subsequently, the final trolleybus run on line 31 took place on 30 June 2008.[2]

Fleet

A total of 52 trolleybuses were procured for the Basel trolleybus system. All of them were supplied new, apart from nos. 921 and 922, which were acquired second-hand from the Kaiserslautern trolleybus system in Germany:[3]

ManufacturerTypeConfigurationQuantityFleet numbersService years
FBW51Rigid (two-axle), dual-mode0210–11; from 1947/48: 50–51; from 1956: 350–3511941–1975
Saurer4 BPOTwo-axle, cab over0212–13; from 1947/48: 52–53; from 1956: 352–3531941–1958
Saurer4 TPTwo-axle0254–55; from 1956: 354–3551948–1975
FBW51Two-axle1256–64; from 1956: 356–3681955–1995
SchindlerAPGArticulated10901–9101968–1996
FBW91 GTSArticulated10911–9201975–2000
Daimler-BenzO305 GTArticulated02921–9221986–2000
NeoplanN 6020Articulated, low-floor12923–9341992–2008
Ex-Basel trolleybus 918 in service in Braşov (Romania) in 2006, still wearing BVB fleet livery

Up until the closure of the system, motorbus no. 48 served as an overhead wire de-icer, and for that purpose was fitted with trolley poles.

Some of the retired trolleybuses were transferred to Pazardzhik and Ruse in Bulgaria as well as Braşov in Romania. Trolleybus no. 358 is now in the possession of the Lausanne-based RétroBus Léman museum society.

Depot

The vehicles in Basel's trolleybus fleet were kept at the Rankstrasse bus garage, on line 31. The garage was also connected with line 33 via non-revenue wires (wiring not used for passenger service) from Basel Badischer Bahnhof.

See also

References

Notes
  1. "Basler Verkehrs-Betriebe (BVB): Geschichte". www.tram-bus-basel.ch website (in German). Dominik Madörin, CH-Ettingen. Retrieved 4 October 2012. External link in |work= (help)
  2. Trolleybus Magazine No. 282 (November–December 2008), p. 240. National Trolleybus Association (UK). ISSN 0266-7452.
  3. "Trolleybusse der Basler Verkehrs-Betriebe". www.tram-bus-basel.ch website (in German). Dominik Madörin, CH-Ettingen. Retrieved 4 October 2012.

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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