Switch Mobility has continued to make headway in the Indian market for battery-electric buses with the debut of the EiV 22 double-decker. It has been designed and developed in India and will also be manufactured there.
The air-conditioned, high-floor model has 231kW/h of energy storage. Switch claims that will give a range of up to 250km in city applications. Dual-connection charging is possible and the bus comes with a maximum seating capacity of 65. The OEM says that figure is almost double that of a single-decker to Indian specification, but that it comes with an increase in unladen weight of only 18%.
Front and rear doors, and staircases, are part of the specification. Switch already has an order for 200 EiV 22 buses in hand for Mumbai and it says the new model leaves it “looking at a dominant space in the electric double-decker segment across key regions in [India].”
Executive Vice Chairman and CEO of Switch Mobility Ltd Andy Palmer notes that the EiV 22 builds on the manufacturer’s battery-electric Metrodecker product in the UK, of which over 100 are in service. “With our Switch EiV 22 and Metrodecker buses, we are now well positioned to address the global double-decker market and support cities in meeting their net-zero targets,” says Mr Palmer.
Adds Switch Mobility Chair Dheeraj Hinduja: “It is an extremely proud moment for us as we bring back the iconic double-decker to India. Ashok Leyland was a pioneer among Indian manufacturers when it first launched the double-decker in 1967 in Mumbai and Switch is carrying forward that legacy.
“With our strong expertise in double-deckers in both India and the UK, and with over 100 Switch electric double-deckers in service on UK roads, we are happy to bring this icon back to life and look forward to introducing newer electric products for the Indian and European markets, always keeping customers at the forefront.”
The EiV 22 double-decker follows the recently revealed EiV 12 battery-electric single-decker for the Indian market. The EiV 12 will form part of a 5,000-unit deployment recently announced by Switch in collaboration with operator Chalo.
