Information AboutTrolleybus |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT TROLLEYBUS | |
| types of buses | |
| trolleybuses | |
| trolleybus transport | |
| electric buses | |
|
Solaris trolleybus in Landskrona , Sweden .]] A trolleybus (also known as '''trolley Bus ''', '''trolley coach''', '''trackless trolley''', '''trackless tram''' or simply '''trolley''') is an Electric Bus powered by two overhead wires, from which it draws Electricity using two Trolley Pole s. Two poles are required in order to accommodate the return current, which cannot pass to the ground as in the case of an electric Tram (also called a streetcar) since trolleybuses use rubber Tire s, rather than steel wheels on rail. There are trolleybuses in many cities around the world. BACKGROUND ", the world's first trolleybus, in Berlin , Germany , 1882 ]] trolleybus near Harvard Square , Cambridge, Massachusetts]] The history of the trolleybus dates back to 29 April 1882 , when Dr. Ernst Werner Von Siemens ran his " Elektromote " in a Berlin suburb. This experimental demonstration continued until 13 June 1882 , after which there was little progress in Europe, although separate experiments were conducted in the USA. The next development was when Lombard Gérin operated an experimental line at the Paris Exhibition Of 1900 after four years of trials. Max Schiemann made the biggest step when on 10 July 1901 the world's first passenger-carrying trolleybus operated at Bielathal (near Dresden ) in Germany . Schiemann built and operated the Bielathal system, and is credited with developing the under-running trolley current collection system, with two horizontally parallel overhead wires and rigid trolleypoles spring-loaded to hold them up to the wires. Although the Bielathal system only operated until 1904, Schiemann had developed what is now recognised as the standard trolleybus current collection system. In the early days, however, there were a few different methods of current collection being developed. The Cedes-Stoll system, designed by Carl Stoll, was once operated near Dresden between 1902 and 1904, and in Vienna . The Lloyd-Köhler or Bremen system was tried out in Bremen , and the Filovia was demonstrated near Milan . Leeds and Bradford became the first cities to operate passenger-carrying trolleybuses in the UK on 20 June 1911 . Bradford was also the last to operate trolleybuses in the UK, the system closing on 26 March 1972 . The last rear entrance trolleybus in Britain was also in Bradford and is now owned by the Bradford Trolleybus Association . Birmingham was the first to replace a tram route with trolleybuses, while Wolverhampton under the direction of Charles Owen Silvers was responsible for turning the "trackless tram" into the trolleybus. There were 50 trolleybus operations in the UK in total, London 's being the largest. By the time trolleybuses arrived in Britain in 1911, the Schiemann system was well established and was the most common, although the short-lived Stockport operation used the Lloyd-Kölher system and Keighley used the Cedes-Stoll system. In the USA, some cities, led by the Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit Corporation (BMT—New York), subscribed to the All-four concept of using buses, trolleybuses, Tram s (in U.S. called Streetcar s, Trolleys or Light Rail ) and Rapid Transit subway and/or elevated lines ( Metro s), as appropriate, for routes ranging from lightly-used to the heaviest trunk line. Buses and trolleybuses in particular were seen as entry systems that could later be upgraded to rail as appropriate. Although the BMT in Brooklyn built only one trolleybus line, other cities, notably San Francisco, California and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania , built larger systems and still maintain "all-four". If one includes cable cars as another mode, San Francisco could be called "all-five," as its Cable Cars provide general Transportation as well as being a tourist attraction. A number of trolleybus lines in the United States came into existence when a tracked trolley/tram route did not have sufficient ridership to warrant track maintenance or reconstruction. In a similar manner, a proposed tram scheme in Leeds, United Kindom, has now been changed to a trolleybus scheme to cut costs {Link without Title} . Current use in the United States
ADVANTAGES in San Francisco .]] Solaris Trollino 12T in Gdynia , Poland ]] Trolleybuses are particularly advantageous on hilly routes, as Electric power is more effective than Diesel power for climbing steep hills, and trolleybuses' Rubber Tire s have better Adhesion than streetcars' steel wheels on steel rails. San Francisco and Seattle , USA, both very hilly places, use trolleybuses. Given this acceleration and braking performance, trolleybuses can easily outperform diesel powered buses on flat stretches as well. Unlike rail vehicles (where side tracks are not available), an out of service vehicle can be removed to the side of the roadway and its trolleys disconnected, allowing operational vehicles to pass. Additionally, because they are not tracked, trolleybuses can