Today the Cracow’s Municipal Transport Operator (MPK S.A.) presented 20 new electric buses delivered by Solaris Bus & Coach. 17 of the emission-free vehicles are Urbino in the 12-meter edition and the remaining three are the new edition articulated buses. One the latter is at the same time vehicle no. 15,000 produced by the Polish manufacturer from Bolechowo.
The vehicles which will soon be seen on the Cracow’s streets have already been announced as the best electric city buses in Europe. The Solaris Urbino 12 electric won the 2017 best city bus award in the ‘Bus of the Year’ competition (organized since 1989 by the ACE – Association of Commercial Vehicles Editors).
- The today’s delivery of the 20 low floor electric buses closes the first phase of the agreement signed in April 2016 within the ‘Integrated Territorial Investments’ project for a delivery of ‘107 modern and environmentally friendly city buses’. Since June 2016, nearly 200 new buses have arrived on the streets of Cracow, including electric and hybrid buses. At present, Cracow has the largest in Poland, and fifth in Europe, electric buses fleet. However, this is not the end of the purchases for the next years. In June this year, we signed an arrangement with the National Center for Research and Development on the implementation of the emission-free transport program. This arrangement gives us a possibility of purchasing 11 buses in the first stage of the project and later, after the positive tests results, the option to purchase up to 150 additional vehicles. The delivery of the buses within this program will take place between 2019-2021 – said Rafał Świerszyński, CEO of MPK Cracow.
All of the electric, low floor Solaris buses ordered by the Cracow’s MPK S.A. are equipped with air-conditioning, ticket machine (with a possibility to pay by both – coins and debit cards), monitoring and
a modern, dynamic passenger information system. The batteries of the buses can be re-charged by the roof-mounted pantograph or via plug in at the depot.
- The electric buses are most importantly emission-free and extremely quiet, which is of a great importance for a city like Cracow. Despite the fact, that the electric technology is still more expensive than the traditional diesel one and it requires certain expenditures in the charging infrastructure, it is an investment that lowers the exhaust emission significantly and creates conditions for the improvement of comfort of living in the city – said Zbigniew Palenica, Deputy CEO of Solaris Bus & Coach.
The new Solaris Urbino 12 electric for MPK Cracow are equipped with a 160 kW central motors and 160 kWh Solaris High Energy batteries. The articulated Urbino 18 on the other hand will be powered by 240 kW traction motor and the energy will be stored in a 200 kWh Solaris High Energy batteries.
Among the 20 electric buses officially forwarded to MPK Cracow today, one is very unique. It is the bus no. 15,000 that was manufactured in the factory in Bolechowo near Poznań.
- When together with my husband we started our business in bus industry in 1996, never did we expect that a moment will come when 15,000 buses designed and manufactured by our company will travel in more than 600 cities, in 32 countries. We owe it all to our wonderful staff and customers who put their trust in us, for which I would like to thank them all – said Solange Olszewska, the founder and CEO of Solaris Bus & Coach.
It is worth mentioning that Cracow was the first Polish city which started a public transport line operated by electric buses only. On 29th April 2014 the passengers could take their first ride on a battery bus on line 154 from the Main Railway Station to Prądnik Biały. Due to the new delivery of 20 electric buses, the emission-free Solaris buses will also operate on lines 304, 124 and 169.
Apart from the purchase of electric buses fleet, Cracow’s MPK has also invested in the development of the charging infrastructure. The depot at Wola Duchacka has been equipped with a 28 plug-in charging stations, there has also been a transformer station for electric buses charging build at a Nowa Huta depot. What is more, there will be a further five pantograph charging stations put into use in 2018: three in the city at Konopnicka Street, Piaszczysta Street and a second one at Pawia Street. The remaining two will appear at Wola Duchacka and Brożka Street depots.
Information Solaris
Solaris Bus & Coach sp. z o.o. is one of the leading producers of city and intercity buses in Europe. It focuses in particular on the development of zero-emission vehicles, i. e. electric and hydrogen buses as well as trolleybuses. This has resulted in the widest zero-emission product range in the European market and a leading position in this segment with a market share of 15.2%. Nearly 25,000 Solaris vehicles have been delivered so far and they ply the streets in 850 towns and cities across 33 countries located throughout Europe as well as beyond it. Solaris is part of the Spanish CAF Group (Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles) S.A. From conception, to the design and manufacturing phases, all Solaris buses are produced in Poland. Moreover, all activities undertaken by the manufacturer are in line with the brand’s mission, which is reflected in the motto “We are changing the image of public transport”. Solaris also actively partners with public transport operators and provides them with comprehensive support in their transition to zero-emission mobility.
Additional information
Mateusz Figaszewski
E-mobility Development & Market Intelligence Director
mateusz.figaszewski@solarisbus.com
