Auckland (NZ) Transport is beginning a 2-year trial of a 3-axle hydrogen fuel cell bus.The trial will assess operational performance how operating costs compare to diesel and electric buses of similar configurations. The bus carries 43 seated and 31 standing adults.

The bus was built by Global Bus Ventures in Christchurch and will be operated with Howick and Eastern Buses by Transdev for the initial two-year trial. The bus is fitted with a Ballard fuel cell and ZF drive system. It has a range of some 400 km (249 miles).

The bus will be refuelled at the Ports of Auckland with green hydrogen.

The trial will cost $1.175 million. The estimated cost of the full transition to zero-emission buses (including EV and hydrogen) is expected to cost between $150 million to $200 million.

Auckland Council had earlier committed to stop buying new diesel buses from 2021—four years earlier than its initial target. Auckland Transport has also advanced its zero-emissions target from its vehicle exhausts to 2030, from an earlier target of 2040, subject to council funding.