Trolley buses

[whole diary]

[grahame]

Other threads suggest we could / should have some back.  An old video that popped up quite by accident:

[Reading General]

That would be me again

There is some fascinatingly old stuff in that video.

He's what can be done now.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zEwLgakYko

This is also interesting, albeit the narrators voice. It suggests overhead for the busiest people moving corridors.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmtXLoe8jog

[eightonedee]

Great

Of course, if Reading restored its old routes, they could use regenerative breaking down Kentwood Hill, Norcot Hill and (if I recall correctly) Donkin Hill as well to help charge up those batteries!

If there is now an established trolley bus manufacturing sector in Europe it should also address the issue of the availability of suitable vehicles, infrastructure equipment and spares, hopefully at affordable prices. Does anyone know if trolleys are cheaper than hybrids?

[Reading General]

I'm not sure how expensive they are but I do know that they would last must longer than anything with a diesel engine. So perhaps, if they are more expensive to purchase, it will pay off over time. Long range battery equipped trolleys would obviously cost more.

Reading's system was four routes in a cross shape, Tilehurst to Wokingham road (17), Kentwood/Armour Hill to London Road/Liverpool Road (18), Caversham Bridge to Northumberland Avenue (15) and Stations to Whitley Wood (16). All routes met at West Street Junction. Sadly the trolleys never made it across the river, if they did Caversham and Emmer Green might have a more impressive bus service and ridership today by being connected with the two Whitley routes over a long period of time.

[Reading General]

Salzburg's new trolleys from Hess were priced at 1 million euros each last year, although these will be articulated, or double articulated vehicles. A British double deck body placed on a modern trolleybus chassis would probably be somewhat cheaper if the aversion to articulated vehicles continues.

[eightonedee]

Thanks RG.

Being from the west of the town I have clear recollection of the 17 and 18 as I used to take the latter to school sometimes, but only hazy ones of the 15 and 16.

[Henry]

 Must be in the late 1950's, I lived in North London.
 Remember the trolley buses in Wood Green, making their way up the hill to the
 bus garage. Then someone coming out from the garage with a long pole to 'disconnect'
 the wires, not sure how they then shunted the buses into the garage.

 Always wondered why they called them 'trolley buses' ?.

[Reading General]

Then someone coming out from the garage with a long pole to 'disconnect'
 the wires, not sure how they then shunted the buses into the garage.

 Always wondered why they called them 'trolley buses' ?.

Battery was available for short distances then for moving off wire but quite a lot of places used gravity to shunt them.

The trolley part comes from the trolley wheels that were on the top of the poles in the early days. This was changed to a skid, which is still in use today.

[Reading General]

An article from 2018 for a contract for 85 Solaris Trollino 12 rigid trolleybuses for the Lithuanian city of Kaunas puts the price at 30 million euros, which is about £300000 a vehicle.

https://www.greencarcongress.com/2018/10/20181008-trollino.html

The Trollino 12 is a rigid chassis which could probably take a Double Deck body for use in the U.K if necessary.

[eightonedee]

That's encouraging. The Lithuanian order looks to be quite a high spec vehicle. I see from Solaris's website that they are part of CAF^▸ (Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles, Spanish train manufacturer), who seem to be emerging as the Metropolitan Cammell of the modern world.

[Bmblbzzz]

You want trolley buses? How about this:


A double-artic trolley bus in St Gallen, Switzerland. From https://theconversation.com/dont-forget-buses-six-rules-for-improving-city-bus-services-94984

[Reading General]

The method, size and style of the St Gallen network is a great example of what places like Reading, Exeter and similar sized towns should be aiming for. Trolley lines and larger, less frequent stops on the high frequency corridors.

[Reading General]

double