Trolleybuses in Winterthur

The Winterthur trolleybus system (Alemannic German: Trolleybus System Winterthur) forms part of the public transport network that serves Winterthur, in the canton of Zürich, Switzerland.

Winterthur trolleybus system
A Mercedes-Benz O405 GTZ trolleybus at
Winterthur Hauptbahnhof (main railway station).
Operation
LocaleWinterthur, Switzerland
Open1938 (1938)
StatusOpen
Routes3
Operator(s)Stadtbus Winterthur
Overview
WebsiteStadtbus Winterthur (in German)

Opened on 28 December 1938, the system gradually replaced the Winterthur tramway network.

History

The individual line sections of the Winterthur trolleybus system went into operation as follows:

28 December 1938Hauptbahnhof–Wülflingen Lindenplatz (3.1 km)Line 2Tram replacement
24 July 1941Hauptbahnhof–Seen (4.2 km)Line 2Tram replacement
26 April 1948Hauptbahnhof–RosenbergLine 3Bus replacement
6 October 1951Hauptbahnhof–Oberwinterthur Bahnhof (2.9 km)Line 1Tram replacement
3 November 1951Hauptbahnhof–Zentrum Töss (1.8 km)Line 1Tram replacement
4 October 1960Wülflingen Lindenplatz–WülflingenLine 2New connection
4 October 1960Hauptbahnhof–Breite–HauptbahnhofLine 3Bus replacement
2 June 1965Zentrum Töss–TössLine 1New connection
16 June 1982Oberwinterthur Bahnhof–OberwinterthurLine 1New connection
26 October 1991Hauptbahnhof–OberseenLine 6Bus replacement
6 April 2011Friedhof / Schachenweg–RosenbergLine 3New connection

With the timetable change on 23 May 1982, the Rosenberg line (line 3) was separated from the Breite line (a new line 4). The latter line, which operated as a circle line, was converted back into a diesel bus service on 28 May 1995, and the last remaining traces of its overhead wires disappeared at the end of January 2010.

Meanwhile, in December 2006, lines 3 and 6 were merged into the present line 3.

Lines

The present system is made up of the following lines, all of them cross-city routes:

1 Töss–Hauptbahnhof–Oberwinterthur In rush hour at 6-minute intervals, with 10 trolleybuses.
2 Wülflingen–Hauptbahnhof–Seen In rush hour at 6-minute intervals, with 11 trolleybuses.
3 Rosenberg–Hauptbahnhof–Oberseen In rush hour at 7.5-minute intervals, with 10 trolleybuses.

Fleet

Evolution

The Winterthur trolleybus system was operated initially by conventional length, two-axle vehicles. In 1957, the first five articulated trolleybuses were ordered. They entered service in 1959.

In 1997, Stadtbus Winterthur sold a few trolleybuses to the Romanian city of Timișoara. Other trolleybuses were sold in 1998 to the Bulgarian city of Ruse, and, a year later, to Burgas, also in Bulgaria.

In March 2004, an order for 10 articulated trolleybuses was placed with Solaris Bus & Coach. In November 2005, the first trolleybus in this order was delivered. By the end of 2005, all had entered service; they replaced the Saurer trolleybuses nos. 122–131.

Current fleet
NumbersQuantityManufacturerElectrical
equipment		ModelLow-floorYear built
101–12424HessKiepeBGT-N2Cyes2010–2013
171–18010SolarisCegelecTrollino 18yes2004 / 2005
  • The former Winterthur Saurer trolleybus 13 from 1960, here in 2005 in Timișoara, Romania.
  • Saurer articulated trolleybus 128 from 1982 (since withdrawn), in Oberseen, 2005.
  • A Solaris Trollino 18 articulated trolleybus in Töss.
  • Swisstrolley 111, an example of the newest Winterthur trolleybus generation.

See also

References
  • 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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