Friday, 23 December 2022
The streets of Greater Christchurch are a little quieter, and a lot greener, with Go Bus rolling out a further 16 new electric buses in partnership with Environment Canterbury.
The new vehicles join a further 28 electric vehicles added to the fleet in the last two years, which Environment Canterbury Chair Peter Scott believes has already impacted the city.
“Customers have loved telling us how much they enjoy riding on our new electric buses, finding them a smoother, quieter, more comfortable ride. We’ve heard from many cyclists and pedestrians as well, who enjoy the cleaner air when passing by one of these buses!,” he said.
Electric buses now make up 20% of Environment Canterbury’s Metro Urban fleet, saving an estimated 18 per cent carbon dioxide equivalent emissions annually, the equivalent to nearly 2,400 tonnes of carbon dioxide, compared to a fully diesel fleet.
“The emissions reduction from these electric buses includes 16,000 kilograms of Nitrogen Oxide Emissions (NOx) and 140 kilograms of PM10 which is also a win for air quality*.”
Go Bus will continue to support Environment Canterbury in replacing the remainder of the fleet over the coming years, under its commitment to having a fully zero-emissions fleet by 2035.
Inspiring a new generation of passengers
Four-year-old Amelie, from Christchurch, officially launched the 16 new electric buses into Metro’s fleet on Tuesday. Amelie has been obsessed with electric vehicles since her family bought an electric car last year.
Metro’s customer service team helped answer all of Amelie’s questions about electric buses, and today, she joined Chair Scott as the official Metro ribbon-cutter.
Growing greener and cleaner
In New Zealand, Kinetic owns Go Bus and NZ Bus with a growing zero emission bus network across Christchurch, Auckland, Wellington and Tauranga.
Welcoming the 16 new electric vehicles after a road convoy from Auckland, Kinetic Head of New Zealand, Calum Haslop, said that the road trip was an ideal opportunity to demonstrate the vehicle’s capabilities.
“These electric buses can do around 400 kilometres between charges, so the 1000-kilometre drive from Auckland took them two days, charging in the middle of the day at Taupo then overnight at Wellington,” he said. “Our buses typically travel 300 kilometres a day on Metro’s network, so it’s clear that they are more than capable of completing a full day’s work.”
“It is incredibly exciting for us to support Environment Canterbury with the transition of Metro’s fleet to greener and cleaner technology, with every bus that goes into service replacing a diesel one having an immediate positive impact on the community, on the planet and on the experience for people who choose to travel with Metro every day,” said Mr Haslop.
Supporting governments on the road to net zero
Kinetic is Australasia’s largest owner and operator of battery electric buses (BEB), with 10 electric bus depots and a zero emission bus fleet growing to 300 in 2023.
*Data provided by Emission: Impossible Ltd, a New Zealand consultancy specialising in air quality and greenhouse gas emissions, and sustainable transport management.
