Electric buses pass million kilometre landmark

Electric buses in the Dutch city of Eindhoven last week celebrated a major milestone, by covering a cumulative 1,000,000 kilometres since entering service.

The all-electric fleet of 43 VDL Citea single deckers entered service in the city in December 2016, and operate across eight different routes. The operator, Hermes, says that, on average, the buses are running for about 9,000km each day.

Bus maker VDL says that the million kilometre landmark disproves all preconceptions about limited range and reliability, largely down to the installation of a rapid charging system at the Hermes depot.

According to the city’s municipal council, the million zero emission kilometres means that NOx emissions have droped by around 4.7 tonnes and emissions of CO2 by more than 1,000 tonnes since the start of 2017.

The 43 VDL Citea SLFA electric buses are 18.1-metre long articulated ‘bendy buses’. VDL also delivered the charging stations and supplies them with power in co-operation with an electricity supplier.

Willem van der Leegte, President and Chairman of the Board at VDL , said, “We are very proud to have the privilege of working with Hermes and the province of Noord-Brabant on the transition to zero emission bus transport in Zuidoost-Brabant. We have always been a forerunner in the development of economical, environmentally friendly vehicles. With the delivery of the 43 electric Citeas a big step has been taken in boosting the sustainability of public transport.”

Hermes is part of Connexxion Nederland, which is a subsidiary of French parent company Transdev.