We've recently seen electric city buses being tried out on routes in places like Germany, Sweden and Korea. On January 19th, however, a demonstration program will begin in the UK, which its organizers claim will be one of the most demanding ever. The 5-year project will involve eight electric buses running 17 hours a day, covering a 15-mile (24-km) route in the large British town of Milton Keynes. While the drivers are on their scheduled mid-shift breaks, the buses will be parked over charging coils embedded in the road. Power will be transmitted from those coils to receiving plates located on the underside of the buses – just like the inductive charging setups already in use in most of the other previously-mentioned projects.
All of the Milton Keynes buses will be serviced by two wireless charging points, with a 10-minute charge replenishing the batteries by approximately two thirds. With each bus logging over 56,000 miles (90,123 km) per year, it is estimated the eight vehicles will keep approximately five tonnes (5.5 tons) of particulates and noxious tailpipe emissions, and about 270 tonnes (298 tons) of CO2 from entering the atmosphere each year. The multi-partner project is being led by eFleet Integrated Service, a company set up by Mitsui & Co. Europe and design engineering consultancy Arup.
