MPK Poznań in Poland has ordered 37 electric buses made by Solaris. The zero-emission vehicles will be delivered in the second half of 2021. The buses will join 21 Solaris electric busesthat have been carrying Poznań residents for a few months now.

Thirty-one of the new electric buses are 12-meter models; the remaining 6 are articulated 18-meter versions. The contract is worth over PLN 90 million (US$22.4 million) net. Deliveries will begin in autumn 2021.

Further electric buses mean even more ecological public transport, cleaner air, and therefore better quality of life, and this is what we care about most. It is not yet a year since the first e-buses came to Poznań, and more are being bought. This shows the consistency of the City and MPK Poznań in efforts to improve living conditions in the city. It is worth emphasizing that these activities are part of a wider program. We are currently preparing the Strategy for the Development of Electromobility for the City of Poznań by 2035. The main goal of the program is to support the development of the broadly defined electromobility policy and sustainable development of transport and mobility in Poznan.

—Jacek Jaśkowiak, Mayor of the City of Poznań

All 37 vehicles will be equipped with Solaris High Power batteries designed for fast charging. The Urbino 12 vehicles will feature 4 packs with a capacity of more than 120 kWh, whereas the articulated units will be fitted with 6 packs with a capacity of more than 180 kWh.

Throughout the day the batteries will be recharged by means of one of a few fast pantograph chargers located at the bus terminals Os. Sobieskiego and Os. Garbary, where additional chargers will be set up in the future.

Charging devices will also be installed at the terminal Górczyn and the bus depot at Kacza street (currently, at night the electric vehicles are charged via a plug connector at the bus depot at Warszawska street).

The newly ordered Solaris buses will be equipped similarly to their predecessors. The driveline of the Urbino electric will consist of an electric axle with two integrated motors boasting a power of 125 kW each. As a novelty the bus will be fitted with a traction inverter produced in SiC technology, which will allow to reduce the energy consumption in the bus.

The air-conditioned buses will be monitored by a system of indoor cameras and, for the first time in buses for Poznań, also, of outdoor cameras monitoring the right side of the bus and the pantograph. For the passengers’ comfort there will be a comprehensive passenger information system available on board consisting of readable modern destination displays, interior displays, a voice announcement system and screens displaying information generated by the operator. Completely low-floor vehicles will have a dedicated room for wheelchairs. They will also feature space for bicycles and USB charging ports as well as external door lighting.

Poland ranks fifth in Europe as regards the total number of electric buses in cities. Having delivered about 70% of all electric buses to the domestic market, Solaris is the main partner for Polish cities and public transport operators in the transformation to emission-free public transport.