Moscow is rapidly electrifying its municipal bus fleet. The Russian capital began replacing diesel buses with electric buses in 2018, and now operates some 600 e-buses on 42 routes. Over the next 4 years, the city plans to buy 2,675 more units, and authorities expect to have converted the entire fleet to electric drive by 2032.

“Starting this year, we are going to buy the e-buses only,” said Moscow’s Deputy Mayor for Transport Maksim Liksutov. “We seek to make our city as clean and [safe] for its citizens as we can. Obviously not only the rest of Russia but also European countries try to attain our level, since even now there are more e-buses in Moscow than in other European capitals.”

Moscow transit authorities estimate that replacing a diesel bus with an EV leads to an average reduction in CO₂ emissions of 60.7 tons per year.

In 2022, the city plans to implement another stage of transport electrification, equipping its e-buses with electric heaters.

“Transport running on electricity is safer for the city ecology than cars using an internal combustion engine,” said Denis Endachev of Russia’s Automobile and Automotive Engines Institute. “For a large city with dense traffic and a population of more than 12.6 million people, even a partial transition to e-transport can result in positive changes concerning the quality of the common air.”

Source: Green Car Congress
Image: kikimor – stock.adobe.com