Buses World News

In brief: Worldwide montly news & informations about Buses, Busmakers, Passengers' and the Transport Industry

24.10.15

AIR POLLUTION * UK / Norway - Report: Diesel cars emit up to four times more toxic pollution than a bus

* England - Failure to use available technology to cut dangerous nitrogen oxides in new cars is a ‘disgrace’

-- A modern diesel car pumps out more toxic pollution than a bus or heavy truck, according to new data, a situation described as a “disgrace” by one Member European Parliament (MEP)... The revelation shows that effective technology to cut nitrogen oxides (NOx) pollution exists, but that car manufacturers are not implementing it in realistic driving conditions... Diesel cars tested in Norway produced quadruple the NOx emissions of large buses and lorries in city driving conditions, according to a report from the Norwegian Centre for Transport Research. A separate study for Transport for London showed that a small car in the “supermini” class emitted several times more NOx than most HGVs and the same amount as a 40-tonne vehicle... The issue of NOx pollution, thought to kill 23,500 people a year in the UK alone, gained prominence when VW diesels were discovered to be cheating official US emissions tests. The scandal also led to revelations that the diesels of many car manufacturers produce far more NOx on the road than in EU lab tests, though not via illegal means... The Transport for London research compared nine diesel cars, ranging from the super-mini class up to SUV, against three HGVs and one LGV. The NOx emitted from the cars was similar to that from the heavier trucks though one car – the smallest diesel tested – produced more than double the 12-tonne lorry and the same as the 40-tonne vehicle... Emissions expert James Tate, from the University of Leeds, said the reasons car manufacturers were not implementing the NOx reduction technology on cars were convenience and cost...
(Photograph: Mar Photographics/Alamy - Diesel cars tested in Norway produced quadruple the NOx emissions of large buses and lorries in city driving conditions) -- London, EN, UK - The Guardian, by Damian Carrington - 22 October 2015

Labels: air pollution

ELECTRIC BUSES * USA: On the University of Georgia Campus Transit

* Georgia - Campus Transit experiments with electric buses, hopes to increase sustainability

-- Students taking the East-West campus bus route Tuesday may have noticed an all-electric bus driving that route. The bus is on campus as part of a test for new electric buses for the University of Georgia Campus Transit, said Director Ron Hamlin... Hamlin said multiple electric vehicle manufacturers have brought their vehicles to campus, and this is the third bus that Campus Transit has tried out... He said Campus Transit, with the help of the Office of Sustainability, applied for a $10.5 million federal grant in June in order to fund investment in electric buses... Electric vehicles would require huge upfront costs, he said. But over the life of the vehicles, electric vehicles would cost less than the current diesel vehicles...
(Photo by Brayden Robinson - UGA Buses: UGA Transit is looking into alternative forms of fuel for on-campus buses, but price and other complications may hinder them) -- Athens, GA, USA - The Red & Black, by Nate Harris - Oct 23, 2015

Labels: electric buses services

BUSMAKERS NEWS WORLDWIDE * UK: JV amidst ADL and BYD -- ** Japan: Mitsubishi Fuso Bus'

* Scotland / UK - ADL seals £660m Chinese bus deal

-- Falkirk-based bus manufacturer Alexander Dennis Limited (ADL) is celebrating after securing a £660m contract with Chinese firm BYD... The deal will see ADL, one of the worlds largest bus manufacturers, build 200 single deck buses per annum, representing turnover of around £660m over the next 10 years... This would include the building of double deck buses, a sector in which ADL is a renowned world leader. If this happens, there is potential to triple the scale of the current deal to almost £2bn... ADL is the largest British-owned business in the UK automotive sector and in recent years has been one of the fastest-growing bus and coach manufacturers in the developed world... The group anticipates further growth of circa 20% with turnover moving towards £600m this year. It employs 2,500 people globally and supports a further 1,500 jobs through its global build partnerships...
(Image: An ADL bus) -- Falkirk, Scotland, UK - BQ, by Bryce Wilcock - 21 Oct 2015

