City to trial new hybrid energy bus

Test runs for a new hybrid energy bus to be used in the capital will be conducted from the middle of June until the end of September, Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA) acting director Prayoon Choygeo said yesterday.

The campaign is a joint effort between Thailand and Japan, which has transferred ownership rights for the bus to the BMTA.

According to Mr Prayoon, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) had earlier established an agreement with manufacturer Hino Motors Sales (Thailand) Ltd to hand the vehicle over to the bus operator.

The 12-metre-long, 35-seat bus will be equipped with disabled-friendly features, including a foldable ramp and seat fasteners for a maximum of two wheelchairbound passengers. It also has a built-in slanting mechanism to lower the bus to sidewalk level at stations.

Mr Prayoon said yesterday that trial runs for the bus will be conducted on seven of the BMTA’s routes, from June 16 until Sept 30. It will be used for 15 days per route, he added.

He said a report featuring the results of the trial run will be compiled and examined by the authority’s board shortly after the four-month trial wraps up.

The State Enterprise Policy Office (Sepo), chaired by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, on Wednesday approved a five-year revival plan for the BMTA to improve its quality of service and settle its debt-ridden image.

The bus authority’s president, Nuttachat Charuchinda, said this includes either buying or leasing 3,000 new buses, most of which will be diesel-electricity hybrid vehicles.

“There could be a stipulation included in future tender documents that each firm interested in bidding for bus contracts must participate in test runs to prove their fuel consumption claims,” he said.

The BMTA reports state that Hino’s hybrid bus has a mileage of 3.5km to the litre and that it has its own 90-kilowatt generator. It can reportedly save twice as much fuel as pure diesel buses on average.

Mr Prayoon said the BMTA operates 2,674 buses on 118 routes in Greater Bangkok, most of which are diesel-fueled.