BYD (Bring Your Dreams), a Chinese manufacturer of electric storage technologies and vehicles including cars and transit vehicles, has announced the world’s first articulated battery electric transit bus. The bus is 18 metres in length and has a range of 240 km on a single charge. BYD hopes that the new articulated bus will first enter service in the bus rapid transit system in Bogota, Colombia.

According to the Company, its regular 12 metre battery buses offer a 240 km range, up to 40 seats, passenger capacity of up to 120, full air conditioning, top speed of 90kmh or more, and 5 hour charging at 60kW, 480v, or 1.5 hour charging at 200kW, 480v. The vehicles are powered by a proprietary iron-phosphate battery which is claimed to have high energy density and a usable life of more than 6000 cycles or 20 years.

A BYD battery electric bus is currently being evaluated by Société de transport de l’Outaouais, across the river from Ottawa, and will be transferred to Société de transport de Montréal for further in-service evaluation early in 2014.

Details of the articulated bus are at http://www.byd.com/na/news/news-199.html and much more about the Company’s other electric vehicles may be found through the home page.