* Japan - Tour bus makers warily welcome gains

-- Manufacturers of large sightseeing buses are enjoying brisk sales as orders have increased from bus operators experiencing a surge in the number of foreign travelers as preparations continue for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics... Mitsubishi Fuso Bus and Truck Corp., a major manufacturer of commercial vehicles, will increase hiring next spring by 10 percent from a year earlier... The company’s Toyama plant is manufacturing at a high rate the Aero Queen, a sightseeing bus on sale since July, with another painting line added in August... Mitsubishi Fuso made the decision to expand its workforce, including hiring workers under fixed-term contracts, as the company received nearly double its usual volume of orders for large-size buses in the first half of the year, on a year-on-year basis. The number of orders it has received has exceeded its production capacity with current staffing levels, even if they were to work overtime and give up days off... Thus, the company reviewed its production plans and decided to increase by 20 percent its large and midsize bus production volume for 2016 compared to that for 2014... Besides the number of senior citizens who are fond of taking sightseeing trips by bus, there are an increasing number of foreign visitors to Japan. In some cases, bus operators have had to wait nearly a year for delivery of their vehicles ordered...
(Photo: Mitsubishi Fuso, tourist bus Aero MM model) -- Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa, Japan - The Yomiuri Shimbun - October 22, 2015

Labels: busmakers news worldwide

20.10.15

PUBLIC TRANSPORT POLICIES * Europe: The European Standard for IT solutions

* Sweden - Nobina becomes strategic partner in implementation ones

-- Nobina who make public bus transport services in Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark, is the first operator to join as a strategic partner in the European ITxPT (Information Technology for Public Transport) Association to support the development and implementation of the future’s standardised IT solutions for public transport... The European Association that was initiated by the UITP (International Association for Public Transport) is a cooperation between bus manufacturers, PTAs, operators and IT companies. The objective is to introduce commonly accepted standards for a cost efficient and safe development of digital systems for public transport... With harmonisation of information systems via open IT architecture, it will become easier to create and further develop services. Commonly referred to as ‘plug and play’ integration of new applications and IT units facilitates on-board installation and maintenance. Operating costs are reduced by integrating multi-modular information systems, thereby facilitating improved planning of urban and regional transportation and optimising connections between all types of transport and parties involved. Additionally, they facilitate accident management by taking effective measures...
(Photo: A Volvo 7700 bus, owned by the company Nobina, is here running Line 3 in Falköping -in Västergötland, Sweden- for Västtrafik) -- Stockholm, Sweden - Nobina AB/Business Wire - October 14, 2015

Labels: public transit system plans

CONCEPT ELECTRIC BUS * UK - New platform enters testing programme

* Oxfordshire - Extended electric truck and bus chassis

-- A revolutionary range extended electric truck and bus chassis from a new to the industry business begins its testing programme in the UK this month before being readied for commercial operations... The company involved, Charge R&D Ltd, has substantial financial backing from Kinetik, a new $500 million international investment company. Charge, headquartered in Enstone, Oxfordshire, UK, is developing electric powertrains for commercial vehicles and its platform offers game-changing driveline and vehicle solutions... It has two unique propositions that give it an edge over other solutions: cost and scalability. First, Charge’s product is expected to come to market at a price comparable to a conventional carbon fuel solution (excluding the battery cost); and secondly, it is designed to work in vehicles from 2.5 to 26 tonnes... Combined, these features will form an important part of Charge’s strategy to move the commercial vehicles market towards EV technology...
(Photo: A Charge electric truck 2 weeks ago) -- Enstone, Oxfordshire, UK - UKHAULIER - 6th October 2015

Labels: busmakers news Europe

ELECTRIC BUSES * India - Automated charging system for buses

* Delhi - ABB propels electric buses with

-- ABB, a provider of power and automation technology, has announced the launch of an automated fast charging system that allows electric buses drive 24/7, while also enabling zero emission... The system is offered in 150 kW, 300 kW or 450 kW modules... With this modular system, ABB aims to solve the key problems associated with large scale adoption of zero emission electric buses: long charging times and short driving range belong to the past... In a favorable industry response for the system, ABB in July 2014 announced partnership with Volvo bus to jointly market fast chargers and buses... The automated fast charger will be offered with other related services from ABB including remote diagnostics, remote management and over-the-air software upgradeability... ABB’s fast charging system will be shown to the public for the first time in Kortrijk, Belgium at the Busworld 2015 show...
(Photo: ABB’s fast charging system) -- Patparganj, Delhi, India - Green Tech Lead, by Rajani Baburajan - October 15, 2015

Labels: wireless charging

IT'S A BUS * USA: The vehicle that could save the planet

* South Caroline - Isn't an electric car

(Proterra EcoRide Electric Bus - How does it Charge? - Video from Proterra Inc. - Oct 23, 2013: The EcoRide™ is the world's first battery electric bus with fast charge enabled infinite range. With unmatched durability and energy efficiency based on rigorous industry testing at Altoona, the Proterra product is proudly made in America)

