1987 - 1991: Time of changes and reorientation
While intensive planning was now being carried out at the tram to be able to implement the municipal council mandate of 1986, there was something new in the bus sector: On May 8, 1987, the public transport companies worldwide commissioned the first low-floor articulated bus - a prototype from NEOPLAN. The prototype based on the SLII grid of the VÖV with barrier-free, stepless entry burned off a short time later in a large fire in the depot East completely.
For the summer timetable on May 31, 1987, the former terminus Fürstenried West lines 16 and 26 was withdrawn by a stop from the Graubündener to Neurieder road. The reason was the beginning of the underground railway to Fürstenried.
In October 1987, the new, built for 70 million DM subway main workshop was passed to their determination on the Burmesterstraße in Freimann after 2½-year construction period. With the opening of the 12,000 m² workshop, the technical basis of the Munich subway was now large enough to keep the ever-growing underground fleet in working order.
On March 24, 1988, the subway line 5 was extended from Westendstraße to Laimer Platz, which had no effect on the tram network.
On 5 July 1988, the city council decided to procure three prototypes of a completely newly developed tram type in low-floor construction. At the suggestion of the public transport companies, three prototypes of a three-piece articulated vehicle, completely redesigned by MAN / GHH, were ordered, which was steplessly and low-floored along its entire length and had an access height of only 30 centimeters.
On October 28, 1988, the two eastern branches of the subway line 5/9 Innsbrucker Ring and the Arabellapark were put into operation simultaneously. However, originally planned as line 9 - the course of the historic tram line - planned subway line went into service as line 4, and also the subway line 8 was renamed at the same time in line 2, whereby the subway lines now consistently with U1 - U6 were designated. However, the impact on the tram network remained, as in 1984, relatively low. Only the stretch Max-Weber-Platz - Steinhausen Line 27 was set for the line operation, but remained as access to the depot 2 and as detour route. This route was reactivated on 10 December 2016 as part of a new line to the mountain at Laimer S-Bahn station.
In 1986 11 lines was operating on a 87km network
Drawing: Peter-Michael Hübner
Presentation of the first stepless tramway in Munich at 7th December of 1990.
Foto: Günther Dillig
On October 28, 1989, the subway line 3 was initially extended on its way to Fürstenried to Forstenrieder Allee. This had no effect on the tram network. On November 29, 1990, the first new tram low-floor train arrived at depot 2. Since the delivery of the last P3 railcar, almost 22 years have gone by.
Already on the 7th of December he was presented to the public during a celebration. The latest achievement on Munich's rails was the type R 1.1 and the car number 2701. At its meeting on 13 March 1991, the plenary session of the city council unanimously approved the realization of the following tram new lines: the "northern tangent" Elisabethplatz - Englischer Garten - Tivolistraße, the "Osttangente" Max-Weber-Platz - Ostfriedhof, the "Westtangente" Romanplatz - Fürstenrieder Straße - Aidenbachstraße, the re-commissioning of the former line 17 through the Arnulfstraße, as well as new routes through the Zschokkestraße and to St. Emmeram.
On June 1, 1991, the subway line 3 was extended to the last section to Fürstenried-West and set the line 16 on their entire route.
Translated by Google
Autor: Klaus Onnich FMTM eV., Leiter Fahrdienst Bus Ost und
stv. Betriebsleiter BO Kraft der Stadtwerke München GmbH