Trolleybuses in Ruse

Ruse trolleybus system
Ruse trolleybus system
	Modern-day Renault trolleybus seen at the main roundabout in Ruse, Bulgaria.
Operation
Locale	Ruse, Bulgaria
Open	9 September 1988
Status	Open
Routes	7
Operator(s)	Общински Транспорт Русе АД; (Municipal Transport Ruse AD)
Infrastructure
Electrification	600 V DC
Depot(s)	1
Stock	53 trolleybuses
Statistics
Track length (total)	63 km (39 mi)
Overview
Website	http://www.transport-ruse.com Municipal Transport Ruse (in English)

The Ruse trolleybus system (Bulgarian: Русенски тролейбусен транспорт) forms part of the public transport network of the city and municipality of Ruse, the fifth most populous city in Bulgaria. Opened in 1988, the system currently has seven lines. Its approximate length is 63 km and has been designed to work with 600V DC electricity.^[1] Over the years, various models of trolleybuses have been operated in Ruse.

History

The first trolleybus in the city of Ruse departed in 1988, along the route starting from the Western Industrial Zone. Lines were operated using ZiU-682 trolleybuses. In the following years, as the city was developing, so did the cable network. It was extended throughout the central areas and the industrial zones, replacing many bus routes with trolleybuses.

On 1 November 2008, Ruse municipality concluded a concession contract with the Bulgarian branch of the Israeli transport company Egged. Under the concession, management of the trolleybus network in the city became the responsibility of the private Egged Ruse transport holding. In 2015, around 70% of the overhead wire network was replaced under the integrated urban transport project. The project also focused on replacing a number of trolleybus pillars and their repainting. During this time period, lines also began operating without conductor service. Passengers instead purchase subscription and prepaid cards or a single-use ticket directly from the driver.

After nearly nine years of operating under a private holding, the trolleybus transport entity was once again transferred to the local municipality on August 31, 2017.^[2] The municipally-owned company operating the trolleybus lines in the city is named "Municipal Transport Ruse". Under present conditions, not all of the trolleybus overhead network is being used and there are plans to increase the number of trolleybus lines in order to improve coverage. However, these plans also pose a number of challenges as some of the trolleybus infrastructure in Ruse has fallen into disrepair, most notably the trolleybus wires between the central station and the gray mill.

Services

Today, the Ruse trolleybus network has 7 lines:^[3]


Line	Route	Stops
2	"Treti Mart" Blvrd. – "Sent Uan" Str. – "Nikolaevska" Str. – "Skobelev" Blvrd. – "Lipnik" Blvrd.	15 stops
9	Charodeika South-Residential District – "Hristo Botev" Blvrd – "Stefan Stambolov" Str. – "Treti Mart" Blvrd.	12/13 stops
13	Druzhba 3 Residential District – "Dame Gruev" Str. – "Tsar Osvoboditel" Blvrd. - "Lipnik" Blvrd. – Ruse Sorting yard.	14 stops
21	Charodeika South-Residential District – "Tsar Osvoboditel" Blvrd. – "Lipnik" Blvrd. – Ruse Sorting yard.	13 stops
24	Druzhba 3 Residential District – "Tsar Osvoboditel" Blvrd – "Skobelev" Blvrd. – "Treti Mart" Blvrd.	13/14 stops
27	Druzhba 3 Residential District – "Hristo Botev" Blvrd. – "Syedinenie" Blvrd. – "Tutrakan" Blvrd.	15 stops
29	Charodeika South-Residential District – "Hristo Botev" Blvrd. – "Syedinenie" Blvrd. – "Pliska" Str. – "Tutrakan" Blvrd.	14 stops

Fleet

Current fleet

The main short-term goal for Ruse municipality has been to ensure the operation of the trolleybus system. For this purpose, 12 Czech Skoda trolleybuses and 5 Swiss model NAW/Lauber in used condition were purchased to supplement the local fleet of aging vehicles in 2019. Determined to be most suitable for the current needs of the city, a further 20 NAW/Lauber vehicles were acquired by early 2022. A public tender for the purchase of 15 new trolleybuses to replace older vehicles has been launched.

Quantity	Manufacturer	Type	Model	Low-floor	Built	Remarks
25 units	NAW/Lauber	91T	rigid	no	1986–1990	ex Lausanne.
8 units	FBW/Hess	91T	rigid	no	1982–1983	ex Lausanne. Some out of service.
12 units	Skoda Electric	21TrACI	rigid	no	2001-2003	ex Plzeň. Some out of service.
8 units	Renault	ER100H	rigid	no	1989	ex Limoges. Some out of service.

Past fleet

During the early years of the network, solely Soviet ZiU trolleys were used. Retired trolleybuses from the Swiss cities of Basel, Bern, and Winterthur were then introduced to the network in the late 1990s. The entire stock of vehicles, consisting of Soviet built ZiU and former Swiss trolleybuses, was replaced in several stages between 2008 and 2013 with second-hand trolleybuses from various European countries. Many of these vehicles have also been retired since the reacquisition of the transport holding by the local municipality, while others remain in operation.

Quantity	Manufacturer	Type	Model	Low-floor	Built	Remarks
56 units	ZiU	ZiU-9	rigid	no	1988-1990	Soviet built vehicles
5 units	ZiU	ZiU-10	articulated	no	1989	Soviet built vehicles
29 units	Iveco	2470 Socimi	rigid	no	1983-1984	ex Milan. 1 vehicle donated to Ruse University.
2 units	Skoda Electric	14Tr	rigid	no	1989	ex Plzeň. Training vehicle retired in June 2022.
7 units	Neoplan	N6021	articulated	yes	1995–1996	ex Basel
2 units	Mercedes-Benz	O405GTD	articulated	no	1990	ex Esslingen
6 units	Berna	4GTP	articulated	no	1965-1969	ex Basel and Winterthur
4 units	FBW	Tr51	rigid	no	1956	ex Basel
6 units	FBW	GTr51	articulated	no	1961	ex Bern