-- Proterra, a company that manufacturers buses that run solely on electricity, have now tested a bus that travels for 258 miles on a single charge. That's far enough to travel from New York City to Boston without having to stop for a charge, and more than enough to make the rounds on a metropolitan public transit route... The South Carolina-based company, makes the news every month or so for landing in a new city with a fleet of buses or completing another multimillion-dollar funding round. Proterra's buses, which can get up to 35 minutes of travel out of just 10 minutes charging, have been replacing buses in cities such as Tallahassee, Florida; Reno, Nevada; Worcester, Massachusetts; and Los Angeles. Louisville, Kentucky, added 10 of the buses for the city's public transit system this past January, and it's estimated that the Proterra buses will save the city $300,000 a year... Many cities are using local clean initiatives and stimulus money to pay for the buses, which, at $825,000, cost almost twice as much as a standard, fuel-guzzling diesel bus. But those extra hundreds of thousands of dollars can be justified by the money saved by using electricity instead of fuel. Proterra buses only use about 19 cents a mile in electricity, while most city buses burn off a gallon of diesel in nearly 4.71 miles... But the Proterra would make that money back over the course of a city bus' typical 12-year lifecycle. Slate crunched the numbers: "A diesel bus can consume between $500,000 and $600,000 of fuel, while [the Proterra] would consume about $80,000 worth of electricity, based on average industrial electricity rates" ...
Greenville, SC, USA - Tech.Mic, by Jack Smith IV - October 05, 2015

Labels: green buses, public transportation service

ALTERNATIVE FUELS * USA: Buses with Propane Autogas

* DC - Fleet success with

(Video from BlueBirdCorporation - Jan 29, 2014: PERC interviews Ron Latko, Director of Transportation for Mesa Public Schools on his success with a Blue Bird Propane School Bus fleet)

-- According to the National Association for Pupil Transportation, school buses are the safest mode of transportation to and from school. This year, however, the yellow bus is getting an upgrade. More than a half a million students will ride a school bus powered by propane autogas this year... “Diesel has long been the standard in school transportation, but for districts that want to reduce harmful emissions, save money and create a safer, healthier ride, propane autogas is an excellent alternative,” said Michael Taylor, Propane Education & Research Council’s director of autogas business development... Among the health and safety advantages of propane-autogas-powered buses are that they are quieter than diesel and they reduce exposure to diesel exhaust, which the World Health Organization classifies as a carcinogen. Transportation departments are also reducing fuel and maintenance costs with propane autogas compared with diesel, giving schools the opportunity to invest in more teachers or school programs... Recognizing these benefits, schools across 45 states — a total of more than 7,000 buses — have transitioned to propane autogas. And as propane autogas sales reach record numbers this year, and all four major school bus manufacturers now offer propane-autogas-powered models, PERC is highlighting the stories of school districts that have adopted the fuel...
Washington, DC, USA - The Propane Education & Research Council (P.R.)/ School Transportation News, by Ryan Gray - October 6, 2015

Labels: alternative fuels

ELECTRIC BUSMAKERS NEWS * USA: BYD Coach & Bus

* California - Electric bus maker buzzing over orders

-- In a hangarlike building on the north end of Lancaster, 13 electric buses move through the assembly line at BYD Coach & Bus... Some are almost empty shells, while others near completion with wiring and windows installed. Sections of a 60-foot bus are in booths for painting. Finished vehicles get a final check before customers take delivery... All this activity at the plant must accelerate after BYD announced last month an agreement with Washington state and Oregon for up to 800 new buses. That’s in addition to 100 buses already on back order... The new orders mean the factory’s payroll of 120 will have to expand. And the company will have to reconfigure its manufacturing operation to double output...
(Photo: BYD electric buses manufactured in Lancaster, CAL) -- Lancaster, CAL, USA - The San Fernando Valley Business Journal, by MARK MADLER - October 5, 2015

Labels: busmakers news USA, electric busmakers news

ALTERNATIVE FUELS * Australia: Compressed Natural Gas

* Victoria - Caltex has launched its first Compressed Natural Gas refuelling facility at a service station

-- Caltex recently marked the opening of its first Australian service station to offer Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), with the Caltex Star Mart site in Tullamarine, Victoria, now offering the alternative alongside its mainstream fuels... Caltex Australia has partnered with AGL Energy Limited to bring the niche fuel to the site, spearheading a push to develop a wider network – first in Australia's eastern states, then nationally... The alternative fuel is essentially natural gas compressed to less than one per cent of its normal volume at standard atmospheric pressure. It's said to be a cleaner-burning and more cost-effective option when compared to regular fuels... But with the exception of the bus industry, CNG as an alternative fuel has been largely overlooked in Australia. However, if Caltex and AGL are successful, it seems Australia will soon be following most other parts of the developed world in adding CNG to existing fuel options, which in turn could well hasten the local introduction of CNG passenger cars...
(Pictured: Toll's trucks at Caltex refuelling station) -- Tullamarine, VIC, Australia - Motoring, by Rod Chapman - 25 September 2015

