Two regional buses from Canton Bern and Basel-Land have traded a life of serving routes in the Swiss countryside for evacuating civilians from the war-torn Donbas region of Ukraine. The buses were donated by a Swiss charity and are now being used to evacuate families and children.
According to the Luzerner Zeitung, the blue and yellow buses were donated by PostBus Switzerland, the operator of public transport in rural areas of the country. The vehicles are now on the frontline of the war in Ukraine, evacuating civilians to safe zones.
“We're full, a total of 53 people are on the bus, but we'll still drive through Kramatorsk on our way and see if anyone else wants to come with us," the driver of the bus said. Up until this point, the buses had relatively uneventful lives, with one being used in the valleys and mountains of Bern until April 2022, and the other being operated on routes near Basel.
PostBus Switzerland said in a statement that the vehicles were exported and used to transport a supply of mattresses and sleeping bags, before being converted for use in evacuation efforts. The relief operation was organised by Libereco, who bought the buses “for a symbolic amount.”
The Luzerner Zeitung said the buses join other vehicles from Switzerland are already in Ukraine, with old Postbuses already being used by Ukrainian public transport in the Donestk and Luhansk regions. Residents of Zurich would also recognise the trams of the city of Vinnitsa, which has used decommissioned ZVV trams for years.