pull over to the curb as a diesel bus does, eliminating the need for boarding islands in the street. Philadelphia has used trolleybuses (known as trackless trolleys) and SEPTA has ordered a new fleet for three of its five routes so trackless trolley service can be restored in 2008. Like other Electric Vehicle s, trolleybuses are often seen as more environmentally friendly than Fossil Fuel or Hydrocarbon -based vehicles ( Gasoline , Diesel , Alcohol , etc.), but the power is not "free", having instead to be produced at centralised Power Plant s, with attendant transmission losses. On the other hand, centrally-produced power has the advantage of being more efficient, not bound to a specific fuel source and more amenable to pollution-control as a single-source supply than are individual vehicles with their own engines that exhaust noxious gases and energy whilst braking, a process known as Regenerative Braking . Also, unlike buses or trams, trolleybuses are almost silent, lacking the noise of a diesel engine or wheels on rails. Such noise as there is tends to emanate from auxiliary systems such as power steering pumps and air conditioning. Early trolleybuses without these systems were even quieter, and in the UK at least were often referred to as the "Silent Service". The quietness did have its disadvantages though, with quite a number of pedestrians falling victim to what was also known as "the Silent Death". Trolleybuses are specially favoured in locations where Hydropower is abundant and cheap. Examples of this are the extensive trolleybus systems in Vancouver , British Columbia , Canada and Seattle , Washington , USA. Seattle benefits doubly, with steep gradients near the Downtown Waterfront and on Queen Anne , First , and Capitol Hill s. Trolleybuses are used extensively in large European cities such as Athens , Bratislava , Bucharest , Budapest , Lyon , Moscow , Saint Petersburg , Sofia , Kiev , Belgrade , as well as smaller ones, like Arnhem , Ghent , Lausanne , Luzern , Zürich , Salzburg , Limoges , Nancy , Geneva , Presov , Cluj-Napoca , Szeged , Riga , Tallinn and Vilnius , and Gdynia . Cities, especially those built on hills, have chosen trolleybuses over diesel buses because the electric motor can produce much more torque than a diesel engine. Moreover, the electric motor can be temporarily "overpowered", that is, more than the normal power can be obtained for a short period of time, e.g. when climbing a steep hill. Also, realising the advantages of these Zero-emission Vehicle s, some other European cities have started to expand their systems again. Other cities such as Lecce will introduce new trolleybus systems. In Cambridge, Massachusetts , the trolleybus system has survived because of the situation at Harvard Station , which holds an underground tunnel that was once used for streetcars. Despite a willingness to use buses, the tunnel at the time required left-side doors, and had fume concerns. Now, buses do run in the tunnel. However, the trolleybuses remain due to popular support. Some have suggested that the trolleybus will become obsolete in a future Hydrogen Economy . However, direct electric transmission, as used in trolleybuses, is far more efficient (by a factor of two or more) than conversion of energy into hydrogen, transportation and storage of the hydrogen and its conversion back into electricity by fuel cells. China is experimenting with a new form of electric bus that runs without powerlines. This bus runs on power stored in large onboard Supercapacitor s, which are quickly recharged at bus stops. Prototypes were being tested in Shanghai in early 2005 . DISADVANTAGES .]] With the introduction of hybrid designs the trolleybus is no longer tied to its overhead trolley wires. Re-routings, temporary or permanent, are not usually readily available outside of "downtown" areas where the buses may be re-routed via adjacent business area streets where other trolleybus routes operate. Dewirements sometimes occur, leaving the bus stranded without power, although these events are relatively rare on systems with well-maintained overhead wire, hangers, fittings and "contact shoes." Some systems, such as Muni in San Francisco, TransLink in Vancouver , as well as Beijing 's trolleybus operator, have circumvented this problem by installing battery packs on their trolleybuses to allow them to drive for short distances away from the wires. Also Supercapacitor s may be used to drive small distances without connections to the grid. Boston is using Dual-mode Bus es on its new Silver Line that run on overhead electricity on a fixed right of way and then transition to city streets using Diesel power. In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania , whose five trolleybus lines (trackless trolley locally preferred) have been suspended for partial reconstruction, new trolleybuses on order will also have a means of operating for short distances off the overhead wires through the use of a small diesel engine. In Athens , Greece, which has an extensive trolleybus system, in 2003-2004 all trolleybuses were replaced with new vehicles that are