Electric buses return to Rio

A working group comprising representatives from business, transport and energy efficiency groups, signed a memorandum of understanding in January to begin a feasibility study into the use of electric buses in Rio.

The last time the city experimented with electric buses was in 1918, when energy company Light SA, one of the members of the new working group, operated an electric bus route. According to the group, the priority of the new initiative is vehicles which are quieter and more comfortable, as well as being cleaner and more environmentally sustainable.

“Concerns about vehicles emissions over the past decade have seen an increasing interest in electric vehicles in many countries. Quieter and relatively emissions-free, electric vehicles reduce pollution in cities and minimise greenhouse gas emissions,” said José Luiz Alquéres, president of Light SA.

Competitive running costs
Despite the challenges in bringing electric vehicles back to Brazil, not least the high cost of the vehicles themselves, the working group says that once in place, electric vehicles guarantee a lower operational cost due to low cost of electricity in Brazil, compared to the fossil fuels used by conventional buses.

Partners
As well as Light SA, the members of the electric buses working group are the Commercial Association of Rio de Janeiro (ACRJ), the Brazilian Electric Vehicle Association (ABVE), the Federation of Passenger Transport Companies in Rio de Janeiro State (FETRANSPOR), the Pereira Passos Municipal Institute of Urbanism (IPP) and the National Institute of Energy Efficiency (INEE)