Prague was the first city in Czechoslovakia to introduce modern trolleybuses. Only a few other trolleybus systems existed previously in the Czech landsin České Velenice (Gmünd) and České Budějoviceusing the same overhead system as the Electromote, the predecessor of all trolleybuses.
Trolleybuses operated in Prague during two separate periods. The first trolleybus system was opened in 1936 and it lasted until 1972, when it was closed. After precisely 45 years, a new trolleybus system was opened in Prague in 2017. The network is a part of the Prague Integrated Transport, the city's integrated public transport system.
Existing network At present, 2 trolleybus lines are in operation in Prague. The expected starting date of the first line of the second system was in the first quarter of 2023, however due to delays in the delivery of the vehicles caused by missing hardware pieces for the electric part and long optimizations of their replacements, the first line (58 - replacing bus line 140) was only started fully operating on February 1, 2024. The vehicles kept encountering problems so were often accompanied by buses, however the number of buses has slowly reduced. As only 15 vehicles for this line are available and the requirement may reach up to 14 at peak hours, it is possible that if an accident happens or some issue with more vehicles occurs, regular diesel buses will still need to jump in for help.
Another line was opened shortly after the first one (59 - replacing bus line 119) on March 6, 2024, when at around 3pm started replacing the bus line operating to the Prague's Airport.
Many more lines are currently in preparation. The closes is current bus line 137 (to become line 52). The construction of its wired network should start in 2024 and should be a great benefit to locals as just like with line 58 it runs in a hilly terrain. Coincidentally both lines 58 and 52 were already operated by trolleybuses in the first trolleybus era. +A list of Prague's trolleybus lines in its second systemLine numberOperational detailsDatesTrolleybusOriginal busVehiclesLine lengthWired percentageStart pointEnd pointConstructionStart date58140SOR TNS 1811,5 km50%PalmovkaČakovice2017 Q3, 2021 Q4, 2022February 1, 202459119Škoda-Solaris 24m8 km50%Nádraží VeleslavínPrague Airport2023March 6, 202451131SOR TNS 12Bozankaya SNG 12T6 km63%BořislavkaHradčanská2025 - 2026June 26, 202652137SOR TNS 12Bozankaya SNG 12T3 km73%(1)Na KnížecíU Waltrovky2024 - 2026April 1, 202653176SOR TNS 12Bozankaya SNG 12T5 km70%Karlovo náměstíStadion Strahov2025 - 2026June 26, 20265619119.5 km78%Na KnížecíPrague Airport6120122 km58%Nádraží HolešoviceČerný Most1424 kmNové ButoviceVelká Ohrada2026 - 20276417412 kmVypichNádraží Řeporyje2026 - 2027661845 kmVypichVelká Ohrada2026 - 20275522513 kmVelká OhradaNové Vokovice2026 - 2027621124 – 6 kmNádraží HolešovicePodhoří2027 - 20285313414,5 kmPodolská vodárnaDvorce2027 - 20285713626 kmSídliště ČakoviceJižní Město2027 - 20285715014 kmNa BeránkuŽelivského2027 - 2028 1) Some trips of this line continue 1,5 km further from U Waltrovky to Jinonice. 48% of this route variation is wired. +A list of interurban trolleybus lines connecting Prague and its neighborsLine numberOperational detailsDatesTrolleybusOriginal busVehiclesLine lengthWired percentageStart pointEnd pointConstructionExpected starting date?37522 km55%ČeskomoravskáBrandýs nad Labem-Stará Boleslav, railway station2023+2025
History
First system The first system was opened on 28 September 1936 with a 3.5 km-long line. After World War II, the system expanded rapidly, and trolleybuses appeared in the city center, as well as in the suburban areas and big housing developments. The network reached its maximum length of 56.876 km in March 1959. However, by 1959, the first and oldest trolleybus line had already closed. Most sections which were under construction at that time were not finished, and those in operation were slowly replaced with diesel buses.
After 1960, no new trolleybuses were purchased and vehicles started becoming obsolete. Many streets were being reconstructed, there was not enough electricity available to run the network, and diesel fuel was inexpensive, which all contributed to the decision to begin replacing trolleybuses with buses, leading ultimately to the final closure of the Prague trolleybus system on 16 October 1972.
Fleet In 1936, the following Czech-made vehicles started operating on the Prague trolleybus system: Škoda 1Tr (1 prototype) Tatra T 86 (1 prototype + 5) Praga TOT (1 prototype + 11)
In 1938 and 1939, two Škoda 2Tr trolleybuses were delivered.
A Tatra T400 began operating in Prague in 1948. In total, there were 136 new vehicles of that type, as well as eight second-hand vehicles from Most, purchased and running in Prague. New vehicles were supplied in various series up to 1955, based on the previous experience with the vehicles, as well as to utilize new technology.
In 1958, a prototype of the Tatra T401 model was added to Prague's trolleybus fleet but it only lasted three years in operation. The performance and features of the Tatra T401 were tested during the first two years of operation, after which it was decided that the Škoda Works, which produced smaller trolleybuses, would take over all trolleybus production in Czechoslovakia, and the Tatra company stopped producing trolleybuses.
