379 BYD electric buses to be used in the Colombian capital of Bogotá.
BYD‘s electric bus arm is really booming in South America, as after big orders in Chile, now even bigger orders come from the Colombian capital of Bogotá.
The Chinese manufacturer will deliver 379 electric buses to the capital’s TransMilenio SA mass transport authority, starting in September 2020.
That’s on top of 64 buses purchased by the city of Medellín earlier this year (see video below), which in total gives a fleet of 443 BYDs.
” Along with the 64 pure electric buses in Medellín, Colombia will have a total of 443 BYD electric buses, putting it at the vanguard of Latin America’s rapid push towards public transport electrification.
BYD recently received also the largest electric bus order in the U.S. (130 K7M), which makes BYD the top player on both continents. U.S. orders remain relatively small though.
“The buses will be manufactured entirely by BYD and operate in the Integrated Public Transportation System – SITP, with the towns of Usme and Fontibón to be the first to enjoy the firm’s cutting-edge electric bus technology. This order also sees BYD again smashing the record for the largest electric bus order in the Americas, following its delivery of 183 buses to Chile during August 2019.”
“It is estimated that in its first year of operation, this fleet will cancel out 21,900 tons of CO2 and 526 kilograms of PM 2.5 pollutant particles. It will also be 60% cheaper to operate these buses, compared to traditional diesel-powered buses.”
María Consuelo Araujo, General Manager of TransMilenio SA said:
“With the arrival of zero emission electric buses to the SITP, we fulfilled a dream that this administration had proposed, and for which we worked hard, to give the city a better public transport service, with technology that’s both state-of-the-art and user-friendly,”.
Enrique Wolf, General Manager of the Somos Group (one of the local bus operators that will run BYD electric buses) said:
“The Somos Group has over 50 years of experience in passenger transport in Bogotá and 20 years in the TransMilenio system, for us the operation of electric buses is a great challenge and we trust that it will bring great benefits to all of Bogotá’s citizens,” said Enrique Wolf, General Manager of the Somos Group. “BYD has shown great interest in the Latin American and Colombian market and was an essential part of our decision to enter this business, by giving us the necessary confidence and solidity that should support such an important process.”
Lara Zhang, Country Manager of BYD Colombia said:
“BYD’s successful bid to provide 379 buses today is a great achievement for Bogotá and TransMilenio, which is leading the global shift to cleaner and more sustainable transport. More importantly, these electric buses produce zero emissions and are environmentally friendly, bringing better air quality and improved living conditions to local people. Today is an important milestone in the transport history of Bogotá, and every Bogotá resident should be proud of being part of the great transition to electric.”
BYD electric buses for Medellín:
