Trams and trolleybuses in North Korea

Pyongyang tram in 2009
Pyongyang Trolleybus near Pyongyang Station in 2007
Former Zurich type Be 4/4 tram on the Kumsusan Memorial Palace line
A Pyongyang Trolleybus Works Chollima 90

Trams and Trolleybuses in North Korea are forms of public transportation for North Koreans to travel around in urban centres given the shortages on fuel and access to cars for average citizens.

Very few details are known about these trolleybuses and trams due to the closed society of North Korea. Pyongyang and Chongjin are the only cities known to have tramways.

Trams

Product list and details
 Fleet Size  Description   Make  Fleet #  Year acquired   Notes 
45 double-articulated  Czech Republic CKD Tatra KT8D5K units 1001–1045 1990
129 trams  Czech Republic CKD Tatra T6B5K single motor units 1046–1174 1990s
50 articulated trams  Czech Republic CKD Tatra KT4K units 1175–1224 ordered 1991 articulation removed by Shenfeng works in China; all trams of this type have been moved from Pyongyang to Chongjin
320 trams  Czech Republic CKD Tatra T4D/B4D used trams from Leipzig (200 vehicles), Dresden (95), and Magdeburg (25)
articulated trams North Korea North Korea Kim Chŏng-tae Electric Locomotive Works – modification of ČKD KT4 1990s
18 trailers and 18 motor units two-car married sets, each car having two trucks Switzerland Switzerland. Built 1947–1954, powered cars by Maschinenfabrik Oerlikon (MFO) and SWS, matching trailers by SIG, for the Zürich tram system retired by Zürich in 1994; purchased by North Korea in 1995 used on a metre gauge line from Samhung metro station to Kumsusan Memorial Palace in Pyongyang (all other lines are standard gauge)

Trolleybuses

The Pyongyang trolleybus system has been operating since 1962, with a large fleet serving several routes. Due to the closed nature of North Korea, the existence of trolleybus networks in other North Korean cities was generally unknown outside the country for many years, but it is now known that around 12 to 15 other cities also possess trolleybus systems, among them Chongjin and Nampho.[1] A few other places have private, very small (in some cases only one or two vehicles) systems for transporting workers from a housing area to a nearby coal mine or other industrial site—or at least did at some time within recent years.[1] Trolleybuses include both imported and locally made vehicles. Imported buses are from Europe and copied versions from China. There are a few local manufacturers of trolleybuses.

Product list and details
 #  Description   Make  Fleet #  Year acquired   Year retired   Notes 
trolleybus  Hungary Hungarian Ikarus Bus 260/280
trolleybus  Czech Republic Škoda Works 1950s
articulated trolleybus North Korea Pyongyang Trolleybus Works Chollima
trolleybus North Korea Pyongyang Trolleybus Works Chollima 1/2/9.11 N/A 1961 Late 1980s
articulated trolleybus North Korea Pyongyang Trolleybus Works Chollima 9.25 1963 Only one remains in service. Based on LAZ-695
trolleybus North Korea Pyongyang Trolleybus Works Chollima 70 1970 Mechanically based on Škoda 706 RTO
trolleybus North Korea Pyongyang Trolleybus Works Chollima 72 1972
trolleybus North Korea Pyongyang Trolleybus Works Chollima 74 1974 Another version built in 1975 exists. Has narrow doors unlike the original Chollima-74
trolleybus North Korea Pyongyang Trolleybus Works Chollima 82 1982
trolleybus North Korea Pyongyang Trolleybus Works Chollima 84 1984 Late 2000s
articulated trolleybus North Korea Pyongyang Trolleybus Works Chollima 862 1986
articulated trolleybus North Korea Pyongyang Trolleybus Works Chollima 90/903 1990
trolleybus North Korea Pyongyang Trolleybus Works Chongnyon 1990 Designed to work in rural areas, but is used in some cities as well
trolleybus North Korea Pyongyang Trolleybus Works Chongnyonjunwi 1996 Based on Karosa B 731 bus
trolleybus and articulated North Korea Pyongyang Trolleybus Works Chollima 1997 Ikarus Bus assembly
articulated trolleybus North Korea Pyongyang Trolleybus Works Sonyon 1999
articulated trolleybus North Korea Pyongyang Trolleybus Works Chollima 032 2003 Only a few were made
articulated trolleybus North Korea Pyongyang Trolleybus Works Chollima 091 2009
trolleybus North Korea Chongjin Bus Works Jipsam 74 1972
articulated trolleybus North Korea Chongjin Bus Works Jipsam 86 1986
trolleybus North Korea Chongjin Bus Works Chongnyonjunwi Chongjin 2000 Differs from the PTW Chongnyonjunwi
trolleybus North Korea Wonsan Rolling Stock (Locomotive) Factory Songdowon Late 1970s

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 Tarkhov, Sergei; and Merzlov, Dmitriy. "North Korean Surprises". Trolleybus Magazine Nos. 244–6 (July, September and November 2002).

References

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