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Last weekend I was in Salzburg, Austria. The city is operating a network of trolleybuses:

In many places all over the world, conventional buses are gradually being replaced by either hybrid buses or electric buses.

Hybrid technology makes sense especially in stop-and-go rush hour traffic in densely populated urban areas.

As regards electric buses, we have to distinguish between battery-electric buses drawing their energy from huge onbaord battery sets and trolleybuses which draw their electricity from overhead wires.

During the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, the city of Beijing started a few routes operated by battery-powered buses. These buses have a driving range of about 130 kilometers (81 miles) while the air conditioner is on.

Unlike the battery-powered buses, trolleybuses like the O-Buses in Salzburg have a virtually unlimited driving range because they’re drawing all the electricity they need from overhead wires.

Electrically-powered buses - with or without an on-board energy storage media - have outstanding advantages over buses running on fossil fuels:

Firstly, electric buses have zero tailpipe emissions. Consequently, they help to reduce air pollution in urban centers.

Secondly, electric motors are generally more energy efficient than combustion engines. This means that even though the initial purchase price may be higher (given the high cost of the battery set or the infrastructure for trolleybuses), the overall lifetime costs are lower - primarily because of the lower maintenance costs - and because they’re operating more economically. Regenerative breaking can further increase the energy efficiency. The byproduct: lower greenhouse gas emissions.

Thirdly, electric buses are almost a noiseless means of transportation.

This is just another example showing that the electrification of mobility and transport of goods and passengers is progressing.

This entry was posted on Monday, May 4th, 2009 at 4:37 PM and is filed under Electric Cars & Auto Industry. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.