Wrightbus showcases fuel cell electric bus in the UK

Wrightbus says its double deck bus uses fuel cell technology to deliver zero emissions while in operation. The StreetDeck fuel cell electric vehicle was displayed at the UK’s Euro Bus Expo 2018 in Birmingham. Fuel cell technology mixes hydrogen and compressed air (oxygen) in a chemical process to generate electric power to drive. The company says the vehicle comes with an extended storage option which increases its range from 200 to 265 miles. Also, the bus can be refuelled in seven minutes. Stre
November 7, 2018 Read time: 2 mins
6616 Wrightbus says its double deck bus uses fuel cell technology to deliver zero emissions while in operation. The StreetDeck fuel cell electric vehicle was displayed at the UK’s Euro Bus Expo 2018 in Birmingham.


Fuel cell technology mixes hydrogen and compressed air (oxygen) in a chemical process to generate electric power to drive.

The company says the vehicle comes with an extended storage option which increases its range from 200 to 265 miles. Also, the bus can be refuelled in seven minutes.

StreetDeck operates on a Ballard FCveloCity fuel cell, a 189 Siemens drivetrain and a 48 kW traction battery pack. It can carry 64 seated passengers and 21 standing.

Also, the bus comes with lightweight hydrogen storage tanks and an automatic battery management system which monitors and balances the stored power while in operation.

Earlier this year, Wrightbus was chosen as the supplier of double deck buses in the UK for the Joint Initiative for Hydrogen Vehicles in Europe (JIVE).

The JIVE initiative’s stated ambition is to promote the development of fuel cell technology in buses throughout Europe. The scheme is supported by grants from the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking – a public-private partnership which supports research and development of the technology.

In the UK, up to 50 fuel cell powered buses have been operating in Birmingham, Aberdeen and London. In addition, the scope of the project includes the deployment of 139 vehicles across nine locations in Europe.

In %$Linker: 2 Internal <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary /> 4 35082 0 link-external May false /sections/general/news/ballard-to-deploy-40-fuel-cell-modules-to-power-buses-in-germany/ false false%>, Ballard Power Systems deployed 40 FCveloCity-HD fuel cell modules to power buses under JIVE. The delivery was part of an agreement with bus manufacturer bus manufacturer Van Hool in Belgium.

Van Hool plans to deploy 30 buses in Germany with the Regionalverkehr Köln transit agency in Cologne, and the remaining ten buses with WSW Mobil in Wuppertal.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • EU states support Denmark’s diesel ban proposal
    October 15, 2019
    Ten European Union (EU) countries have backed a proposal from Denmark to ban the sale of diesel and petrol cars by 2040. Danish climate and energy minister Dan Jorgensen told Reuters that the ban will hopefully put pressure on the European Commission to the propose phasing out of fossil fuel-powered vehicles. He also suggested allowing individual countries to implement this measure if the EU could not agree on a union-wide ban. Lithuania, Latvia, Slovenia, Bulgaria and other countries have suggested tha
    Read More
  • Eastern Europe has the most noxious drivers in the continent
    March 29, 2018
    The Czech Republic has the highest levels of toxic emissions caused by drivers, in a study of 25 European countries conducted by The Eco Experts. It found that Poland, Estonia, Croatia and Slovakia ranked in the top five counties for noxious drivers, making Eastern Europe the most toxic region in the continent. Czech drivers ranked the highest for using old and poor quality cars that are just over 14 years old. Results also showed that the number of cars powered by sustainable fuel alternatives is at 0.7
    Read More
  • Speed cameras targeted by French ‘yellow vest’ protesters
    January 14, 2019
    Protesters in France have put more than half of the country’s speed cameras out of action, according to the country’s authorities. Interior minister Christophe Castaner said that almost 60% of France’s 3,200 cameras have been affected, the BBC reports. Castaner said that the cameras had been “neutralised, attacked, or destroyed” by ‘yellow vest’ protesters in a move which threatened road safety. Motorists are required by law to keep high-visibility vests, or ‘gilets jaunes’ in their cars. These yel
    Read More
  • Proin makes work zones safer
    March 25, 2014
    Spanish company Proin manufactures a range of products for work zones. Its PROINbal brand encompasses road delineators, cylindrical bollards, polyethylene barriers, road studs, beam and concrete barrier reflectors, speed bumps, cones and other luminous devices.
    Read More

Highlighted Content