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Barcelona will be one of the first European cities to have articulated, gas-powered hybrid buses
04/06/2020 - 14:00 h
Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona (TMB) has begun the tendering process for the acquisition of 46 compressed natural gas (CNG) hybrid buses, 16 of which will be articulated, making them some of the first buses using this low-emission technology to go into service in European cities. The new vehicles will replace existing 15-year-old buses that are reaching the end of their lifespan. In addition to lowering the average age of the bus fleet, which was 8.78 years last December, the operation aims to improve the environmental quality and safety of the service.
The municipal bus operator, Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona (TMB), has initiated the process for the purchase of 46 compressed natural-gas (CNG) hybrid buses, 16 of which will be articulated. They will be some of the first buses using this technology to become operational in Europe, resulting in a major reduction in emissions.
Compared to a conventional vehicle, the hybrid system makes it possible to reduce the already low emissions produced by CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) vehicles even further. This is because it is applied to an environmentally-advanced engine system (EEV), as it emits hardly any particulates and 90% less nitrogen dioxide, in comparison with a diesel engine.
The new vehicles will replace existing 15-year-old buses that are reaching the end of their lifespan. In addition to lowering the average age of the bus fleet (8.78 years on 31 December 2019), this operation aims to improve the environmental quality and safety of the service.
The buses will have all the usual features of comfort and accessibility that characterise the fleet. In regard to safety technology, they will feature a driver-assistance system based on front and blind-spot sensors, which are always active and generate visual and auditory warnings when there is an imminent risk of impact, collision or running someone over.
The 46 new gas-powered hybrid vehicles are composed of 30 units of standard size, 12 metres long and 16 articulated units, which are 18 metres long. The city is also acquiring 6 diesel minibuses with a Euro-6 environmental standard, to replace the oldest vehicles in the Neighbourhood Bus service.
The acquisition of 52 new buses, with a base budget of €21.3 million, is in addition to the contract that has already been adjudicated for purchasing 23 100% electric articulated buses, for the sum of €20.7 million.
The target of making Barcelona a healthier city and improving its environmental quality is set out in the 2019-2021 Bus Fleet Renewal Plan, agreed with the Metropolitan Transport Authority (ATM), which involves an investment of €115 million over three years and the acquisition of 254 vehicles that use the cleanest technologies on the market. This investment is in addition to the work on infrastructures that is needed to make the electric vehicles operational, which requires an additional €20 million. This brings the total to €135 million.
This year, the TMB fleet has already incorporated 105 new buses, 49 of which are the standard length of 12 m, equipped with the latest compressed natural gas engines, 26 18-metre buses using the same technology and 30 standard-length diesel-electric hybrid vehicles. This means that the total number of hybrid vehicles has risen to 386, which include 9 completely electric buses and 376 CNG buses, out of a total of 1,140 units.