| Rome trolleybus system | |||||||||||||||||
| No 8520 near Porta Pia. | |||||||||||||||||
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| Locale | Rome, Lazio, Italy | ||||||||||||||||
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The Rome trolleybus system (Italian: Rete filoviaria di Roma) forms part of the public transport network of the city and comune of Rome, Italy. In operation since 2005, the current system comprises a single route, with both a normal and an express service. Extensions to the current system are planned, so as to electrify certain bus routes presently operated by conventional buses.
From 1937 to 1972, Rome was served by a much more extensive trolleybus system, which was then the largest in Italy and one of the largest in Europe.
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The first route of Rome's original trolleybus system was inaugurated on 8 January 1937. In later years, that system was greatly expanded at the expense of conventional buses, which were regarded at the time as slow and uncomfortable[1]
Following the suspension of trolleybus services due to World War II, the system was restored and expanded during the post-war era, reaching its maximum length of 137 km in 1957.
In the 1960s, the trolleybus system (as well as Rome's tram network) was considered outdated and costly to maintain. The trolleybus routes were therefore rapidly replaced by conventional buses.
On 2 July 1972, operations ceased on the last surviving trolleybus route of the original system, no. 47 (Porto di Ripetta - Santa Maria della Pietà).
In the early 2000s, Rome's municipal administration decided to reduce car traffic and air pollution by strengthening urban public transport in central Rome, and particularly those forms of public transport powered by electric traction. The administration implemented that decision by improving the tram network, and by reintroducing trolleybuses on the most popular bus routes.
On 23 March 2005, trolleybuses took over the operation of route 90 Express, and on 1 December 2008, the route 90D Express was established.
The two services operating on Rome's current trolleybus route are:
The central section of the route, from Termini station to Porta Pia, is not electrified by overhead wires, as it was considered that the two-wire overhead lines would have disfigured the city centre streets. On that part of the route, the trolleybuses are powered by onboard batteries, which are automatically recharged along the sections where wires are provided.[2]
Work is currently underway on an expansion of the Rome trolleybus system. The project, known as corridoi del trasporto pubblico (English:corridors for public transport), involves the construction of exclusive lanes for the movement of trolleybuses along two routes:
The trolleybuses to be used on the new routes will be 45 examples of BredaMenarinibus's Avancity S model, which is 18 m long. In some sections, overhead wires will not be installed, so the trolleybuses will be powered by diesel-electric motors.[3]
The work was entrusted, after public tender, to a temporary joint venture made up of De Sanctis Costruzioni SpA, Monaco SpA, Azienda Trasporti Milanesi SpA and CIEG Engineering Srl. It is being funded by the government of Italy (65%), the comune of Rome (24%), and the province of Lazio (11%). The cost is forecast at 163 million euro.[4]
The project also includes the creation of street furniture (such as benches and shelters) and the installation of traffic lights giving preference to the trolleybuses. According to an official announcement made in June 2010, the work will end in December 2012.[5]
The trolleybuses used for the operation of the present system are Solaris-Ganz Trollino articulated buses, manufactured by Solaris Bus & Coach of Poland, with electrical equipment supplied by Škoda Electric (formerly known as Ganz Transelektro).
The Trollinos are 18 m (59 ft 1 in) long, 2,550 mm (8 ft 4 in) wide, and 3,490 mm (11 ft 5 in) high. They are fitted with a battery system to enable operation over the unwired section from Termini station to Porta Pia.
Media related to [//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Trolleybuses_in_Rome Trolleybuses in Rome] at Wikimedia Commons
This article is based upon a translation of the Italian language version as at March 2011.
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