Study reveals cost-effective options for cutting bus emissions 04 July 2013

Light weighting, battery electric and most hybrids technologies – including stop-start, mild, diesel electric, mechanical flywheel and hydraulic – can not only cut carbon emissions from buses but also provide short-term payback at current fuel prices and subsidy levels.

That's chief among the findings of a new report, prepared for the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership (LowCVP) by Ricardo.

The report develops technology roadmaps to illustrate when each is likely to be ready for deployment with bus operators, focusing on the 2012—2020 and 2020—2050 timescales.

Other vehicle and powertrain technologies investigated in the report include alternative fuels, such as CNG (compressed natural gas), biomethane, hydrotreated vegetable oil, second-generation biodiesel and hydrogen.

The study confirms several technologies – notably full electrical hybrid – as having the potential to make improvements of more than 30% on bus CO2 emissions.

It also shows that the most technically effective technologies can incur high investment costs, leading to payback periods as long as 20 years – and hence the requirement for subsidies or regulation.

Equally, the report suggests that technologies such as mild hybrid and flywheel hybrid can lead to smaller emission benefits (although still significant at up to 20%), but with payback periods of less than four years.

"Efforts to promote bus usage must go hand-in-hand with moves to introduce greener, more efficient vehicles," comments LowCVP managing director Andy Eastlake.

"Buses produce about 2% of the UK's greenhouse gas emissions and, though a relatively small proportion of the total, this sector has high visibility and should continue to show leadership in the battle against climate change," he continues.

"This report complements the Automotive Council's technology roadmaps development work, identifying the optimal solutions for bus operation from an environmental and economic perspectives," he adds.

Author
Brian Tinham

Related Companies
Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership

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