Ruf Lanz: When the VBZ horsepower still made crap

In 1882, the first streetcar started rolling in Zurich. The Rösslitram had room for 24 passengers and had only one horsepower, which kept the track cleaners busy. In the interior, the ladies had the right of chairmanship at that time. The men preferred to stand on the outside platforms anyway, because smoking was allowed there.

These and other entertaining stories are told in the VBZ anniversary campaign by Ruf Lanz.

To kick things off, a two-page text ad in deliberately classic typography appears, in which Ruf Lanz spans the arc from the early days to today's Flexity streetcars, trolleybuses and electric quarter buses, which, unlike the Rösslitram, leave hardly any trace in the environment.

Subsequently, the anniversary motif will appear in a reduced form in various other channels: On advertisements in 20 minuteson posters in all VBZ vehicles as well as on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Responsible at VBZ: Silvia Behofsits (Head of Corporate Communications), Sherin Madassery (Junior Project Manager Corporate Communications). Responsible at Ruf Lanz: Isabelle Hauser (Art Direction), Armin Arnold (Typography), Carlotta Biffi, Miro Poffa (Consulting). Markus Ruf (Creative Direction & Text). External partners: Michèle Aschmann, Aschmann Klauser (image processing), RTK Medientechnik (lithography).