Trolley Buses

In 1932, Adelaide’s Municipal Tramways Trust trialled the first trolley bus in Australia between Payneham and Paradise. A trolley bus is an electric bus that draws power from overhead wires. After the success of the trial, the new network officially opened in 1937.

In the Burnside District suburb of Knightsbridge, the trolley bus replaced trams in 1952. The service ceased over 10 years later with the introduction of motor buses.

Established circa 1855, Knightsbridge was named after George Taylor’s home on Hazelwood Avenue ‘Knightsbridge House’. Taylor named his property after the London suburb. In 1941, Knightsbridge was incorporated into the suburbs of Leabrook and Hazelwood Park.

Photograph: Leyland Canton trolley buses in Knightsbridge, circa 1960. Courtesy of the Preiss family.