China’s leading bus maker BYD and their British partner Alexander Dennis Limited (ADL) presented a new version of their Enviro200EV electric bus at the Euro Bus Expo in Birmingham. The 10 metre electric vehicle features an extra space big enough to fit a wheelchair but also a mobile charging station.
Having a charging station on board the electric bus is particularly handy for public transport operators that have not yet installed charging infrastructure. BYD and ADL are thus scoring with smaller providers and they call it their “first provincial EV demonstrator”.
The BYD ADL Enviro200EV electric bus measures 10.8 metres and has 33 seats and one wheelchair space. The bus is equipped with a mobile charging unit built by BYD which is small enough to be carried on board in the wheelchair space. This will enable operators to trial the Enviro200EV bus without needing to install permanent charging infrastructure beforehand.
Also on display at the Euro Bus Expo in Birmingham is the all-electric double-decker. Speaking at a joint press conference Isbrand Ho, Managing Director of BYD Europe, called the BYD ADL Enviro400EV “a product of transformation” once it is launched in Spring 2019. The BYD ADL partnership has an order from London’s Metroline for 37 of the new double-decker electric buses.