Trolleybuses in Chișinău

Chișinău trolleybus system
BKM-321 trolleybus in front of the airport, Chișinău, Moldova
Operation
Locale	Chișinău, Moldova
Open	1949 (1949)
Status	Open
Routes	32
Owner	Government of Chișinău
Operator	Regia Transport Electric Chișinău (RTEC)
Infrastructure
Electrification	600 V DC
Depot	3
Stock	453
Statistics
Route length	246 km (153 mi)
Overview Chisinau trolleybus network map, 2013.
Website	http://www.chisinau.md/pageview.php?l=ro&idc=478 RTEC (in Romanian)

The Chișinău trolleybus system forms an important part of the public transport network in Chișinău, the capital of Moldova. The system was created shortly after the end of the World War II to replace the old electric tram system that suffered extensive damage during the war. Along with the network of minibuses known as rutiere, it forms the backbone of the Chișinău transport system, with the average daily ridership reaching 250,000 passengers per day.

History

The history of the trolleybus network in Chișinău goes back to 1949 when the city council took the decision to introduce it as a substitute for the tram network that was heavily damaged during World War II and could only be rebuilt to a limited extent. The first line connecting the Chişinău Railway Station with the University of Medicine ran along the Stephen the Great boulevard, where the former tram tracks were removed, and was served by six MTB-82D units. In 1959 the tram depot was transferred to serve the trolleybus system that comprised over 50 units at that time, and by 1961 trolleybuses had completely replaced the trams. The second and the third depots were introduced into service in 1966 and 1986, respectively.

Lines

As of March 2026 the Chișinău trolleybus network consists of 32 lines covering all the city districts and the suburban areas such like Durlești, Stăuceni, Trușeni and Bubueci.

Line	Route	Notes
01	or. Durlești – str. Sarmizegetusa	connection with Chisinau railway station
02	bd. Traian – str. Pușkin	circular route
03	șos. Balcani – str. Miorița
04	Grădina Botanică – str. Constituţiei	connection with Chisinau railway station
05	Trolleybus depot 2 – str. Bariera Sculeni	connection with Chisinau railway station
07	str. Uzinelor - str. Alexei Mateevici
08	bd. Traian – parcul "La izvor"	connection with Chisinau railway station
09	Autogara Sud Vest – Autogara Nord	connection with Autogara Nord (North bus station) connection with Autogara Sud (South bus station)
10	str. Studenților – str. Miorița
12	str. Ion Dumeniuc – str. Alexei Mateevici
13	str. Ion Dumeniuc – str. Dokuceaev	connection with Autogara Nord (North bus station)
16	Beton Armat Association – str. Alexei Mateevici
17	Autogara Sud Vest – Gara	connection with Chisinau railway station connection with Autogara Sud (South bus station)
20	Trolleybus depot 2 – str. Vasilii Dokuceaev	connection with Chisinau railway station
21	str. Mesterul Manole– șos. Balcani
22	șos. Balcani – Grădina Botanică
23	str. Ion Dumeniuc – parcul "La izvor"
24	str. Ion Dumeniuc – str. Mioriţa
25	str. Ceucari – str. Alexei Mateevici
26	str. Ceucari – str. Ion Dumeniuc
27	str. Ceucari – str. Ion Creangă
28	str. Ceucari – Trolleybus depot 2
29	Universitatea Agrară – parcul "Ștefan cel Mare"
30	Aeroportul Internațional Chișinău – Piata Marii Adunari Nationale	connection with Chișinău International Airport
32	str. Alexei Mateevici– or. Stăuceni	Suburban route to Stăuceni town
33	Universitatea de Medicina – or. Durlești
34	str. Tighina – Trușeni	Suburban route to Trușeni village
35	str.Vasile Alecsandri – or. Durlești
36	Teatrul National Mihai Eminescu – or. Ialoveni	Suburban route to Ialoveni town
37	str. Constantin Negruzzi – Bubueci	Suburban route to Bubueci village
38	str. Alba Iulia – str. Burebista

