The order from CTM Cagliari comprises a mixture of standard and articulated Urbino electric models: 80 12-metre vehicles and 18 artic vehicles.

At the first UITP summit in four years, we report on developments related to two topics: electric vehicles and artificial intelligence.

Rebus Regionalbus Rostock, a public transport operator serving the Rostock district in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, has ordered 47 ‘Urbino 12 hydrogen’ buses and 5 ‘Urbino 18 hydrogen’ articulated buses.

The proportion of vehicles sold with electric, hydrogen and hybrid drives increased from 41% to over half (55% - 823 versus 669 units with internal combustion engines), marking the first time in the company’s history that buses with alternative drives have outsold conventional ones. 

The vehicles will be powered by BAE Systems’ third generation Series-E full hybrid drivetrain, consisting of a 250kW electric traction motor, a 150kW Euro 6 combustion engine, and a 1kWh ultracapacitor energy storage system.

Stadtwerke Aschaffenberg Verkehrs has acquired 12 buses in total, ten of which are ‘Urbino 12 hydrogen’ models, while the remaining two are ‘Urbino 18 hydrogen’ articulated buses.

The new building covers a surface area of 10,000m2 in the immediate vicinity of the company’s main factory, providing greater storage space for the parts and components Solaris requires to assemble its buses and trolleybuses.

Iriarte replaces Javier Calleja, who has served as CEO since October 2018.

The tender is worth almost EUR60m and will see Solaris delivering 100 12-metre Trollinos at the end of 2024.

35 battery-electric buses - part of a contract worth EUR19m - will be delivered to the city of Riga by the end of 2023.

Report written following the latest FIAA exhibition, a bus and coach show held between 18-21 October in Madrid.

The 18-metre articulated bus, with 8 storage tanks holding up to 51.2kg of hydrogen, can travel 350 km carrying up to 138 passengers.