Trolleybus service planned to revive

Recently, a news created a wave on transport sector and that attracted non-polluting transport campaigners. Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, Physical Infrastructure and Transport, and Urban Development Kulman Ghising sought Germany’s support for a trolley bus project connecting Pokhara, Butwal, and Bharatpur, emphasizing cooperation on feasibility, electricity management, and infrastructure. The project, divided into four phases, begins with a pre-feasibility study covering routes, traffic, and electricity needs. Detailed designs, trial operations, and full implementation follow, with a focus on local contractor participation, staff training, and phased development. Environmental benefits aim to attract grants from Germany, the European Union, Asian Development Bank, and World Bank, encouraging private sector involvement for sustainability.

Trolleybus at service in the past

Trolleybus is an electric bus that draws power from dual overhead lines (generally suspended from roadside posts) using spring-loaded or pneumatically raised trolley poles. Two wires, and two trolley poles, are required to complete the electrical circuit. This differs from a tram or streetcar, which normally uses the track as the return path, needing only one wire and one pole. They are also distinct from other kinds of electric buses, which usually rely on batteries. Trolleybus is not a new mode of transport in Nepal. That was existed since for decades since 1975.

The Trolleybus system gifted by People’s Republic of China was opened on 28 December 1975. It endured a somewhat chequered history, particularly in the first decade of the 21st century. Operation was suspended completely for almost two years, from 19 December 2001 until 1 September 2003, because of maintenance, financial and political issues. When service was reinstated in 2003, it did not cover the route’s other half, between Koteshwor and Surya Binayak, serving only about 5 km between Tripureshwor and Koteshwor.

Operations of the system were suspended again in November 2008. Finally, the system was totally closed in November 2009.

For residents of the Kathmandu Valley, the trolley bus was a lifeline. It facilitated seamless travel for commuters from Bhaktapur, Thimi, and surrounding areas to the capital, offering a comfortable, reliable, and affordable ride. Unlike diesel-powered buses, the electric trolley buses produced no tailpipe emissions, contributing to cleaner air in a valley already showing signs of urban strain. By the 1980s, the system was absorbing up to 80 percent of passenger journeys between Kathmandu and Bhaktapur, carrying as many as 10,000 passengers daily. Economically, the buses were a boon, requiring no fuel and minimal maintenance compared to fossil-fuel vehicles. Plans were even drawn to extend the route to encircle the Ring Road and reach Kalanki, a vision that promised to transform valley-wide mobility.

However, the system’s golden era was short-lived. By the late 1980s, political unrest and management inefficiencies began to erode its success. Overhead wires and pylons were damaged, resources were misused, and maintenance was neglected. By 1989, the once-profitable system started incurring losses, and private bus operators, rumored to have sabotaged the service, gained ground. The Nepal Trolley Bus Service, a branch of the Nepal Transportation Corporation (NTC), struggled under bureaucratic overstaffing and cronyism. Operations were suspended in 2001, briefly revived in 2003 on a truncated 5-km route from Tripureswor to Koteshwor, and permanently shuttered in November 2008. Today, the rusting hulks of the trolley buses at the Baneswor terminal stand as a poignant reminder of a lost opportunity.

Trolleybus projects and investments are on a rise in several European countries. Switzerland, France, Austria, Poland, Czech Republic are among the countries where trolleybus networks are more diffuse. Significant renewal plans are underway. Also Berlin is considering new investments on this technology. On the other side of Atlantic Ocean, Mexico City is giving ‘fresh air’ to its trolleybus fleet as well. Electric bus growing deployment is not the only protagonist of the energy transition in city public transport. Once fitted with a diesel motor-generator and unable to break the constraints of connection to overhead powerlines, today, thanks to battery systems in motion technology, trolleybuses are reinventing themselves as vehicles that can combine zero emissions with flexibility.

Currently, it is believed that around 300 trolleybus systems are in operation, in cities and towns in 43 countries. Altogether, more than 800 trolleybus systems have existed, but not more than about 400 concurrently.

Minister Ghising with German Ambassador to Nepal Udo Eugen Völz discuusing on Trolleybus System in Nepal

Moreover, transport industries have been shifted to electric bus systems. Electric Bus manufacturers and suppliers market to growing fast in the world market while Chinese electric buses manufacturers are in the leading role.

Mainly electric bus system operates with charged batteries fitted-in provide required power while trolleybus needs continuous power supply through overhead wires. So cost of construction and installation of poles, cables control systems are considered more expensive than built-in battery system for the electric bus. Moreover, price of electric vehicles including bus systems are lowering in the international market. Likewise, price of Lithium Battery is lowering. On top of that battery technology for eves is getting much better. R&D on battery technology is making encouraging achievements with efficiency in energy density and fast charging. Solid state Battery, Sodium battery are few examples in this context.

Also to note that electric buses to charge in night hours can be a benefit against all time power supply while trolley bus is in run as Nepal witness lower loads in night and electricity goes spilled. For the developed countries, like Japan, Germany, France, are operating hydrogen fuel run bus systems and trains. That achievements are recognized as far ahead to electric vehicles including electric buses for mass transportation.

Therefore, Trolleybus system in Nepal may be somehow old fashioned technology to bring back against all modern available and affordable sustainable transport technologies.