[NEWS] Athens: testing and operating the first e-bus

The first electric bus was tested in September and in October the first operational electric bus started driving in the center of the city of Athens.

1. The first demo electric bus in Athens

The first electric bus in Athens made the first pilot routes in September, including 26 stops. Its length is 12m, its width 2.55m and its occupancy is 24 seated and 51 standing passengers. It has three doors and is equipped with a ramp for facilitating the embarkation and disembarkation of disabled people. The bus also offers WIFI connection, has USB portals enabling mobile phone charging while its power is 410hp (2 electric motors of 150kW).

Finally, its batteries are lithium iron phosphate batteries (LiFePO4), which are environmentally friendly, have longer lifetime and are of high performance. In the pilot test routes, there will be no passengers inside the bus but the vehicle will be loaded appropriately as if they were 60 passengers in it.

2. The first operational electric bus in Athens

In October, the first operational electric bus started driving on its pilot test routes in the center of the city of Athens. It has 12m length, 3 double doors for embarkation and disembarkation and 1 ramp for disabled people. Its occupancy is 74 passengers in total: 27 seated, 46 standing and 1 for disabled people.

The power of its engine and the capacity of its battery are 350kW and it is equipped with HAS assistance system in upgrades, front cameras for collision avoidance and lane changing warning system.

The bus has also USB portals for on board mobile charging. Finally, it can be fully charged within 3.5 hours. The pilot will last 2 months and the passengers will have the opportunity to use the electric bus for their trip.