Electric buses from Poland and China

| 03.11.2011

Besides the rise of the electric car (which is just started), it is expected that we will see the first 100% electric buses in urban public transport within a few years. These buses produce 0% local emissions and will probably be produced in China or Poland. At least that is what Guido Bruggeman and Hans Houtsma expect. In a worth reading article (with the title " Elektrische bus komt uit China“ / in English: Electric bus from China) published in the Dutch public transport journal OV magazine, they describe the advantages and disadvantages of the electric buses. Currently, the main disadvantage of the electric bus is the heavy weight of the batteries, but the expectation is that the batteries will become lighter in a relatively short period of time since the battery technology has not yet been fully developed.

The authors claim that there are currently 15 Chinese manufacturers that have developed an electric bus. The Chinese bus manufacturer Build Your Dream (BYD) is the front-runner. Their K9 bus is a standard 12-meter bus with a range of 250-300 kilometers and a new price which is probably not much higher than a standard diesel bus of a European manufacturer. European manufacturers are also spoken in this article. Polish bus manufacturer Solaris seems to aspire to emerge as front-runner. Recently on the Busworld fair in Kortrijk (Belgium), they presented an 8.9 meters long mini-bus.

The article of Guido Bruggeman and Hans Houtsma can be downloaded here.