183 all-electric BYD buses expand Chile‘s fleet

BYD has been commissioned to supply a further 183 electric buses to Santiago de Chile. The Chinese manufacturer had already delivered 100 electric buses to the Chilean capital last year, as had competitor Yutong.

The 183 new vehicles from BYD are to be delivered as early as August this year and will complement the electric bus fleet in Santiago de Chile, making the city’s fleet of electric buses the largest in the world outside of China.

The vehicles just ordered offer space for 38 passengers and, according to the manufacturer, will travel 250 kilometres on a single battery charge. They are also equipped with air conditioning, Wifi and USB ports.

According to Chile’s Minister of Transport Gloria Hutt, 203 electric buses were put into service in Santiago at the beginning of the year – 100 vehicles each from BYD with their local Enel partner and the Chinese competitor Yutong. With this large order and several smaller orders, by the end of the year, the Chilean capital will have more than 400 electric buses. According to Hutt, the reason for the new large order is also extremely good user feedback on the electric buses.

Santiago will be followed by other cities across the country. “We hope that during the next year, through the bidding process, electromobility will continue to be strengthened in the capital and in other regions,” said the Director of Metropolitan Public Transportation, Fernando Saka. “This not only contributes to environmental conservation but also to people’s quality of life. In this way, we will also comply with the commitments we have made with the Paris Agreement and de-carbonisation.”

Source: info via email, cleantechnica.com