TATA buses have been plying on roads for intra city transportation since some time. But very soon, India’s popular city Bangalore will have a fleet of Volvo 105 seater low floor-low emission diesel-electric hybrid buses to ferry passengers. Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation(BMTC) will soon introduce an experimental fleet of Volvo 7700 Diesel-Electric Hybrid city buses which will be on a trial run of two months.If Volvo’s claims are to be believed, these buses can result in a 35% reduction in fuel consumption and 40%-50% cut in tail pipe emissions when compared to conventional buses.
Powering the Volvo 7700 is a 5 Liter MD5, four cylinder turbocharged, intercooled diesel engine that produces 210 healthy horses and churns out 800 Nm of peak torque. This engine is coupled with an electric motor that is powered by lithium ion batteries. The electric motor can power the bus for crawling speeds of up to 20 Kph before switching on to oil burner. The diesel motor’s alternator and regenerative braking will charge the electric motor’s battreries on the go.