Trolleybuses in Chișinău

Chișinău trolleybus system

Škoda 14Tr on the Piața Marii Adunări Naționale
Operation
Locale Chișinău, Moldova
Open 1949 (1949)
Status Open
Routes 24
Operator(s) Regia Transport Electric Chișinău (RTEC)
Infrastructure
Electrification 600 V DC
Statistics
Route length 246 km (153 mi)
Overview
Chisinau trolleybus network map, 2013.
Website RTEC (Romanian)

The Chișinău trolleybus system forms an important part of the public transport network in Chișinău, the capital of the Republic of Moldova. The system was created shortly after the end of the World War II to replace the old electric tram system that suffered extensive damage during the war.[1] Along with the network of minibuses known as rutieras, it forms the backbone of the Chișinău transport system, with the average daily ridership reaching 250 000 passengers per day.[2][3]

History

The history of the trolleybus network in Chișinău goes back to 1949 when the city council took the decision to introduce it as a substitute for the tram network that was heavily damaged during the World War II and could only be rebuilt to a limited extent. The first line connecting the Chişinău Railway Station with the University of Medicine ran along the Stephen the Great boulevard, where the former tram tracks were removed, and was served by six MTB-82D units. In 1959 the tram depot was transferred to serve the trolleybus system that comprised over 50 units at that time, and by 1961 trolleybuses had completely replaced the trams. The second and the third depots were introduced into service in 1966 and 1986, respectively.[1]

Lines

The trolleybus network consists of 22 lines covering all the city districts and the suburb of Durlești.[4]

Line Route
1 str. Bariera Sculeni – str. Sarmizegetusa connection with Chisinau railway station
2 bd. Traian – str. Pușkin circular route
3 șos. Balcani – str. Miorița
4 Grădina Botanică – str. Zelinski connection with Chisinau railway station
5 Trolleybus depot 2 – parcul "La izvor" connection with Chisinau railway station
7 A.B.A.-4 – str. 31 August 1989
8 bd. Traian – parcul "Alunelul" connection with Chisinau railway station
9 Schinoasa-2 – Autogara Nord connection with Autogara Nord (North bus station)

connection with Autogara Sud (South bus station)

10 str. Studenților – str. Miorița
13 str. Ion Dumeniuc – str. Dokuceaev connection with Autogara Nord (North bus station)
14 str. Studenților – șos. Balcani
16 Uzina de frigidere – str. 31 August 1989
17 Schinoasa 1 – Gara connection with Chisinau railway station

connection with Autogara Sud (South bus station)

20 Trolleybus depot 2 – str. Dokuceaev connection with Chisinau railway station

connection with Autogara Nord (North bus station)

21 Uzina de frigidere – șos. Balcani
22 șos. Balcani – Grădina Botanică
23 str. Ion Dumeniuc – parcul "La izvor"
24 str. Ion Dumeniuc – str. Mateevici
25 Școala nr. 4 – str. 31 August 1989
26 Școala nr. 4 – str. Ion Dumeniuc
28 or. Durlești – bd. Gagarin connection with Chisinau railway station
29 Universitatea Agrară – parcul "Ștefan cel Mare"

Fleet

AKSM-321 operating on the route 22.

The fleet consists mainly of the various modification of the Soviet-built ZiU-9 and the recently purchased low-floor vehicles AKSM-321 manufactured by Belkommunmash in Belarus (Chișinău is the third largest user of this model, after Minsk and Moscow). In addition, the network also operates a number of the Czech-produced Škoda 14Tr (popular with the drivers) and Ukrainian-built YuMZ-T2.[5]

Model Quantity
ZiU-9 150
AKSM-321 112
Škoda 14Tr 37
YuMZ-T2 20
ZiU-10 7
YuMZ-T1 4
VMZ-5298 3
AKSM-213 2
AKSM-32102 1
ZiU-682G-016 1

Payment system

Every vehicle has a fare collector who sells single-ride tickets valid for this particular ride only. Alternatively, once can purchase a monthly ticket, valid for a calendar month. A single-ride ticket costs 2 MDL, and the price of the monthly pass is 180 MDL.

References

  1. 1 2 "Chisinau trolleybus history".
  2. ↑ "Report of the Department of Public Transport".
  3. ↑ "The role of trolleybus in the Chisinau transport network".
  4. ↑ "Chisinau trolleybus timetable".
  5. ↑ "ГОРОДСКОЙ ЭЛЕКТРОТРАНСПОРТ совмещённый трамвайно-троллейбусный сайт".
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