Trolleybuses in Sanremo
{{Infobox trolleybus system
| color =
| name = Sanremo trolleybus system
| system =
| logo =
| image = Filobus 1600 e 29 - Sanremo 1991.jpg
| caption = Preserved historical trolleybus 29 and an active trolleybus in the city centre in 1991
| locale = Sanremo, Liguria, Italy
| open = {{Start date|1942|04|21|df=y}}
| close = {{End date|2024|02}} (decision not to reopen; trolleybus service had last operated circa August 2021)
| status =
| routes = 3 (of which one last operated in 2002)
| owner =
| operator = 1942–1983: La Società Trasporti Elettrici Liguri
1983 to 2024: Riviera Trasporti
| el = 600 V DC parallel overhead lines
| depot =
| stock =
| single_track_length =
| double_track_length =
| total_track_length =
| route_length = {{convert|28.5|km|mi||abbr=on}}
| pass_year =
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| map =
| map_state =
| website = http://www.rivieratrasporti.it/ Riviera Trasporti {{in lang|it}}
}}
The Sanremo trolleybus system or San Remo trolleybus system ({{langx|it|Rete filoviaria di Sanremo}}), also known as the Italian Riviera trolleybus (Italian: {{lang|it|Filovia della Riviera dei Fiori}}), operated from 1942 to 2021 and was focused on the town and comune of Sanremo, in the region of Liguria, northwestern Italy.
Opened in 1942 and extended in two stages by 1951, the system consisted of three routes operating along different portions of a single {{convert|28.5|km|mi|adj=mid|-long|abbr=on}}{{cite book |title=Giro d'Italia in filobus |trans-title=Tour of Italy by Trolleybus |last1=Gregoris |first1=Paolo |last2=Rizzoli |first2=Francesco |last3=Serra |first3=Claudio |year=2003 |publisher=Calosci Editore |location=Cortona |language=Italian |isbn=88-7785-193-7 |pages=36, 59–63 }}{{cite book |title=Scintille tra i fiori: Storia illustrata del trasporto pubblico in provincia di Imperia |trans-title=Sparks Among the Flowers: An Illustrated History of Public Transport in the Province of Imperia |last1=Gregoris |first1=Paolo |last2=Serra |first2=Claudio |year=1998 |publisher=Calosci Editore |location=Cortona |language=Italian |isbn=88-7785-146-5 |pages=96, 141 }} corridor, linking the coastal towns of Ventimiglia and Taggia. The system formally closed in 2024, when, during a suspension of all trolleybus service that had lasted since mid-2021, operator Riviera Trasporti decided to make the suspension a permanent closure and began dismantling of the overhead wires.
History
The trolleybus system on the Italian Riviera was built to replace two interurban tramways, the Taggia–Ospedaletti tramway and the Bordighera–Ventimiglia tramway. The new trolleybuses, unlike the trams, were also able to cope with the steep climbs between Ospedaletti and Bordighera.
File:Filobus 1800 - Sanremo.JPG Trollino low-floor vehicles built in 2008.]]
The first trolleybus route, from Sanremo to Ospedaletti (9.15 km), was inaugurated on 21 April 1942, followed on 1 February 1948 by the second line (Sanremo–Taggia), and in 1951 by the Ospedaletti–Ventimiglia extension. The Sanremo–Taggia and Sanremo–Ventimiglia routes were designated as lines T and V, respectively. A third route, serving the urban area of Sanremo only and using the overhead wires already in place for lines T and V, began operation in 1958, designated line U. Route V was about 18 km long, route T 10 km (originally) and route U 5.75 km.
The trolleybus system was owned and operated by La Società Trasporti Elettrici Liguri (STEL) until 1983, when Riviera Trasporti SpA took over.{{rp|36}}
With the entry into service of new Iveco trolleybuses in 1984, urban route U was renumbered 20, and the Iveco vehicles as well as new Menarini trolleybuses delivered in 1988 displayed the route number as 20 on that service.Trolleybus Magazine No. 251 (September–October 2003), p. 110. However, with new Breda trolleybuses delivered in 1991, RT reverted to displaying the route as "U". The earlier, 1980s-built trolleybuses continued, concurrently, to show the route number as 20, until they were withdrawn or fitted with new destination signs, after which all trolleybuses displayed "U" on that service.Trolleybus Magazine No. 281 (September–October 2008), p. 112.