Fleet

Škoda 14Tr in 2006

YuMZ T2 in 2009

A BKM-213 articulated trolleybus in 2021

Current fleet

The fleet consists mainly of the various modification of popular low-floor trolleybus BKM-321 manufactured by Belkommunmash in Belarus and it's Moldovan analogue RTEC 62321 equipped by Moldovan electronics. Chișinău is the second-largest current user of this model, after Minsk (and Moscow in past). In addition, the network also operates by 5 articulated vehicles RTEC 62433 (BKM-433), some Škoda 24Tr, articulated Van Hool AG300T and Polish Solaris Trollino 18. All trolleybuses Škoda, Van Hool and Solaris were purchased used as dismissed in Swiss, Latvia and Estonia.

Model	Total / Active
BKM-321	101 / 98
RTEC 62321M2	65 / 59
RTEC 62321M1	64 / 62
RTEC 6232100DM3	40 / 40
Škoda 14TrM	39 / 32
ZiU-682V variants	23 / 20
Škoda 24Tr Irisbus Citelis	20 / 20
YuMZ T2	20 / 19
ZiU-682G variants	17 / 13
ZiU-683V01	5 / 3
BKM-433 Vitovt Max II	5 / 5
Solaris Trollino II 18 AC	10 / 10
Solaris Trollino II 18 Ganz	5 / 5
BKM-213	2 / 2
RTEC 624201M1	1 / 1
VMZ-5298.00 (VMZ-375)	1 / 1
YuMZ T1	1 / 1

In 2021, two trolleybuses built by the now-defunct Dutch manufacturer APTS (Advanced Public Transport Systems), to its Phileas design, were acquired secondhand: A 2011 prototype for a planned new busway system in Pescara, Italy, and a 2014 prototype (with doors on both sides) for the Metromare busway then under construction in Rimini, Italy. Neither ever entered service on the systems for which they had been purchased, and eventually they were sold to a dealer in secondhand vehicles. They were given fleet numbers 1001 and 1002 in Chișinău, and No. 1001 entered service in June 2022.

Past fleet

In past in Chișinău operated the Soviet-built ZiU-5 and ZiU-9, Czech Škoda 14Tr and Ukrainian-built trolleybuses YuMZ-T2. There were also 2 articulated BKM-213 in service (operated since 2005 until 2025) and several articulated ZiU-683.
Now all these vehicles are dismissed. Some of them are used like company service vehicles or museum vehicles.

Managing company and Depots

All trolleybuses in Chișinău are managed by Municipal Company RTEC (Regia Transport Electric Chișinău/Chișinău Electric Transport Managing Company).
There 3 trolleybus depots in the city and one special car service brach for repairing of vehicles.
- Trolleybus depot 1 - located in Buiucani Administrative District. The Headquarter of RTEC is situated here.;
- Trolleybus depot 2 - was built in Botanica Administrative District - a great resident and industrial area;
- Trolleybus depot 3, built in 1985 - the newest one. Located in Ciocana Administrative District.
- Repair Service - located very closed to the Depot 1. Occupies territory of ex tram depot.

Tickets, prices and payment terms

Every vehicle has a fare collector who sells single-ride tickets valid for this particular ride only. Alternatively, one can purchase a monthly ticket, valid for a calendar month. A single-ride ticket costs (since September '22) 6 MDL, and the price of the monthly pass is 234 MDL. There are also: monthly ticket for scholars and students – 70 MDL, ticket for 15 days – 100 MDL, monthly ticket for students with social privileges – 70 MDL, monthly ticket for economic agents – 320 MDL. Since may 2026, the ticket prices are 7 MDL.

External links

• "Trolleybus city: Chisinau (Moldavien)". Trolleymotion.
• Kishinev (Chişinău) database / photo gallery and Kishinev (Chişinău) trolleybus list at Urban Electric Transit – in various languages, including English.
• Regia Transport Electric Chisinau Facebook Page