Solaris will deliver 10 electric and 30 conventional buses to Rzeszów

Today in the City Hall of Rzeszów, the city’s authorities and representatives of Solaris Bus & Coach company signed an agreement to deliver ten 12 meter electric buses and 30 articulated vehicles with combustion powertrain. The first contract amounts to PLN 30,2m and the latter – PLN 54,4m. Both contracts are scheduled for delivery in 2018.

In the tender for a delivery of 10 electric vehicles completed a few week ago, the offer placed by Solaris Bus & Coach was chosen as the best one. Apart from the delivery of buses, the contract includes building the infrastructure which will enable the charging of the vehicles during the day while they are on the route as well as at the depot.

‘By winning the contract in Rzeszów we are sending a strong signal to our customers that we do not only offer a tested design in terms of electric buses, but we are also able supply a complex solution of charging infrastructure. It is very important for our customers that the electric vehicles and the entire necessary charging infrastructure can be ordered from one producer. Obviously, we are in this respect working together with other Polish companies participating in the ‘Polish Electric Bus’ cluster, which we are the leaders of’ – said Zbigniew Palenica, Deputy CEO of Solaris, responsible for Sales, Rolling Stock and After Sales.

The key argument for the operator from Rzeszów in choosing the buses supplier was not only the price but also the vehicles innovation and the guarantee of the highest quality. The electric buses from Solaris will be equipped with an inverted pantograph which will be mounted on the charging station and will lower itself to the roof of the vehicle. This allows to charge the bus within minutes during a stop on a bus stop or at the end of the line. Apart from pantograph charging, the vehicles will be, as a standard, equipped with a plug-in socket which is dedicated for slower charging during a longer stop. The electric Solaris Urbino 12 buses will be equipped with 87,6 kWh Solaris High Power batteries. What is more, the buses will offer many amenities for the drivers and the passengers, such as the air conditioning, LED lightening, a wheelchair ramp and kneeling function making entering and exiting more comfortable. In addition, the Rzeszów’s Solaris vehicles will  be equipped with extensive passenger information system with voice announcement and the passengers will enjoy a WiFi Internet access.

Apart from the electric vehicles, Solaris will also deliver 30 ecological articulated combustion buses. The new Solaris Urbino 18 equipped with a DAF propulsion unit comply with the strict EURO 6 emission standards. The buses from Solaris are well known in Rzeszów. The first delivery to the city took place in 2000. At present, there are 47 vehicles from the Polish manufacturer on the street of this city in Podkarpacie region, including 9 CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) driven ones.