Product category:
Industrial Drives/Controls
News Release from: BAE Systems | Subject: HybriDrive
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial
Team on 01 March 2005
Hybrid drive brings green transport to
New York
Orion Bus Industries has completed deliveries on the first of two production orders for hybrid electric buses to New York City's transit agency and has begun deliveries on the second order.
Orion Bus Industries has completed deliveries on the first of two production orders for hybrid electric buses to New York City's transit agency and has begun deliveries on the second order By the end of 2005, MTA New York City Transit will operate the world's largest fleet of hybrid buses, totalling 325 units
In some two million miles of revenue service, the initial 125-unit production fleet - using the HybriDrive diesel-electric propulsion system by BAE Systems - has improved fuel economy more than 30% compared with conventionally powered buses, while significantly reducing emissions: 90% less particulate matter, 40% fewer oxides of nitrogen, and 30% fewer greenhouse gases.
The buses also outperform their conventional counterparts, running quieter and delivering bottom-line fuel savings.
Orion currently is filling a second production order, for 200 of its 40-foot Orion VII low-floor hybrid models, with deliveries scheduled to be completed this year.
Meanwhile, the Roosevelt Island Operating Corp of the State of New York has ordered four Orion VII hybrid buses for use in the island's transit-bus fleet.
The buses, with a similar configuration to those operated by New York City Transit, are scheduled for delivery in 2006.
"Orion Bus Industries is proud of its role in delivering clean, efficient technology to the streets of New York", said Mark Brager, Orion's Vice President of Sales.
"These buses are delivering on the dual promise of lower emissions and better fuel economy while also improving vehicle performance and reducing maintenance needs for transmission and brakes".
At the heart of the Orion VII hybrid bus is the HybriDrive propulsion system provided by BAE Systems.
The system propels the bus with a single electric motor that is powered by a diesel-driven generator and an energy storage unit.
Among the system's benefits: the engine is smaller than that used in conventional buses and runs at optimum speed for clean operation and efficiency; the design offers quicker acceleration, helping drivers merge into heavy traffic; customers enjoy a quieter ride than on a conventional diesel bus; the system design eliminates the transmission, thereby removing a major maintenance item on vehicles operated in heavy stop-and-go conditions; and a regenerative braking system uses the drive motor to slow the bus, effectively turning the motor into a generator to help recharge the energy storage system.
This feature saves energy and also reduces brake wear by about one-third, reducing the frequency of brake maintenance.
"Our hybrid propulsion technology leads the transit industry in combining cleaner emissions and reduced fuel consumption", said Hank McGlynn, Vice President of Power Systems for BAE Systems.
"This is a powerful combination for transit agencies seeking to both reduce fleet emissions and combat the escalating cost of diesel fuel".
Orion Bus Industries, the Mississauga, Ontario-based unit of DaimlerChrysler Commercial Buses North America, and BAE Systems worked with New York City Transit for more than six years to evaluate a demonstration fleet of 10 hybrid buses.
The demonstration units were based on the Orion VI low-floor platform, and the 325 production units are based on the latest Orion VII low-floor design, chosen for its ease of entry and exit, particularly by handicapped passengers.
Orion and BAE Systems filled the initial 125-bus order during 2004 and will deliver 200 buses, fulfilling the second New York hybrid order, by the end of 2005.
The 325 units will comprise the world's largest fleet of hybrid electric buses.
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