Amsterdam public transport agency GVB will expand its electric fleet with the purchase of 84 new-generation VDL Citeas from VDL Bus & Coach. The agency will begin deploying the new electric buses in 2023.

VDL will deliver 30 articulated VDL Citeas of type LF-181 and 54 VDL Citeas LF-122. VDL is also responsible for deploying the charging infrastructure. The contract includes an option to buy an additional 130 units.

GVB has been using electric buses since 2019. It has 44 currently in service, and will add 31 more this summer.

GVB transports approximately 938,000 passengers on an average working day by metro, tram, bus and ferry. Amsterdam’s subways and trams already run on 100% green electricity, and some electric ferries are also in operation. The city plans to offer completely emission-free bus transport in 2025.

VDL Bus & Coach introduced the first Citea SLF-120 Electric in 2013. The new generation of electric Citeas features floor-mounted batteries, improved range, a one-piece composite side wall and an ergonomic driver’s environment. The Citea product range now consists of four length variants and five types.

The new Citeas will be deployed in a number of markets this year, including the Netherlands (Eindhoven), Finland (Kotka and Lahti), Belgium (all of Flanders), Germany (Oberhausen and Braunschweig) and France (Bordeaux). 

“With the development of the new-generation VDL Citea, we have developed a versatile mobility platform that matches the sustainability ambitions of our customers,” said President Willem van der Leegte of VDL Group. “In this way, we will remain at the forefront of the public transport market, where we are leading the way in Europe on the basis of our more than 150 million electric kilometers driven.”

“More and more inhabitants of Amsterdam will experience how the droning acceleration of buses is disappearing from the city and that the air is cleaner when they cycle or walk around,” said Claudia Zuiderwijk, Managing Director of GVB.

“With this order, the GVB fleet will eventually be entirely VDL,” says Ard Romers, Managing Director of VDL Bus & Coach Nederland. “GVB is going to phase out the last diesel buses and permanently switch to zero-emission VDL Citeas in Amsterdam. More than 1,100 VDL Citeas now cover over 135,000 electric kilometers together every day in a large number of European cities and regions.”

Source: VDL Bus & Coach