Tests run on electric Solaris in Estonia

Since 3 September the Solaris Urbino 12 electric has been the object of test runs in the Estonian city of Tartu, the second-biggest city of the country. The tests of the vehicle, which has won the competition for best city bus in 2017, will last for a whole year. It is the first project taking that long and concerning electromobility in Estonia.

Solaris has kicked off the tests in collaboration with a local operator, the firm AS SEBE which had won a tender for operating bus line 25 - a line devised for long-term tests of the electric bus. The vehicle that came all the way to Tartu is the well-known Solaris Urbino 12 electric, the winner of the “Bus of the Year 2017” contest, which completed successfully tests in the capital of Estonia, i.e. Tallinn, last year.

The test Urbino is equipped with an axle with integrated electric motors, with a maximum power of 2x125 kW. Factory settings of the vehicle allow for the installation of a pantograph that will enable the charging of Solaris High Energy batteries with a power of 200 kWh. At the moment the recharging occurs via a traditional plug-in connector. A mobile on-board charger can be applied in the bus, too. In its current technical configuration, the bus is able to carry up to 75 passengers at a time, 30 of whom travel seated. A door layout of 2-2-2 was used to facilitate the entry and exit of bus passengers, whereas persons afflicted by reduced mobility will appreciate in particular the kneeling function at bus stops which eases boarding. What is more, the bus has a record number of 16 seats on level with the low floor and an area dedicated to wheelchairs or pushchairs.

However, the Solaris Urbino 12 electric is not only an assembly of cutting-edge technical solutions. The Polish producer has equipped the vehicle with a series of solutions considerably raising travel comfort and the safety of passengers and the driver. These include among others an air conditioning system covering the whole vehicle, interior and exterior lighting in energy-saving LED technology, a touch panel for the driver and a comprehensive passenger information system. What is more, the bus has been adapted to operate even in the toughest weather conditions, thanks to the installation of additional thermal insulation of the ceiling, the side walls, the front wall and the wheel arches.

So far, over 50 vehicles from Bolechowo have been delivered to Estonia, and all of these are trolleybuses driving on the streets of the capital city of Tallinn. Based on the outcome of the tests, which are slated to end on 31 August 2019, the municipal authorities of Tartu will develop a long-term transport strategy for the city.