Labels: alternative fuels, CNG buses

FUNDS for ALTERNATIVE FUELED BUSES * USA: From U.S. DOT/FTA

* DC - FTA offering more grants for alt-fuel transit buses

-- The U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has announced the latest round of funding under its Low or No Emission Vehicle Deployment Program (LoNo)... The agency is making $22.5 million in new grants available to help deploy transit buses powered by alternative fuel technologies, such as hydrogen fuel cells and electric and hybrid engines... ‘The LoNo program has helped deploy environmentally sound, technologically advanced vehicles across the country, providing a better riding experience for passengers and improving public health,’ says Acting FTA Administrator Therese McMillan. ‘By reducing fuel and maintenance costs, these modern vehicles are a great public investment – saving taxpayer money in the long run while powering innovative American enterprises’ ... The FTA says it will award the LoNo funds on a competitive basis to transit agencies and state transportation departments working either independently or jointly with bus manufacturers already making low- and zero-emission buses...
(Photo: A zero-emission bus ) -- Washington, DC, USA - NGT News - Sep 28, 2015

Labels: funds for buses

BUSMAKERS NEWS * India: The urban development ministry release funds for new fleet of buses

* Delhi - New bus orders dry up as states fail to utilise funds

-- After receiving the purchasing order, the urban development ministry had released the first instalment of Rs 884.21 crore for 7,509 buses to 18 states covering 114 cities in 2014-15. However, only 11 states reverted to the ministry with information on procurement of 2,288 buses. These states include West Bengal, Karnataka and Maharashtra... Senior officials of two of India’s largest bus makers, Ashok Leyland and Tata Motors, have said new bus orders from state transport undertakings (STUs) have nearly come to a standstill for about a year... According to data provided by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, sales of medium and heavy buses fell 22 per cent last year to 36,837 units, against 46,913 units sold in 2012-13. Sales to STUs form a critical part of the overall demand equation, otherwise reliant on private companies...
Mumbai, India - Business Standard, by Swaraj Baggonkar - September 26, 2015

* Maharashtra - MSRTC’s new fleet of luxury buses scheduled to hit city roads by Diwali

--The Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation's (MSRTC) new fleet of luxury buses under the brand name Shivneri is set to hit the city roads by Diwali... "Buying 38 buses from Scania Commercial Vehicles India Private Limited, a subsidiary of Scania Group from Sweden. The corporation has also placed another order of some 30 buses with the coach maker Volvo to widen the luxury bus coverage in the state" ... Volvo's luxury buses have been in the MSRTC's fleet for almost a decade... Since the last one decade, the MSRTC has been purchasing only Volvo buses, as its previous plan to shift to China-based buses failed...
(Photo: A Volvo de luxe bus tour in India) -- Kolhapur, Maharashtra State, India - TNN, by Nikhil Deshmukh - Sep 29, 2015

Labels: busmakers news India

BUSMAKERS NEWS * Africa: "The ‘East’ assault onto the ‘West’ "

* Tanzania - When Chinese wheels roll into northern zone

-- Since their landing on Tanzania, Scania products, both trucks and buses were to become the sole choice among transporters in the country. Tanzania Automobile Manufacturers (TAMCO), located in Kibaha, Coastal region was the initial assembly plant for the Swedish Marquee... Commanding the largest share in commercial trucks and buses, Scania led the pack ahead of other European Manufacturers such as Mercedes Benz, Iveco (Fiat) and DAF (Leyland)... The entrance of China’s Foton Daimler into the Northern Zone’s transport industry is described by experts here as the ‘East’ assault onto the ‘West’ ... The Foton distributors explained that, their trucks were fitted with engines made by Mercedes-Benz of Germany, or with ‘Cummings’ machinery from the United States... But Foton-Daimler isn’t the only Chinese vehicle manufacturer, too ‘Yutong’ has been filling the local roads with low, mid and high-end buses. China is also importing here brands such as Zonda, Howo and Zhong-Tong all parading trucks and buses... Still Foton does it better in planning to build manufacturing plants in East African countries already an assembly plant is operational in Nairobi, near Arusha... So are the Northern Zone transporters ready to switch their wheels from West to East?...
(Photo by Marc Nkwame - Dodoma Transport Agency’s Director, Mr Pamu Mand -left- displays one of the Auman trucks made by Foton-Daimler) -- Arusha, Tanzania - The Daily News, by Marc Nkwame - 29 Sept 2015

Labels: busmakers' news worldwide