Major upgrade and greening of the vehicle fleet: the Bratislava Transport Company (DPB) introduces new trams and articulated trolleybuses

Last year the Bratislava Transport Company (DPB) purchased a total of thirty new trams for Bratislava, twenty one-way and ten two-way trams, as well as fifty hybrid trolleybuses of all length ranges. The first one-way trams and a new hybrid articulated trolleybus with special airport equipment have already been delivered to the Jurajov dvor (Trnávka) depot. As both vehicles are prototypes, they will be put into service only after the necessary tests have been carried out.

Along with the expansion of tram and trolleybus transport, DPB is also modernising its vehicle fleet, adding gradually delivered trams and trolleybuses in the Bratislava colours with modern equipment, including powerful air conditioning or the latest information and safety systems. _ "With the current management of the transport company, it is now standard practice to introduce new means of transport. We are very happy about this, as public transport as a sustainable mode of transport is the right way to manage transport in Bratislava. The fact that we are modernising the vehicle fleet with new, safe, comfortable and environmentally friendly means of transport certainly contributes to increasing the popularity of public transport travel,"_ says Tatiana Kratochvílová, First Deputy Mayor.

"This year we demonstrate our position as innovative leader in public transport in Slovakia with thirty new trams for passengers in Bratislava, making a significant improvement in comfort thanks to their wheelchair accessibility and powerful air conditioning. The new hybrid trolleybuses give us the opportunity to transform some of the existing bus lines into more environmentally friendly trolleybus lines. At the same time, thanks to the dual propulsion system allowing part of the journey to take place outside of the trolleybus network, we are free to plan for transport or emergencies," says Martin Rybanský, DPB's Chair of the Board.

New one-way trams Other one-way trams will be running in Bratislava this autumn, now in a modified version of the Škoda ForCity Plus 29T3 with a length exceeding 32 metres. The bodywork of these twenty vehicles is more rigid, the front and rear bonnets have also been redesigned, and the lights have been replaced with full LED lights. In addition, the vehicles have been upgraded with a newer information system and coloured exterior banners. The vehicles are manufactured in the Czech Republic and are delivered to Bratislava by truck. They are supplied to the transport company by ŠKODA TRANSPORTATION, a.s. after a public procurement procedure financed by the Integrated Infrastructure Operational Programme (OPII).

Hybrid trolleybuses A brand-new addition to the streets of Bratislava will be twenty‐three units of 18-metre long trolleybuses Škoda 27 Tr with Solaris bodywork. These are hybrid vehicles,which means that they can run for part of the route off the overhead contact line. Unlike the hybrid trolleybuses in operation to date, there is a change in supplementary propulsion, with the diesel generator being replaced by batteries charged directly from the traction network. The vehicles are, therefore, emission-free and will allow the DPB to replace bus line 61, connecting the main station and the airport, with a trolleybus in the future. A device that enables the remote transmission of vehicle diagnostic data is also worth mentioning. These trolleybuses are manufactured for Bratislava by ŠKODA ELECTRIC, a.s., and this purchase is also financed by the European Union through the OPII. The purchase contract for the hybrid vehicles, which will help reduce the environmental impact of traffic, was signed by the DPB following the outcome of a public procurement process.

As these are wholly new types of vehicles, the trams and trolleybuses are subject to the homologation process, i.e. an approval process, during which the technical and driving properties are first tested without passengers. Trained staff will drive the vehicles for a prescribed number of journeys and kilometres. The first new tram could be put into service with passengers as early as mid-September, and the new trolleybuses will carry their first passengers in October/November of this year.