Oleg Bodnya

Trolleybus Trains

Group of authors:

Trolleybus Trains

This book is dedicated to trolleybus trains, literally coupled pairs of trolleybuses operating in multiple. The idea was borrowed (with certain modifications) from tramway practice. These unique vehicles first appeared in Kyiv in 1966 and quickly became popular due to their increased capacity and relatively simple design. In total, from 1966 to 1994, more than 820 units were assembled, based on six different trolleybus models, including prototypes. The operation of coupled pairs was found in a total of 29 cities in the USSR, as well as in Sofia (Bulgaria) but ceased at the end of 2013.

The main difference between trolleybuses operating in coupled pairs, and the more common arrangement of trolleybuses towing an unpowered trailer, was that both vehicles were motorised and worked synchronously. The reason for their introduction lay in the planned economy of the Soviet Union, which aimed as far as possible for the mass production of identical models. Coupled pairs were a way of compensating for the lack of high capacity articulated trolleybuses, which were not produced in the USSR until the second half of the 1980s.

This book describes experiments with combining trolleybuses in coupled pairs (as well as trolleybus operation with trailers), the people concerned with the origins of this innovation, the gradual dissemination of it, and the development of mass assembly of coupled pairs. The most common models used for this purpose were Škoda 9Tr and ZiU-682 trolleybuses. There is also information about coupled trolleybuses MTB-82D, Kyiv-2, Kyiv–4 and the Czechoslovak trolleybus train Škoda TV-14Tr, released in a single copy.

Trolleybus Trains

Trolleybus Trains

Trolleybus Trains

For the first time, more than 150 photos of trolleybus trains have been collected under one cover, including pictures from the archives of the St. Petersburg State Unitary Enterprise Gorelectrotrans and famous transport fans. Especially for the book, detailed statistics on all known trolleybus trains have been prepared: the number of trains operating in a each city, periods of testing or operation, fleet numbers and main routes.

Trolleybus Trains

Trolleybus Trains

Trolleybus Trains

Trolleybus Trains

Trolleybus Trains

Detailed graphic sketches of trolleybus trains with the main technical characteristics and a brief historical reference about the trolleybus models are given in appendixes.

Trolleybus Trains

The book is made in an already traditional design, leading its history from 'Atlas of Urban Electric Transport In the Russian Federation'. The information collected in the publication is relevant as of December 2021.