First hybrid London double decker bus delivered
Transport for London and Metrobus have just taken delivery of the first of seventeen new hybrid double decker buses. The two-story buses have been iconic image of central London for over half a century and now they are rolling forward into the 21st century. The new buses are being built by Alexander Dennis Limited (ADL) using hybrid drive systems from BAE systems. The BAE system is a series hybrid configuration with a diesel about half the size of what's used on a conventional bus driving a generator. The generator feeds the motor that drives the bus with a lithium ion battery pack providing extra juice for acceleration when needed. During regenerative braking the energy goes back to the battery pack. There are currently about 1,500 buses with BAE HybriDrive running in several North American cities.
Gallery: London Double Decker Buses
[Source: Gizmag]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Dave 8:03PM (11/09/2008)
mpg vs non hybrid?
sticker price vs non hybrid?
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Ignatius 7:38AM (11/10/2008)
Chances are;
Negligible...
and
INSANE.
Scatter 9:19AM (11/10/2008)
I wouldn't call them negligible or insane. Recent work done by CfIT suggests that they're very close to matching conventional diesel bus costs. A 15% reduction in capital costs will make diesel hybrid buses competitive in the UK:
http://www.cfit.gov.uk/docs/2008/bsog/pdf/bsog.pdf
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Brn 9:43AM (11/10/2008)
The benefits of hybrids can be debated.
If you're going the hybrid route, buses make sense. I'm surprised it took this long for a double decker to go hybrid.
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Duke 3:45AM (12/18/2008)
The large fleet of hybrid buses running in New York City (1500 vehicles, some running since1999) was independently measured by the US Dept of Energy's Renewable Energy Lab NREL.
The report says that the hybrid buses got 37% better fuel economy than equalent . This is measured over a full one-year period, using the same routes, same drivers, same diesel fuel, same maintenance shops and mechanics, and the buses are of the same vintage, manufacturer, and weight.
Full report is here, it's highly recommended reading if you really want to understand what's going on with this technology today.
I understand that the London double-deckers use the same technology as the NYC single-deckers.
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