Skoda 9Tr: Impressions from a ride
In this post we would like to share some expressions from the ride with historical trolleybus Skoda 9Tr (spelled ŠKODA 9Tr in Czech with a special character above “S” pronounced “sh”). It took place on September 11, 2021 in Pilsen, Czech Republic.
The municipality public transportation company Plzenske mestske dopravni podniky (PMDP) operates, next to the ordinary fleet of trams, buses and trolleybuses, a collection of historical vehicles. Those can be rent for private events or teambuilding activities of companies. A wonderful experience is always guaranteed. You will get a friendly driver, shiny vehicle and the choice the define the route. Of course, in case of Skoda 9 Tr you are limited to routes that are electrified.
Our start was at 3 p.m. at the depot of PMDP in Karlov. The sky was rather cloudy but the shiny Skoda 9Tr in its original red-creme paint made us excited for the ride.
We are ready – the adventure can begin.
From there we drove towards Slovany and further to Brucna where we had our first photo-shooting break.
Let’s look at the driver’s seat. It needs some muscles to turn the steering wheel. There is a power steering but it is not as smooth and soft as we know it from modern vehicles.
Now let’s look at the passenger seats. As a little boy you would maybe like to sit at the very back and wave on the cars driving behind the trolleybus.
Here we are on the way to Doubravka…
Our next photo-shooting break. We wait for the ordinary trolleybus to go first and set us on the way back to city center.
What would be a nice background for a photo of ŠKODA 9Tr? The building of West Bohemian museum is always a good choice.
We hope that you got a little bit of a feeling how a ride with Skoda 9Tr may look and feel like. But honestly – you have to experience it yourself. If you plan a visit of Pilsen you can book a ride with Skoda 9Tr. Besides visiting the town square with St. Bartholomew catedral, Great Synagogue, famous brewery Pilsner Urquell with an associated museum or one of the best zoo parks in Central Europe you can crown your visit with a ride in historical vehicle.
Contact PMDP to book your own ride. If you want to eventually combine the ride with others and share the rental cost you may also contact us at info@mb-drive-services.com with subject “Historical vehicles”.
About ŠKODA 9Tr
Škoda 9Tr trolleybuses were manufactured in 1961 – 1982 at the Škoda factory in Ostrov nad Ohří. A total of 722 vehicles were supplied to cities throughout the former Czechoslovakia. There were 153 ŠKODA 9Tr trolleybuses from different series and model lines which served Pilsen from 1961 till 1994. When the trolleybuses were operated, the majority were not overhauled and were replaced with new buses after nine to twelve years. Pilsen stopped operating 9Tr trolleybuses in June 1994; the last 9Tr operating in the country was taken off the road in Jihlava in May 1997. We were able to save this trolleybus with registration number 323, which had served the Pilsen network from 1979 until November 1991. After it was retired in the summer of 1993, it was sold in its entirety to the owner of the AIR-park museum in Zruč nad Sázavou, which served as a depository. Here it stood for three years and did not undergo any maintenance at all. On September 8, 1996, a member of the Škoda – Bus Club Pilsen purchased the trolleybus and started to restore it. In 1999, trolleybus no. 344 was purchased and served as a source for spare parts. Plzeňské městské dopravní podniky, a.s. bought trolleybus no. 323 in October 2010 and, after totally restoring the bus, added it to the company’s collection of historical vehicles. Book a ride in this unique trolleybus and remember the years of long ago with us…
Source: PMDP [1]
References
[1] Rental of historial vehicles, https://en.pmdp.cz/services/rental-of-historical-vehicles/
[2] Trolleybus Skoda 9Tr, https://mb-drive-services.com/trolleybus-skoda-9-tr/
