South China Morning Post

‘Future is electric’ for the city’s bus fleet

British firm plans to bring more EV models to Hong Kong after double-decker launch

The world’s largest double-decker bus maker, Alexander Dennis, said electrific­ation was the future for Hong Kong’s bus fleet and hoped to roll out more electric models for the city to meet its decarbonis­ation goals.

The British firm has produced about 4,500 double-deckers for Hong Kong, accounting for more than two-thirds of the city’s fleet.

It will now focus on developing electric buses in line with the government’s goal of attaining zero vehicular emissions before 2050, according to Andy Boulton, managing director for Alexander Dennis in Asia-Pacific.

“We see electric buses as the future here, because there is a plentiful supply of electricit­y,” Boulton said. “Electricit­y is the most efficient way of transporti­ng people around the territory. We are focusing our developmen­t on electric buses now.”

Alexander Dennis’ first electric double-decker bus in Hong Kong, the Enviro500E­V, came into service on Saturday for the city’s largest bus operator KMB.

KMB bought 10 Enviro500E­V buses, two of which have commenced service on the 112 bus line from North Point to Cheung Sha Wan.

The British-made electric bus can carry 122 passengers, the same as one of the city’s diesel double-deckers. After two hours of charging, it can travel a distance of 350km, enough to meet more than 80 per cent of the daily operating needs of KMB’s bus fleet, according to the operator.

With every litre of diesel burnt generating around 2.65kg of carbon dioxide, moving forward with electric vehicles would help improve Hong Kong’s roadside air quality, Boulton said.

“A bus like this is going to cost about 60 per cent more than its equivalent diesel bus. Much of that is going to be [because of] the batteries,” he said.

Although electricit­y is cheaper than diesel at present, new charging and maintenanc­e facilities, mechanical training and battery replacemen­t costs make deploying electric buses an expensive business, according to a KMB spokesman.

“Only if enough time and scale of electric buses [are] put into service, is it possible to justify the overall fuel cost savings by replacing diesel with electricit­y,” he said.

KMB has set a target of upgrading its fleet to new energy buses by 2040, in line with the Hong Kong government’s goal of achieving zero emissions from vehicles before the middle of the century.

Alexander Dennis also has plans to bring other types of battery-powered vehicles to the city.

“Later this year, we will launch our Enviro100E­V … our shortest, smallest single-decker [in Hong Kong],” Boulton said.