The first production-ready electric bus took to the streets of Hamburg on Thursday (November 15, 2018) after the world premiere of the Mercedes-Benz eCitaro at the International Motor Show (IAA) in September. Hamburg is now the first city in the world to receive the fully electric city bus. The handover marks the start of the conversion of Hamburger Hochbahn AG’s fleet of 1,000 buses to emission-free drives by 2030.
Turning point for environment-friendly mobility in Hamburg
Dr. Peter Tschentscher, Mayor of Hamburg, said: “Mobility of the future is clean, quiet and comfortable. By converting Hamburg’s bus fleet to zero-emission e-vehicles, we are setting standards and giving the industry incentives to produce innovative vehicles suitable for everyday use.” Henrik Falk, CEO of Hochbahn, spoke of a “turning point for environment-friendly mobility in Hamburg and Germany”.
The new bus is part of the largest single order to date by a German public transport company for electric buses: Of the first 30 vehicles ordered i.e. 20 eCitaro from Mercedes-Benz and 10 Urbino nE12 from Solaris, Hochbahn will receive three more buses this year. The remaining 26 buses will go into service in 2019. The vehicles are expected to have a range of 150 kilometres. Another 30 vehicles will be delivered in 2020 and will have a range of 200 kilometres. The three-door eCitaro can accommodate 70 passengers and has 25 seats. Lithium-ion batteries supply power; the vehicle is charged at the depot via a plug-in connection. The two electric motors on the drive axle convert the vehicle’s kinetic energy back into electricity when braking.
Host of ITS World Congress 2021
The latest step towards pollution-free local transport comes as Hamburg gears up to host the ITSWorld Congress for Intelligent Transport Systems:https://www.hamburg-news.hamburg/en/hamburg-host-its-world-congress/, in 2021. Various projects in the field of mobility and logistics will be initiated and implemented in the run up to the congress.
Source: City of Hamburg