Finally, in 1960, the last 35 Škoda 8Tr trolleybuses were purchased for Prague.
Tatra T400 and Škoda 8Tr vehicles were running in the city until the end of trolleybus operation in 1972.
Attempts to re-open the system in the 1980s and early 1990s Plans to restore trolleybus network in Prague started appearing in 1979. Soon after the political revolution of 1989, Prague's public transport company even delegated money and people to look into the reinstatement of the trolleybus network. A prototype of a new trolleybus model, the Škoda 17Tr, was developed and produced in Prague. After 1992, however, all plans to restore the network were dropped.
Second system After precisely 45 years, on 15 October 2017, a new trolleybus line was opened in Prague. The system was equipped with overhead wires along less than 1 km of the route's length and required trolleybuses with additional batteries, capable of operating away from the wires, along other parts of the route. The goal of that experimental project was to prove the viability of trolleybuses in Prague, as well as demonstrating how to minimize the cost of building the infrastructure. Overhead wires have been installed along Prosecká Street, which features a steep gradient. That will prevent a fast battery drain for vehicles running uphill as well as charging their batteries for the rest of their journey outside of the wired portion of the route. In winter, the overhead power supply also allowed for a tank of water to be heated for interior heating.
Prior to constructing a new trolleybus network, Prague's public transport company had been trying out battery-powered buses on various routes. Starting in 2014, the tests revealed that battery-powered vehicles tended to be very problematic on steep hills typical of Prague's landscape. The idea of a trolleybus network came as a direct response to the major problems with the battery-powered vehicles, aiming to combine the best attributes of both worlds.
The testing period was to take about a year, and once finished it was hoped that the network would be extended and new articulated trolleybuses with additional batteries purchased.
The first vehicle to operate on the line was a Czech-made SOR TNB 12 AcuMario, but it was a prototype, as it was the first vehicle to be equipped with additional batteries.
Opening ceremony To commemorate 45 years since the last trolleybus operated in Prague, as well as the opening of the new line, apublic event was held on 15 October 2017, in which the new SOR TNB 12 trolleybus was used. It was accompanied by a new SOR ENS 12 electric bus and an historic Tatra T400 vehicle from the Prague's public transport museum collection. Spectators could see all three vehicles in operation, as well as take a free ride.
Regular operation On 1 July 2018, Prague's Public Transport Company was to begin regular operation on a newly built line. The line will continue to have the number 58 and will follow the same route as in the preceding testing stage, that is, in between metro stations Palmovka and Letňany. Initially only 1 vehicle Škoda 30 Tr will be operated on the line running at 60-minute intervals.
One year of operation anniversary
On 14 October 2018, a second event since the opening of the new trolleybus system was organised. It took place in order to commemorate both the 46th anniversary of the trolleybus system shutdown in Prague, as well as to celebrate the anniversary of the current system. Unlike the opening ceremony in 2017, rides on an historic vehicle were not continuous but took place only five times. Visitors who wanted to take a ride also needed to purchase tickets when entering the vehicle. Each trip cost 35 CZK per person, but small children were free if accompanied by an adult. The historic vehicle was a smaller Škoda 8Tr, and only about 40 people were allowed to travel at a time. Every paying passenger was given a stamped paper ticket, and a postcard with a picture of Škoda 8Tr when it was still in regular operation.
Each ride started at the bottom of the hill, near the Kundratka stop, right at the beginning of the wired section, then took approximately a kilometre up the hill. Passengers were required to leave the vehicle at the Kelerka stop at the end of the wired section. The trolleybus was then towed using a tractor all the way to Letňany roundabout, supposedly the nearest safe place to turn the towed trolleybus, and back to the Kelerka stop to take passengers back to the bottom section of the line at the Kundratka stop. Škoda 8Tr was then towed again to allow for a new ride up. Every round trip took approximately 20 minutes, but only a small portion of it consisted of the actual ride, with about 15 minutes being required for the off-wire manoeuvres. People who didn't take the ride stood around the wired section to have a look and take photos and videos of the running attraction.
Fleet +Vehicle typeCountIn operationNoteImageSOR TNB 12 AcuMario1October 9, 2017 - May 27, 2018 Borrowed on October 9, 2017, for the period of one year.
This vehicle is a prototype as it is equipped with additional batteries.
The electric components were manufactured by Rail Electronics CZ.Škoda 30Tr1April 17, 2018 - November 12, 2019Borrowed on April 17, 2018, for the period of one year. This period was however later extended to November 2019.
This vehicle is a prototype as it is equipped with additional batteries.
The electric components were manufactured by Škoda Electric.Škoda 27Tr1March 25, 2019 - April 14, 2019 This vehicle is in ownership of the public transport company in Plzeň. Although belonging to public transport company in Plzeň and testing being done in Prague, it was loaned to Škoda Electric instead of the public transport company in Prague. Škoda borrowed the vehicle for a short period of time (from March 24, 2019, to April 15, 2019) to test an articulated trolleybus vehicle in Prague's conditions. The total cost Škoda has to pay for this is 75 000 Kč in total (without VAT). It was a completely new vehicle no more than a week old when sent to Prague.