Operation

Since May 2016, the vehicle has been used in regular operation in the city of Leipzig at the Leipziger Verkehrsbetriebe (LVB) GmbH bus line 89. The batteries are recharged after each cycle during the bus’s regular turnaround times. The special feature of this operation is the energy supply: The charging takes place with electric energy via the Leipzig tramway traction network, thus keeping the infrastructure expenditures at a minimum. Due to the many route sections with low average speed and high passenger figures on this line, the energy demand increased to 1.3 kWh/km.

From November 3rd, 2014 until January 30th, 2015, the Dresdner Verkehrsbetriebe AG tested all developed components in regular operation on a 14.4 km-long segment of the bus line 61. Subsequently, the data from over 9,500 kilometers travelled during the field test was analyzed and interpreted.

Both the fast charging station (250 kW) and the pulse charging station (450 kW during the field test), were erected across from the bus depot Dresden-Gruna and tested as well. Due to the energy-efficient design of the bus, it was possible to recharge the energy consumed during one route cycle within 4.5 minutes of fast charging, so that no interferences with the regular schedule were caused by the recharging process.

The key technologies developed within project EDDA-Bus proved themselves extremely reliable in the field test. Vehicle failures were almost exclusively brought about by the »teething troubles« of components that are not immediately connected to the electric propulsion (door control, heating, air compressor, etc.)