EV Bus Fire

[Paullus1959]

I saw a few months ago that about half of these London hybrid buses are off the road because the battery at 5 years old has expired and it costs too much to replace them.

I wonder who forgot to tell 'em?

I had a quick search regarding this but the only articles I found hark back to 2015 when many hybrid busses were running mainly on diesel due to poor battery performance.

'Hybrid' Routemasters reliant on diesel due to battery issues

Major problems reported with London's new hybrid Routemaster buses, particularly with regards to battery life, has led to TfL being forced to replace batteries in 200 of the vehicles and defend their green credentials

www.wired.co.uk

 

[ProfJohnL]

I had a quick search regarding this but the only articles I found hark back to 2015 when many hybrid busses were running mainly on diesel due to poor battery performance.

'Hybrid' Routemasters reliant on diesel due to battery issues

Major problems reported with London's new hybrid Routemaster buses, particularly with regards to battery life, has led to TfL being forced to replace batteries in 200 of the vehicles and defend their green credentials

www.wired.co.uk

When I searched I did not find this article, so thank you.

However as Paulus points out it is dated 2015, and it also says the batteries that have been replaced have been done under warranty - not at TFL's expense.

You cannot draw the universal conclusion that hybrid busses do not work from this article, as it does not explain why the batteries have been failing. in fact it reads more as though the bus manufacturer may have incorrectly specified the type or size of battery needed, They may have not fully understood the operating conditions or TFL's busses which as a design fault rather than a battery fault.

Evidenced from other parts of the world hybrid and full BEV busses do work effectively in many other places.

Specifically regarding the pictures of the fire damaged bus, there does not seem to have been the inferno that most people expect to see from a Li-ion fire. The problem may have been nothing to do with the electrics.

 

[Dustydog]

The bus involved was route 200 which I used to get to school in the 60s, diesel then!
This article is fascinating and shows how bus EV technology is very advanced. By all accounts the Lithium Iron phosphate batteries used are less likely to self ignite than the standard L-ion. Note the alleged range👍.

Top 10: Electric Bus Companies

EV Magazine shares insight into the companies developing and delivering electric buses to mature and decarbonise yet another transportation vertical

evmagazine.com

 

[Buckman]

Electric busses have been around since the 19th century so just making a come back. In those days the pollution was horse manure.

 

[otherclive]

Thanks that is an Interesting read. Last year I followed a BYD electric coach through Warwickshire on the Fosse. It’s take off, and speed up hills was very good. The number of Chinese makes plus Indian in your link must worry the western bus manufacturers. In 2022 77% or 542600) of Chinese urban buses were “new energy vehicles” ( PHEV, EV and fuel cell) and in 2022 84% the “new energy fleet” was pure electric.

How China’s buses shaped the world’s EV revolution

In the 2010s, China rolled out a rapid and widespread electric bus network. Today, China's electric buses are influencing not just the country's EV uptake, but the world's.

www.bbc.com

 

[Martin_E]

MOD never have insurance, just cough up if they need to as it’s very much cheaper to do this