An Australian made electric bus is set to hit the streets of Bathurst in a trial which the first of its type for any regional centre in the state.
Bathurst Buslines this week unleashed a brand new, big green bus onto the streets of the city.
However, this is no ordinary bus.
It’s a Zero Emission Electric Bus which is being trialled over the next two months in the local area.
Mr Toole said the trial provides a real opportunity for a regional operator to operate a Zero Emission Bus outside of the metropolitan area, in a significant regional and rural city such as Bathurst.
“This is a completely different environment to demonstrate how the bus performs on country roads with topography ranging from slightly undulating to rough and very steep terrain,” Mr Toole said.
“The bus will be used on a variety of services ranging from timetabled services, school services and special events such as the Bathurst 1000 supercars.”
According to Buslines Group managing director Anthony D’Apuzzo, they are partnering with Custom Denning, using their Australian designed and built Element bus for the trial as well as Siemens, utilising their charging infrastructure.
“Buslines Group is environmentally conscious, and we are constantly working on reducing our impact on the environment,” Mr D’Apuzzo said.
“The company is investing in the Bathurst region by installing a 1.5 megawatt substation at our Bathurst depot in early 2022.
“We currently operate a fleet of 28 diesel buses servicing the Bathurst network, but with the knowledge gained from this trial and the investment in upgrading our depot we will be preparing for the future of transport as we transition to zero emission buses.
“This trial will provide an opportunity to gain significant knowledge in a regional setting to determine if an electric bus is able to provide the same reliability of service delivery compared to the existing diesel bus, gain an understanding of the safety implications, and recognise the social benefits to our employees and customers.”