equipped with a diesel engine that allows them to run off-line for a considerable distance. Limitations in the creation of power lines also limits the use of trolleybuses and further restrictions may also apply where when super-tall trucks need to use a route, preventing the installation of overhead lines. Nevertheless the installation is quicker and cheaper than a tramways system. Trolleybuses can pass one another in regular service, if two separate sets of wires with a switch are provided. Some trolleybus systems have been criticized for aesthetic reasons, with city residents complaining that the jumble of overhead wires was unsightly. {Link without Title} Trolleybuses were generally implemented only when they confer one of the advantages listed above, because of the high cost of their infrastructure compared to the standard bus. With increasing diesel costs and particle and NOx problems in cities, trolleybuses may yet be seen as the best suited relief for medium sized cities. While at one time many cities operated this Mode Of Transport , it is on average uncommon today in North America, though it is still a common form of transport in many European, Russian, Brazilian and Chinese cities, generally occupying the niche between street railways and diesel-powered buses. |
Image:CatenaryswitchjpgIndicator For A Wire Switch Pardubice
| "http://wwwgreenfleetinfo" class="copylinks" target="_blank">{Link without Title} |
|
Image:Skoda-9Tr No7702 In Simferopol, UkrainejpgŠkoda 9 Tr Trolleybus In
| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/information/entry/Simferopol" class="copylinks">Simferopol , Ukraine |
|
Image:Public Transfer TrolleyBus BratislavajpgTrolleybus Public Transfer In
| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/information/entry/Bratislava" class="copylinks">Bratislava , Slovakia |
|
Image:DsolarisjpgSolaris Ganz Trollino Type Low-floor Trolley In
| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/information/entry/Debrecen" class="copylinks">Debrecen , Hungary |
|
Image:Trolleybus ArnhemjpgAn
| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/information/entry/articulated_bus" class="copylinks">Articulated trolleybus in Arnhem , Netherlands |
|
Image:Vancouver Trolley2101 050720jpgVancouver's Third Generation Of Trolleybuses (
| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/information/entry/New_Flyer" class="copylinks">New Flyer / Vossloh Kiepe ) |
|
Image:Us-san-francisco-trolleybusjpg
| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/information/entry/San_Francisco_Municipal_Railway" class="copylinks">Muni Trolleybus crossing tracks of the San Francisco Cable Car System |
|
Image:Trolejbus Solaris Trollino12tjpg
| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/information/entry/Poland" class="copylinks">Polish Solaris Trollino 12T in Gdynia , Poland |
|
Image:Lublin Trolleybus 3jpg
| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/information/entry/Jelcz_PR_110_E" class="copylinks">Jelcz PR 110 E near The Cracow Gate in Lublin , Poland |
|
Image:Ziu5 NnjpgVintage
| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/information/entry/ZiU-5" class="copylinks">ZiU-5 trolleybus on the streets of Nizhny Novgorod , Russia |
|
Image:CJWG110K3jpgChangjiang-Flexible
| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/information/entry/CJWG110K" class="copylinks">CJWG110K trolleybus No156 on the raining streets of Hangzhou , China |
|
Image:JKD1011JPG
| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/information/entry/CNHTC" class="copylinks">CNHTC JK6120D trolleybus in Jinan , China |
|
Image:Beo Trolejbus 00jpgTrolleybus In
| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/information/entry/Belgrade" class="copylinks">Belgrade , Serbia |
|
Image:Seattle-articulated-trolley-busjpgArticulated Trolleybus In
| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/information/entry/Seattle" class="copylinks">Seattle , Washington |
|
Image:BCLM Wallsall Trolleybusjpg Historic British Trolleybus At The
| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/information/entry/Black_Country_Living_Museum" class="copylinks">Black Country Living Museum |
|
Image:Trolebus RosariojpgTrolleybus In
| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/information/entry/Rosario" class="copylinks">Rosario , Argentina |
|
Image:TrolebusemtuJPGTrolleybus From EMTU –
| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/information/entry/São_Paulo" class="copylinks">São Paulo's Suburban Services in São Bernardo Do Campo , Brazil |
|
Image:Trólebus Mafersa - Santos - 2005 IjpgTrolleybus In
| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/information/entry/Santos" class="copylinks">Santos , Brazil |
|
| "http://membersshawca/dearmond/" class="copylinks" target="_blank">The Electric Trolleybus Web Site <!-- — Users of old computers beware: The site is extremely graphics-intensive, as it consists of one page filled with numerous large photos that are thumbnailed with codeCOMMENT by Mardus: I removed this part of text, temporarily, as the site appears to be reorganised as of 23122005--> |
|
|
|