Skip to main content

Gothenburg launches electric bus route 55

Gothenburg, Sweden, has launched the city’s first route for electric buses on bus route 55 using three completely electrically driven buses and seven electric hybrid buses, all from Volvo Buses. The buses are also equipped with onboard wi-fi and phone charging facilities.
June 16, 2015 Read time: 2 mins

Gothenburg, Sweden, has launched the city’s first route for electric buses on bus route 55 using three completely electrically driven buses and seven electric hybrid buses, all from 609 Volvo Buses. The buses are also equipped with onboard wi-fi and phone charging facilities.

The buses are silent and emission-free and run on batteries that are quickly recharged with wind power and hydropower-generated renewable electricity at the terminal stops.

Bus route 55 is a result of ElectriCity, a collaboration between research, industry and society that develops, tests and demonstrates new, attractive sustainable collective transport for the future. ElectriCity also develops and tests new bus stop systems, traffic management systems, safety concepts and energy supply systems.

“ElectriCity and route 55 are concrete proof of how Gothenburg is being developed into a denser, more sustainable and open city with attractive public spaces and a rich urban life. The project also demonstrates our ambition and strategy to attract expertise and investment that help reduce environmental impact and develop collaboration between authorities, industry and academia,” says Anneli Hulthén, chair of the City Executive in Gothenburg.

“The Volvo Group aims to be the world leader in sustainable transport solutions. A unique collaboration in Gothenburg enables us to launch the electric bus route here and remain a leader in the development of future public transport,” says Niklas Gustafsson, chief sustainability officer, Volvo Group.

Related Content

  • February 10, 2017
    Belgian cities opt for Volvo electric buses
    Volvo Buses has secured a major order for electric buses from Belgian public transport company TEC Group, which has ordered 90 Volvo 7900 Electric Hybrid buses and 12 charging stations to be deployed in the cities of Charleroi and Namur. The charging stations will be supplied by ABB. Volvo's electric hybrids and ABB's fast-charging systems are based on a common interface known as OppCharge, which enables the charging stations to also be used by electrified buses from other vehicle manufacturers. OppCharg
  • September 19, 2017
    New services and equipment helps cities tackle air quality issues
    With poor urban air quality shortening lives and fines being imposed for breaching pollution limits, authorities are seeking ways to clean up their cities. Poor air quality is topping the agenda for city authorities across the globe. In the UK, for example, a report from the Royal Colleges of Physicians and of Paediatrics and Child Health, concluded that poor outdoor air quality shortens the lives of around 40,000 people a year – principally by undermining the health of people with heart and/or lung prob
  • September 19, 2017
    Volvo secures further electric bus order in Norway
    Norwegian public transport operator Tide Buss has placed an order for 25 Volvo 7900 electric buses for operation in the city of Trondheim. The fully electric buses will run on four routes in the city, covering distances of between 12 and 15 km each, with operation due to start in August 2019. The buses will be fast-charged using opportunity charging, via rails installed at the end stops. The charging stations will be based on an open interface known as OppCharge, which means they can be used by othe
  • April 9, 2014
    Gothenburg’s year of congestion charging
    A year after it went live, Colin Sowman examines the technology used for Gothenburg’s congestion charging system and the effect the scheme has had on commuters. When it comes to long-term planning, the Scandinavians take some beating.The West Swedish Agreement is a case in point. Introduced in 2009, the Agreement runs through to around 2027 and aims to create an attractive, sustainable and growing region, and over that timescale the number of journeys is expected to increase by a third. Therefore the Agreem