Hong Kong’s buses are gradually entering the era of electric buses. Following the departure of KMB’s BYD single-deck electric bus from the mainland on Monday (25th), Huida Transportation, the parent company of NWFB and Citybus, announced today (29th) that it will open the first bus in Hong Kong Double-decker electric bus.
The double-decker electric bus will visit various districts in May to allow citizens to experience and pilot the 5B and 22M routes, and will carry passengers during the summer vacation as soon as possible.
With 79 seats and 34 standing positions, the bus can carry 113 passengers and has a range of more than 200 kilometers.
The electric double-decker buses of NWFB and Citybus set sail in May.
(Photo by He Ruifen)
NWFB and Citybus plan to use all zero-emission buses by 2045
Huida Transportation also announced that it will launch the "#Mission Zero" plan to fully use zero-emission buses by 2045, five years ahead of the government's carbon neutrality target.
The electric bus is manufactured by the Mainland Wei Chi Teng (Fujian) Automobile Co., Ltd. The new double-decker electric bus has abandoned the yellow and blue "Ukrainian color" when it first arrived in Hong Kong, and replaced it with dark blue and bright blue, representing batteries and zero emissions. A 12-meter bus can carry a maximum of 113 people, which is more than 10 less than the 130 people of a diesel vehicle of the same length.
The body is made of high-strength composite materials and stainless steel, with a net weight of 16.9 tons. It uses ZF AVE130 electric axles, uses lithium iron phosphate, and has a capacity of 450 kWh.
The car is equipped with regenerative braking technology. When the vehicle brakes, the motor feeds back power, converts kinetic energy into electrical energy, and stores it in the power battery to improve battery life.
It needs to be charged for 2.5 to 3 hours a day and can travel more than 200 kilometers.
The double-decker electric bus adopts a low-floor design, and is equipped with 4G WiFi. All 79 seats in the bus are equipped with USB charging holes, and its air-conditioning cooling capacity is similar to that of diesel vehicles.
Huida Transportation said that only one double-decker electric bus will be purchased at present, and more will be purchased gradually. In conjunction with future hydrogen-powered buses, it is hoped that all of them will be converted to zero-emission buses in 2045.
At present, the bus will go to various districts to meet with the public in May, and the 5B and 22M routes will be piloted. It is expected that the bus can officially carry passengers as soon as the summer vacation.
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