​What India Needs? Buses that Run 2 km on Just 15 Seconds of Charge!

Buses are meant to transport people from one place to another, but that does not give them the right to pollute the environment or consume as much fossil fuel as they want. Then what exactly is an ideal bus? One that consumes less fuel or one that does not pollute the environment? The right answer is one that runs two km on just 15 seconds of charge, does not pollute and is low on maintenance costs as well. Sounds like a dream, but Geneva is all set to add a new line of buses to its transport department that will turn this utopian vehicle into reality.

The technology used in the buses is developed on the grounds of time taken by passengers to get on and off the vehicle. Yes you read that right, and it simply means the Geneva authorities have creatively devised a plan to charge buses enough for doing two more kilometres, whilst the passengers hurriedly board and get off.

These buses look similar to other buses that operate on many European roads but are efficient in cutting 1,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year. The technology has been jointly developed by ABB, the Geneva power Utility SIG, the Office of Promotion of Industries and Technologies and Geneva's public transport operator TGP. It enables a 600 kilowatt boost in 15 seconds enabling the bus to travel two more kilometres.

Bruce Warner, Global Product Specialist for rail and urban transportation, ABB, said, "We see a big trend towards urbanisation which causes a lot of traffic congestion. One of the solutions to that is people travelling together on public transport, and the need for that to be emission free." He further stated, "We see a big trend towards urbanisation which causes a lot of traffic congestion. One of the solutions to that is people travelling together on public transport, and the need for that to be emission free."

It is estimated that Geneva's current bus fleet currently covers 550,000-600,000 km. The complete line of buses will start operating by 2018 and carry over 10,000 passengers.

India depends a lot on its transport infrastructure, and most parts in the country barring metropolitan cities have a majority of diesel buses. Introducing such technology in India would mean enormous cuts in CO₂ emissions and a gradual improvement in the country's passenger transport infrastructure.