Łódź orders 63 Solaris buses in mild hybrid version

Representatives of Solaris and MPK Łódź signed a contract for the lease of 63 buses with mild hybrid drive. The contract includes servicing and maintenance of the vehicles for a period of 10 years. Deliveries of the 12- and 18-meter low-emission buses are scheduled for the last quarter of 2024.

As part of the tender announced by MPK Łódź, Solaris will deliver 15 Urbino 12 buses and 48 Urbino 18 buses. All models will be equipped with mild hybrid drive. The new buses will be distributed between two depots in Łódź – the Limanowskiego Depot and the Nowe Sady Depot. One of the 12-meter buses will be specially equipped and adapted for the MPK Łódź Driver Training Center for driving lessons.

The mild hybrid drive to be used in the buses for MPK Łódź is a natural development of the recuperative technology in buses – a technology using energy generated during braking. Thanks to mild hybrid solution, vehicles are more environmental friendly and going far beyond the EURO 6 strict emissions standards for diesel engines. The system is based on three crucial elements: an electric machine, an energy storage system and a driver for the structure monitoring the operation of the system. When braking, the electric machine of the bus works as a generator and it recharges the energy storage with the maximum available power. When the storage unit is partially or fully recharged, during the acceleration process, the electric machine acts as an electric engine supporting the operation of the diesel engine.

The Urbino mild hybrid is a response to the market's demand for modern public transport vehicles that minimize environmental impact while also reducing fuel consumption. A few months ago, Solaris won another significant tender for buses with this drive: 110 mild hybrid buses for the ATAC carrier in Rome.

In the photo, from the left: Krzysztof Maciaszczyk, Vice-President of the Board of MPK Łódź, Zbigniew Papierski, CEO of MPK Łódź, Andrzej Sienkiewicz, Sales Director, Solaris Bus & Coach, Hanna Zdanowska, President of the city of Łódź, Agnieszka Kozakiewicz-Pietrzak, Member of the Board of Millenium Leasing, Katarzyna Wieczorek, Proxy of Millenium Leasing.