Taiwan to Roll Out 1st Homegrown Hybrid Bus in 2011
2009/09/29 | By Quincy LiangTaipei, Sept. 29, 2009 (CENS)--Taiwan is building independently its first hybrid bus that will likely be operational in 2011, according to the Automotive Research & Testing Center (ARTC), the largest transportation-vehicle testing and R&D organization on the island.
The ARTC set up the "Low Chassis Hybrid Bus R&D Alliance" recently to focus on building a homegrown, including design, bus driven by electric/diesel power, aiming to develop a competitive bus for Taiwan, with annual output to total about 2,000 vehicles and export sales to Europe, U.S. and Southeast Asia.
Previous to the hybrid bus alliance, the Taiwan Automotive Research Consortium (TARC) had set up the Electric Vehicle R&D Alliance to integrate resources available in government, industry, academia, and research institutes on the island.
Joe Huang, president of ARTC who saw the alliance signing ceremony, said with subsidies from the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) and efforts by the hybrid-bus alliance, Taiwan will likely build a homegrown hybrid bus by 2011. The vehicle would not only further enhance green public transport but also show the island's strong technology capability globally.
A senior MOEA official pointed out that all of Taiwan's buses are locally assembled with imported parts, making type certification, fuel-efficiency and emissions performance for local bus assemblers difficult. He thinks the hybrid bus alliance a step in the right direction, one that would localize bus building and green engine development.
According to Huang, the alliance also aims to design and build homegrown chassis, high-strength and lightweight cabins, hybrid propulsion, and electrical systems etc.. stressing that more R&D projects would help Taiwan sizably upgrade know-how in bus development.
Despite electric buses already being run in Taiwan, said a senior manager of a bus operator, battery/diesel hybrid buses should be an improvement, for battery power would minimize the worst emissions at start-up and diesel power is economical, especially for highway driving.