Our beautiful city of Cape Town is going to be making its public transport system much more eco-friendly, thanks to the introduction of electric buses. This decision forms part of Cape Town’s Energy 2040 Strategy that is focused on energy efficiency and renewable energy when it comes to both electricity and transport.
The demand for more transport services is high, especially in South Africa where our transport needs to be much more accessible and convenient. This puts a huge pressure on the environment, though. As it stands, Cape Town’s bus service MyCiTi conducts up to 60,000 bus rides per day!
By choosing electric buses, this will make the city much greener.
Things to Bear in Mind
The electrical buses can travel for approximately 250km before they will need to be recharged. This distance is the equivalent of a trip that would take approximately four hours.
Charging stations will therefore have to be built all around the city so that the process of using the electric buses will be convenient and smooth. In addition, there will have to be training for bus drivers and mechanical engineers who will offer bus maintenance.
Eco Bus Benefits
Cape Town mayor Patricia De Lille stated that the cost to use electric buses is a lot lower – they save fuel and also result in less maintenance because the buses contain fewer parts that require servicing.
Electric buses are easier to drive and make less noise, which creates a better experience for passengers. Some of the buses will be double-decker ones for more convenient longer journeys.
Charging the buses can also help to make them less costly and save fuel. Instead of diesel buses stopping and starting on their journey, which wastes fuel, optimising their need to stop regularly can make electric buses fill up with energy without the waste of gas.
Cleaner city air. When the buses that are on our roads are not pumping out toxic pollution, this improves the air we breathe.
Image credit: Nolte Lourens / Dollar Photo Club
