The Sofia
trolleybus
A trolleybus (also known as trolley bus, trolley coach, trackless trolley, trackless tramin the 1910s and 1920sJoyce, J.; King, J. S.; and Newman, A. G. (1986). ''British Trolleybus Systems'', pp. 9, 12. London: Ian Allan Publishing. .or troll ...
system ( bg, Тролейбусен транспорт София) forms part of the
public transport network of
Sofia
Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and ha ...
, the capital city of
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
.
In operation since 8 February 1941, the system presently comprises ten routes with 257 km network build, of which 193 km are currently in use.
As of 2020 the average speed of the trolleybus system in Sofia is 15.7 km/h.
[ ]
History
Trolleybus transport was the last form of surface public transport to develop in Sofia, after buses and trams. The first Sofia trolleybus line opened on 8 February 1941. It was over long, and connected the city with the Gorna Banya quarter.
The line was covered by 2 MAN trolleybuses, which were stored on the last stops during the night, due to the lack of depot.
In the 1950s and 1960s, massive development of the trolleybus transport in Sofia began. At that time, the construction of new trolleybus routes proceeded especially rapidly, and two depots ("Stochna Gara" and "Nadezhda") were opened, with a total capacity of 160 trolleybuses. In 1951, the first Bulgarian made trolleybuses entered service.
In 1987, a new depot, "Iskar", was opened with a capacity of 130 trolleybuses.
Levski depot was opened in 1994 with capacity of 60 trolleybuses. As of 2021 three depots are in operation: Nadezhda, Iskar and Levski. The latter also serves as a storage and overhaul facility.
Lines
As of November 2021, the following trolleybus lines in Sofia are in service:
Trolleybus fleet
Current fleet
As of December 2022, the Sofia trolleybus fleet consisted of 141 trolleybuses, of which around 120 are serviceable.
The following models are currently part of the fleet:
The heritage fleet consists of the following vehicles:
Past fleet
Depots
* Nadezhda - opened in 1962, located on podpolkovnik Kalitin street, operates lines 5, 6, 7 and 9; houses trolleybuses with fleet numbers starting with 2
* Iskar - opened in 1987, located on Amsterdam street, operates lines 2, 3, 4, 5, 8 and 11; houses trolleybuses with fleet numbers starting with 1
* Levski - opened in 1994, located on Bessarabia street, serves as maintenance and overhaul facility and for storage and dismantling of decommissioned vehicles. Since November 2021 also operates line 1.
See also
*
Sofia Metro
The Sofia Metro ( bg, Софийски метрополитен, translit=Sofijski Metropoliten, also colloquially called ) is the rapid transit network servicing the Bulgarian capital city Sofia. It began operation on 28 January 1998. , the Sofi ...
*
Sofia Public Transport
The public transport in Sofia consists of a comprehensive network of bus, trolleybus, tram and metro lines. It is overseen by the Sofia Urban Mobility Center, a municipal enterprise responsible for route planning, scheduling, fare collection and ti ...
*
Sofia Tramway
The Sofia tram network is a vital part of the public transportation system of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. It began operation on January 1, 1901. As of 2006, the tram system included approximately of narrow and standard gauge one-way track. ...
*
List of trolleybus systems
This is a list of cities where trolleybuses operate, or operated in the past, as part of the public transport system. The original list has been divided to improve user-friendliness and to reduce article size. Separate lists—separate articles i ...
References
External links
Official website of Sofia Public Electrical Transport Company JSC (in English)*
*
{{Urban public transport in Bulgaria
Transport in Sofia
Sofia
Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and ha ...
Sofia
Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and ha ...