The Prague Public Transit Company to buy historically first electric buses of standard length, produced for Prague by Škoda Electric

01. 02. 2021

Prague, 1 February 2021 – Škoda Electric company has won the public tender for the purchase of 14 new electric buses of standard length of 12 metres announced by the Prague Public Transit Company (DPP) last year. Within this contract, the first Škoda E’City electric bus should arrive in Prague at the end of December this year and the remaining 13 electric buses at the beginning of the next year. DPP plans to deploy them mainly on lines no. 154 and 213. The total value of the contract, including possible options, e.g. for the purchase of new accumulators, is CZK 207 million.

The delivery of 14 Škoda E’City vehicles for DPP and Prague public transport has at least two firsts: They will be historically the first electric buses of standard twelve-meter length ever which DPP purchases to its fleet. At the same time, this is the first delivery of electric buses that Škoda Electric implements on the Temsa bus platform.

Škoda E’City is a 100% low-floor battery electric bus of the M3/I category with full-vehicle air conditioning and a transport capacity of 69 people. To facilitate boarding and exit of passengers, it is equipped with a body tilting system (so-called kneeling), which enables to lower the boarding edge of the door. The pneumatic chassis system, on the other hand, also enables the height of the body to be raised. The Škoda E’City is also a fully emission-free electric bus. Its heating and air conditioning are driven exclusively electrically, unlike the vast majority of electric buses operated in the Czech Republic, which use standard diesel heating, that produces a significant amount of emissions, especially in winter.

The new Škoda E’City electric buses meet all the Quality Standards of the Prague Integrated Transport, such as low floor, full-vehicle air conditioning, seating arrangement, check-in and information system. In addition to the PID Standards, a space has been created, in the area of the second door, for the transport of 2 prams or 2 wheelchairs, or a combination of 1 pram and 1 wheelchair. Inside, there are two LCD monitors for displaying operating information, the electric bus is equipped with a device for automatic counting of transported passengers and with a camera system, including an accident camera. The manufacturer provides a warranty period of 67 months for the vehicle and 85 months for the traction battery, during which time the electric bus must be able to reach the declared range, i.e. 100 km in regular city traffic, including the use of air conditioning or heating.

"We have promised that by 2024 emissions in Prague will be reduced by a fifth, by 2030 a third of buses will be powered by electric propulsion and one of the steps is the purchase of the new electric buses. My goal is for DPP to be the flagship among transport companies in the Czech Republic and to use modern technologies of the 21st century. Prague will become a city in which bus services within public transport will be normally provided by quiet, emission-free vehicles using alternative fuels, and by purchasing the first 100% emission-free electric buses for the Prague public transport, we are contributing to the fulfilment of Prague's Climate Commitment. We reduce traffic noise in Prague, contribute to cleaner air we breathe, and improve the environment as a whole. I want Prague to be a friendly place to live and the DPP bus fleet will go for it," said Mr. Adam Scheinherr, Deputy Mayor for Transport and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of DPP.

"By purchasing the first 14 electric buses, we are fulfilling our strategy of alternative fuels and we are starting to build a new fleet of low-emission and emission-free road vehicles at DPP. We want to make significant progress in it this year. As part of this strategy, we would like to announce further public tenders for the purchase of 140 hybrid buses, 15 articulated trolleybuses for line no. 140, 45 battery trolleybuses of standard length for electrification of lines on the left bank of the Vltava River. And next year also to test a hydrogen-powered bus. In parallel with the purchase of the new electric buses, we are preparing a charging infrastructure for them in the Vršovice garage and at the Strašnická and Želivského terminal stops, which we want to complete this year so that we can put the first Škoda E’City vehicle into regular operation in Prague at the end of this year.”
said Mr. Petr Witowski, Chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO of DPP.

"I am pleased that Škoda has succeeded in this very tender. We will supply vehicles to our capital city which do not burden the environment in any way, have quiet operation and, in addition, low operating costs, thus their operation is sustainable in the long run. They will be new 12-meter fully low-floor vehicles with comfortable equipment - such as full-vehicle air conditioning, comfortable seats, a sophisticated information system and advanced energy management of the entire vehicle fleet," added Mr. Petr Brzezina, Chairman of the Board of Directors and President of the Škoda Transportation Group.

Basic technical data of the Škoda E’City electric bus:

Manufacturer: ŠKODA ELECTRIC a. s.
Length: 12.095 m
Width: 2.55 m
Height: 3.3 m
Wheelbase: 5,805 mm
Total maximum weight: 19,000 kg
Maximum speed: 80 km/h
Number of axles: 2
Number of driven axles: 1
Number of steered axles: 1
Number of doors: 3 double-wing
Boarding height: 32 cm
Total number of seats: 28 (of which 2 folding)
Total number of passengers: 69
Declared service life: 12 years
Guaranteed declared range: 100 km in normal city traffic using air conditioning or heating
Engine power: 160 kW
Fast charging power: up to 150 kW
Backup plug-in charging: The vehicle is equipped with a standardised charging socket of CCS 2 type.

Fast charging using a two-pole pantograph:

The vehicle is equipped with fast charge using a sprung pantograph. It will be charged in the Vršovice home garage or at the Strašnická and Želivského terminal stops via a trolleybus trolley from the 600 V DC network, alternatively 750 V DC can also be used. Most traction equipment, galvanic isolator and pantograph for fast two-pole charging from the trolleybus trolley are located on the roof of the electric bus. Charging takes place automatically, when charging is complete or when the traction battery overheats or fails, charging is interrupted, and the vehicle is disconnected. The pantograph is equipped with a camera to check the correct position and its function.

Briefly about the history of electric buses in DPP:

The first electric buses purchased by DPP in recent history were two Breda Menarinibus Zeus M 200E munibuses reg. no. 3001 and 3002, which were deployed from the Hostivař garage from January 2010 to line no. 292 from Malostranské náměstí to the hospital below Petřín. Due to the high failure rate, DPP withdrew them from operation in November 2011, the manufacturer repurchased them in autumn 2012 and they left the Hostivař garage on 18 October 2012. In January 2014, Siemens/Rampini Alè electric midibus, borrowed from the Viennese transport company, appeared for several days on line 216 as part of a demonstration tour. The results of this vehicle in the conditions of the Prague public transport were unconvincing. In the same year, the SOR EBN 8 electric minibus was demonstrated to DPP. Other electric buses appeared in DPP only in 2015 as part of a trial operation. As of 1 September 2015, DPP began testing the 11-meter battery electric bus SOR EBN 11 reg. no. 4001, leased from the manufacturer, in regular operation on lines no. 163 and 213. The trial operation of this vehicle ended at the end of August 2017, during which time it drove more than 140,000 km. After a break of one and a half year, the manufacturer made it available to DPP for use again; DPP has been putting it into regular operation to this day. In the meantime, it has driven another more than 100,000 km. One of the last types of electric buses, that DPP tested in regular operation, was a prototype of the electric bus SOR NS 12 electric, which was deployed on lines no. 109 and 239 from 9 October 2017 to 10 October 2019, and drove more than 67,000 km.

Škoda E’City

Elektrobus Škoda E'City autor: Škoda Electric

Contacts for more information:
E-mail: tiskoveoddeleni@dpp.cz