Innovative 'Two Km in 15 Second' Electric Charge Buses Coming to India

It was on October 5, 2016 that we had reported about Geneva’s master plan of downsizing the carbon footprints with its new fleet of the electric buses. Buses powered by electric trains have existed for a long time now, but what caught our eye was the fact that these new buses carried with them a super ability of getting charged for next 2 km in just 15 seconds.

There is nothing hidden in the fact that India depends a lot on its buses and Delhi alone has around 4000 buses operating on its roads. Our country tops the charts when it comes to carbon dioxide emissions and pollution causing serious illnesses including asthma. Even if the Government of India is able to replace half of total buses with electric ones, it may be able to positively address the grave pollution crisis in India.

What makes this new technology a mouthful for our country is the dying number of buses. It is estimated that a large number of buses operating in the country have already outlived their lifespans, but are still being driven as pollution causing monsters on the road. And as different State Governments look for alternatives, this new technology from ABB might just outweigh the other contenders. The buses will require significant changes in the infrastructure as well, but there is always a price that we pay for betterment of existing conditions.

Electric buses were not taken seriously till now due to their lack of covering long distances, even after being fully charged. And this new technology might just answer that question responsibly. The bus stops are fitted with charging facilities, where bus drivers utilize the time taken by passengers in refueling the buses’ power trains with electricity. More the stops, more the charging. In simple words this new technology’s ability to charge up for more kilometers in a matter of seconds makes it suitable for metro cities like Delhi, Bangalore and Mumbai.

ABB, Swiss Power and Automaton Technology Group are the real masterminds behind this 15 second flash charging technology for buses. ABB has a tie up with Volvo to commercialize and co-develop these hybrid electric buses. And we all know the comfort levels that Volvo offers in its line of commercial vehicles. We can’t wait to see these smoke free buses in the country.

The government’s FAME initiative (Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric vehicles in India), that offers incentives on hybrid and electric vehicles, has encouraged several commercial vehicle manufacturers to come up with electric and hybrid buses. Ashok Leyland's recently launched Circuit series electric bus is one such example. Tata's Starbus Hybrid, Ultra Electric buses and JBM’s Ecolife Electric bus are some of the other domestic offerings in the alternative technology segment.