News & Discussion: Adelaide Metro Buses

[crawf]

how cool is this...

$1m sun-powered bus for city
ANNA VLACH

August 18, 2006 12:15am
Article from: The Advertiser

ADELAIDE City Council is paying nearly $1 million for a solar-powered bus, Lord Mayor Michael Harbison has revealed.
It also will be the world's first pure electric bus, the batteries for which will be recharged from solar panels at the new Franklin St Bus Station, he said.

"Other countries have hybrid electric buses but this is the first fully electric bus," he said.

"Japan has placed a large order for pure electric buses but we will be approximately one year ahead of them.

"We have taken the extra step of making ours solar-powered."

The bus, which will take New Zealand manufacturer designline about eight months to build, is expected to be in service by mid next year, Mr Harbison said.

Running on the council's free Adelaide Connector Buses route between the CBD and North Adelaide, he said it was nearly double the size of the mini buses currently being used.

"It has 25 seats, more standing room and room for wheelchair passengers," he said.

Fitting the bus with seatbelts also was an option but had not yet been considered, he said.

Mr Harbison said the council would most likely order a second solar-powered bus. "It takes one hour to travel the circuit and we run two buses, one clockwise, and one anti-clockwise," he said.

Council had applied to the Federal Government's Solar Cities Program for a $400,000 grant towards the project, Mr Harbison said.

"They have indicated that Adelaide is one of the favoured submissions," he said.

[bdm]

This is a complete and utter waste of money.

Does the council have any idea how many 'normal' buses it could buy instead of this?

[JAKJ]

This is a complete and utter waste of money.

Does the council have any idea how many 'normal' buses it could buy instead of this?

Nah every city needs its amazing future energy bus to show how progressive they are! Perth has its hydrogen fuel cell one and we need to one-up them will a solar-electric bus which will result in even lower total emission! Its more an add/pr stunt for the city, then a viable public transport method which justifies the high price somewhat...

[bdm]

This is a complete and utter waste of money.

Does the council have any idea how many 'normal' buses it could buy instead of this?

Nah every city needs its amazing future energy bus to show how progressive they are! Perth has its hydrogen fuel cell one and we need to one-up them will a solar-electric bus which will result in even lower total emission! Its more an add/pr stunt for the city, then a viable public transport method which justifies the high price somewhat...

This isn't progress. Progress is spending one million on R&D to get the price down to something reasonable, not pissing it away on an expensive white elephant.

Common sense, in comparison to a poor definition of "progress", would be to spend the money more efficently.

[Al]

Yup. Total waste of rate payers money IMHO. Instead of one electric bus, the could've bought a truckload of hybids for all the council workers. Or maybe convert the entire fleet to gas or install a heap of solar powered lighting in the less well lit areas of the city.

[Edgar]

I think they are better off spending the money to convert all government gas guzzler vehicles to running LPG!

[bva]

i bet this solar powered bus funding would be through a 'ring fenced' budget stream so not spending it here would not possibly not mean other enviro improvements. I support this bus initiative as 'public' measures and trialling emerging technology only benefit in the longer term

[AtD]

Fully imported Scania articulated bus being tested on the track:

http://www.busaustralia.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=16703


Note that it's a left hand drive. How strange, yet mildy interesting.

[AG]

It's possibly a test prototype for another Obahn system in Germany. There are a couple that exist in Germany IIRC.

[Edgar]

Is that the OBahn track?

[Howie]

Most certainly is. Ain't she a beauty I'm yet to ride on it in all these years.

[Edgar]

Are they going to replace this with the current O-Bahn bus?

Looks good, some old ones such as the J1 J2 buses that goes from Adelaide Airport all the way to Tea Tree needs to be replaced. Some old non-airconditioned box

[bdm]

There shouldn't be any O-Bahn buses without aircon (unless they're broken). The first models used on it were 0305 Mercs, and they were quite advanced for their time.

The newer ones are very nice; I wish they'd have built a southern O-Bahn.

[AtD]

There shouldn't be any O-Bahn buses without aircon (unless they're broken). The first models used on it were 0305 Mercs, and they were quite advanced for their time.

The newer ones are very nice; I wish they'd have built a southern O-Bahn.

They don't use the air-cons in the older busses due to fears of Legionnaires disease from the cooling towers.

[Edgar]

There shouldn't be any O-Bahn buses without aircon (unless they're broken). The first models used on it were 0305 Mercs, and they were quite advanced for their time.

The newer ones are very nice; I wish they'd have built a southern O-Bahn.

The bus models for J1 and J2 which connects from the Adelaide airport all the way to the O-bahn are very very old, and ugly as well , I cannot believe how they are using that for the Airport Bus, what an eye sore