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Verkehrsbetriebe Luzern (VBL) (Lucerne Transit Agency) is the main provider of public transport in the Swiss city of Lucerne. It operates some 92 buses and 74 trolleybuses on 25 daytime routes, as well as 5 overnight services (known as Nachstern) and one funicular service.
VBL dates back to December 1899, when a tramway was opened in the city, which at the time had a population of around 30,000. This tramway was completed in 1903, when it reached 11.3 km in length. Over the period 1909–1936, the tramway was extended to the Emmenbrücke and Kriens areas. The late 1920s and early 1930s saw the first bus services being introduced to the city. Initial proposals for a trolleybus system in 1938 were rejected by the citizens of Lucerne, however further proposals in 1941 were met with a far more positive response, and the first line was opened between Lucerne station and Allmend. Trolleybuses gradually replaced trams in the city, and the tramway was finally closed in 1961. The Lucerne trolleybus system was upgraded in 1965/66 with the introduction of 14 new articulated trolleybuses. The 1970s revolutionised the way tickets were bought on the bus and trolleybus networks, with most now being purchased from roadside vending machines. In the 1980s several motorbus lines were converted to trolleybuses. The fleet was upgraded in 1985 with the purchase of 54 new vehicles. A new fare system was introduced in 1991, with the network being divided into various zones. In the same year, VBL took delivery of 4 new articulated trolleybuses and 6 articulated motorbuses. The start of the 21st century brought with it a large intake of new vehicles, with both motorbuses and trolleybuses being delivered. VBL now boasts a very modern fleet, with the Mercedes-Benz Citaro comprising a large portion of the bus fleet.
The VBL operates the recently reopened Gütschbahn funicular. [1]
The bus fleet has been modernised over the past few years, with the introduction of both rigid and articulated Mercedes-Benz Citaro vehicles, which have been placed into service at various points since 1998.
The current motor bus fleet is as follows:
The trolleybus fleet has also been modernised in recent years, including the arrival of the company's first bi-articulated trolleybuses in 2006. The non-articulated trolleybuses haul trailers (see next section) on some routes.
The current trolleybus fleet is as follows:
VBL buses and trolleybuses are now painted in a livery which is mainly white, with blue finish. Previously, the livery was the reverse of this, being mainly blue.
Nachstern is the name given to the network of night-time bus routes serving the city of Luzern, Switzerland and its surrounding areas. [2] Most of the routes are operated by VBL, although some are operated by other companies.
The first night-time route in Luzern was started in 1997 and operated between Luzern and Engelberg, although the Nachstern network itself was not launched until 2000, when lines N1/2/3/4 were introduced. Initially, lines N1/2 were operated by trolleybuses, however today all routes on the network are operated by diesel buses. The network has been extended gradually since 2003, and currently there are 12 lines on the network, operated by 6 companies. The network is sponsored by local radio station Radio Pilatus
| Number | Route | Operator |
|---|---|---|
| N1 | Luzern - Kriens - Obernau - Horw - Luzern | VBL |
| N2 | Luzern - Littau - Ruopigen - Emmenbrücke - Sprengi | VBL |
| N3 | Luzern - Ebikon - Buchrain - Perlen - Inwil | VBL |
| N4 | Luzern - Brüelstrasse - Büttenhalde - Lerchenbühl - Meggen - Adligenswil | VBL |
| N5 | Luzern - Littau - Malters - Schachen - Werthenstein - Wolhusen - Ebnet - Entlebuch - Hasle - Schüpfheim - Escholzmatt - Marbach - Schangnau | VBL, Postauto |
| N6 | Luzern - Sursee | VBL, Postauto |
| N7 | Luzern - Adligenswil - Udligenswil - Meierskappel | Postauto |
| N8 | Luzern - Sarnen - Giswil - Lungern | Postauto |
| N9 | Luzern - Hergiswil - Stansstad - Stans | Zentralbahn |
| N10 | Luzern - Küssnacht - Weggis - Vitznau - Gersau | Auto AG Schwyz |
| N11 | Luzern - Ruswil - Ettiswil - Willisau - Hutwil | Rottal Auto AG |
| N12 | Luzern - Rickenbach | Auto AG Rothenburg |
The following are the 80 municipalities of the canton of Lucerne, Switzerland.
