Lucerne transport company to extend bus line 23

The Rontal area of Lucerne (from the Rotsee to near Root) is to receive better connections to the canton of Zug - much to the delight of the affected municipalities.

A long-awaited wish of the Rontal municipalities is coming true: the Lucerne Transport Association (VVL: Verkehrsverbund Luzern) is using the timetable change in December 2024 as an opportunity to improve bus connections from the Rontal to the canton of Zug. Specifically, the 23 bus, which currently travels between Ebikon railway station and the Gisikon Weitblick stop, will then continue in the direction of Rotkreuz.

According to the press release, it is planned that the "23" will run every half hour from Gisikon to the following stops: Honau Hirschen, Rotkreuz Industriestrasse, Ried and Forren. From the "Holzhäusern ZG, St. Wendelin" stop, the line will then return as a circular route in one direction via Hünenberg Bösch and Hünenberg Rothus. "There will be no stop at Rotkreuz station in order to keep journey times to Rotkreuz Nord as short as possible," says the VVL announcement. Connections will not be optimised.

Only a test for the time being
The line extension will initially run for a test phase of four years during peak times, and an evaluation will be carried out after the third year. The line extension can be realised with the existing infrastructure, while the connections of route 23 in Ebikon to the S1 in the direction of Lucerne are to remain unchanged.

Bus route 23 is to be extended to Hünenberg Bösch via Rotkreuz during peak times            
Bus route 23 currently runs from Ebikon railway station to Gisikon Weitblick.          Images: VVL

The Rontal and the Rotkreuz area are "important and growing residential and working locations", according to the transport association. The S1 S-Bahn offers direct and fast connections between the railway stations in the Rontal and Rotkreuz station. But, due to the distance of the work and residential locations from the railway stations, a long walk or an additional transfer is often necessary. In addition, the lack of expansion options for the railway until the Lucerne through-station (Durchgangsbahnhof) opens means that the potential of the existing S1 cannot be fully utilised.

Surprise and delight
The mayor (Gemeindepräsident) of Root, Heinz Schumacher (FDP: Liberal Democratic party), is very pleased about the extension of the 23 line. "We have wanted this extension for a long time." Because: "There are many people from Root who work in the direction of Zug and Zurich. This is of course a great improvement for them." He is also happy that Honau will be included in the extension, through the "Hirschen" stop. As is well known, Honau will merge with Root at the beginning of 2025.

"The Rontal municipalities have wanted a better connection to Rotkreuz for years," says the mayor of Dierikon, Max Hess (Centre party). "It’s been a long process. I'm a little surprised that it's suddenly happening so quickly - but of course I'm especially happy about it." He does point out, however, that this is only a test operation. "But we assume that the extension will be continued if there is sufficient interest."