On 20 December 2001, a {{convert|700|m|ft|adj=on}} branch was opened on line T to serve the then-new Taggia-Arma railway station.Trolleybus Magazine No. 242 (March–April 2002), p. 43. National Trolleybus Association (UK). {{ISSN|0266-7452}}. However, it was used for only a few months. In March 2002, line T service was converted indefinitely to motorbuses, due to roadworks.Trolleybus Magazine No. 244 (July–August 2002), p. 91. A succession of other road projects repeatedly delayed the reinstatement of trolleybus service, and ultimately trolleybus service never resumed on line T.Trolleybus Magazine No. 375 (May–June 2024), p. 125. National Trolleybus Association (UK). {{ISSN|0266-7452}}.
By the late 2010s, trolleybus operation had become intermittent, particularly on Ventimiglia route V, with several suspensions (with buses covering all service on the two remaining trolleybus routes, U and V). In February 2024, it was decided to close the system, and work to dismantle the overhead wires began.{{cite news |url=https://www.sanremonews.it/2024/02/29/leggi-notizia/argomenti/politica-1/articolo/dismissione-della-linea-filoviaria-indipendenza-forse-ci-sono-ancora-i-termini-per-ripensarci.html |title=Dismissione della linea filoviaria: Indipendenza 'Forse ci sono ancora i termini per ripensarci' |trans-title=Decommissioning of the trolleybus line; [leader of the organization known as] Indipendenza: 'Perhaps there is still time to reconsider' |date=29 February 2024 |language=it |access-date=2024-06-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240602100123/https://www.sanremonews.it/2024/02/29/leggi-notizia/argomenti/politica-1/articolo/dismissione-della-linea-filoviaria-indipendenza-forse-ci-sono-ancora-i-termini-per-ripensarci.html |archive-date=2 June 2024 |url-status=live}}{{Cite web|last=Budach|first=Dirk|url=https://www.urban-transport-magazine.com/en/the-end-no-more-trolleybuses-in-sanremo/ |title=The end: No more trolleybuses in Sanremo |website=Urban Transport Magazine |date=1 June 2024 |language=en |access-date=2024-06-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240602100127/https://www.urban-transport-magazine.com/en/the-end-no-more-trolleybuses-in-sanremo/ |archive-date=2 June 2024|url-status=live}} Trolleybuses last operated in service around August 2021, on route U, and probably not since 2019 on the Ventimiglia route.
Routes
File:Filobus 29 - Panorama - 1988.jpg
Three services were operated along the single corridor comprising the Sanremo trolleybus system. They were:
- T Sanremo (bus station) ↔ Taggia (railway station) (last operated in 2002)
- U Sanremo urban service (La Brezza ↔ Villa Helios)
- V Sanremo (bus station) ↔ Ventimiglia (Piazza Costituente)
See also
{{portal|Transport|Italy}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
{{commons category|Trolleybuses in Sanremo}}
- [http://www.rivieratrasporti.it/AboutRT.asp Profilo e storia della Riviera Trasporti] (Profile and history of Riviera Trasporti). Riviera Trasporti. {{in lang|it}}
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20110715082307/http://www.photorail.com/phr0/tram/altre%20reti/filobussanremo.htm Images of the Italian Riviera trolleybus system, at photorail.com]
- [http://www.railfaneurope.net/pix/it/trolleybus/San_Remo/pix.html Images of the Italian Riviera trolleybus system, at railfaneurope.net]
- http://ymtram.mashke.org/italy/san_remo/ A detailed website on Ventimiglia - San Remo - Taggia Interurban Trolleybus and (former) Tram Network
{{Urban public transport in Italy}}