Emmen is a village and municipality in the district of Hochdorf in the canton of Lucerne in Switzerland. The municipality Emmen consists of the village Emmen, the town Emmenbrücke, and several hamlets.
The Mercedes-Benz Citaro is a single-decker, rigid or articulated bus manufactured by Mercedes-Benz/EvoBus. Introduced in 1997, the Citaro is available in a range of configurations, and is in widespread use throughout Europe and parts of Asia, with more than 55,000 produced by December 2019.
Societatea de Transport București is one of the main public transit operators in Bucharest, Romania, owned by the Municipality of Bucharest. From 1990 to 2018, the company had a different legal status and was known as the Regia Autonomă de Transport București (RATB).
Mercedes-Benz has been producing buses since 1895 in Mannheim in Germany. Since 1995 Mercedes-Benz buses and coaches are known by the brand name of Daimler Buses, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Daimler Truck.
Blackpool Transport Services Limited is a bus and tram operator running within the boroughs of Blackpool and Fylde and into the surrounding area, including Fleetwood, Lytham St Annes, Poulton-le-Fylde, Cleveleys, Fleetwood and Preston. Blackpool Transport is owned by Blackpool Council.
Kriens is a city and a municipality in the district of Lucerne in the canton of Lucerne in Switzerland.
Horw is a municipality in the district of Lucerne in the canton of Lucerne in Switzerland.
Société de Transports de l'Agglomération Stéphanoise, or STAS operates a public transport network and infrastructure in and around Saint-Étienne. Its responsibility is to provide tramway, trolleybus and bus service in the fifty-three communes of the Saint-Étienne agglomeration.
AS Sporveisbussene is a bus company that operates about 75% of the routes in Oslo, Norway. The company was created in 1997 when the then Oslo Sporveier was reorganised. It is now a subsidiary of Kollektivtransportproduksjon, a municipal company responsible for operating public transport in Oslo. In 2003 the Oslo City Council decided that bus transport in Oslo was to be based on public service obligation contracts, and Sporveisbussene has steadily lost its routes to these contracts. Instead, Sporveisbussene has established a subsidiary, Nexus Trafikk, that can compete in the competitions, and has won many of them. The company also operates the express coaches branded Lavprisekspressen.
The Thessaloniki Urban Transport Organisation, abbreviated OASTH, is a mass transport company operating in Thessaloniki, Greece.
Articulated buses, colloquially known as "bendy buses", were rarely used in the United Kingdom compared to other countries, until the turn of the millennium. This was due to a preference for the double-decker bus for use on high capacity routes. In June 2006, there were over 500 articulated buses in the United Kingdom, although they were still heavily outnumbered by double deckers. The majority of this fleet was used in London, although these buses would be withdrawn by end of 2011.
Lucerne railway station is a major hub of the rail network of Switzerland, in the city of Lucerne in the canton of Lucerne. It is a terminal station serving domestic and international traffic on several rail lines, and is situated in a city centre and waterfront location on the south side of Lake Lucerne.
The Solingen trolleybus, also known locally as Stangentaxi, serves the city of Solingen, in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
The Geneva trolleybus system forms part of the public transport network in Geneva, Switzerland. It is the second largest trolleybus system in Switzerland, after the Lausanne system.
The Lucerne trolleybus system forms part of the public transport network of Lucerne, which is the capital city of the canton of Lucerne, Switzerland. Opened in 1941, the system had replaced the Lucerne tramway network by 1961.
The Bern trolleybus system is part of the public transport network of Bern, the capital city of Switzerland. Opened in 1940, it combines with the Bern S-Bahn, the Bern tramway network and Bern's urban motorbus network to form an integrated all-four style scheme.
The Zurich trolleybus system is part of the public transport network of Zurich, Switzerland. Opened in 1939, it combines the Zurich S-Bahn, the Zurich tramway network and Zurich's urban motorbus network to form an integrated all-four style scheme.
The Schaffhausen trolleybus system is part of the public transport network of Schaffhausen, capital city of the canton of Schaffhausen, Switzerland, and the adjacent town of Neuhausen am Rheinfall in the same canton. It is also Switzerland's youngest and smallest such system. Its route, designated as line 1, connects among others Schaffhausen railway station with the Rhine Falls.
The Evangelical Reformed Church of the Canton of Lucerne, or in German the Evangelisch-Reformierte Kirche des Kantons Luzern, is a Reformed state church in the Canton of Lucerne, Switzerland.
