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Bostonian here, I used to commute on one every day (MBTA 71 and 73), but they were taken out of service earlier this year, for eventual EV replacement. The pro
by tapoxi 4y ago
Bostonian here, I used to commute on one every day (MBTA 71 and 73), but they were taken out of service earlier this year, for eventual EV replacement.
The problem with electric trolley busses is that they can't pass each other, they perform very poorly in rain, frequently disconnect, and they need constant maintenance of the overhead wiring. I do miss it because it was a local landmark, but an EV bus will be much nicer to have.
- thescriptkiddie 4y agoTrolley busses can overtake each other, either by having a passing loop built in to the overhead wires or by briefly dewiring and rewiring the bus. Modern trolley busses can travel short distances off-wire and some can even rewire themselves automatically. The only reason MBTA has had so many problems with unintended dewiring is that they have done little to no maintenance on the overhead wires for the last half century. You can expect that the same will happen sooner or later to whatever charging infrastructure they build for battery electric busses. That is, assuming that they even that far and don't just pull a bait-and-switch as soon as the wires are down.