Are electric coaches and buses a pipe dream or a practical option for the future? A question posed to the audience in The Theatre at CBUK
The panel discussion between Steven Salmon, Director of Policy at the Confederation of Passenger Transport; Richard Harrington, Engineering Director at Go-Ahead London; and Dave Horton, Energy Specialist at Npower, gave an insight into switching to electric vehicles.
Mr Harrington from Go-Ahead London – the only 100% electric garage in Europe – discussed the personal effects and challenges the company has faced since becoming all-electric in 2016, operating plug-and-play.
“There is no one-size-fits-all, because there are some places where electric buses won’t do the range,” said Mr Harrington. Adding that there is still room for diesel with Euro 6, “it’s important to understand what you’re aiming to achieve.”
The various electrical options to consider are:
- Hybrid vehicles
- Inductive charging
- Pantograph charging
- Plug-and-play charging
The importance on planning was emphasised throughout the discussion. The need to plan for time restraints due to charging, pedestrian safety, driver training and power availability.
“Your energy supplier should be one of the first people you talk to,” said Mr Horton.
“It’s not what you use, it’s when you use it,” he adds. As there are now ways operators can get money back instead of just paying out.
Mr Horton explained that the energy market is so close to capacity, the National Grid has a scheme called ‘Demand Turn Up’ – now in its second year – that gives you a way of making revenue from electric buses, by selling back available power to the grid.
More information can be found at goo.gl/DsbDdZ
“Things are changing fast, it’s not a pipe dream, it’s here today. Let’s embrace it,” said Mr Harrington.
