WORLD’S FIRST SOLAR ELECTRIC BUS UNVEILED IN ADELAIDE
The Adelaide City Council is about to raise the international standard for environmentally sustainable commuter transport, with the introduction of the world’s first solar-powered electric bus. Called Tindo – the Kaurna Aboriginal word for sun – the bus is the first in the world to be recharged using 100% solar energy, generated by a unique solar photovoltaic (PV) system installed on the roof of the new Adelaide Central Bus Station.
Tindo is at the cutting edge of sustainable solar energy technology – using the power of the sun to drive a commuter transport vehicle which operates with zero tailpipe emission and is fully carbon neutral. It’s the culmination of the Adelaide City Council’s eight-year, million-dollar project to deliver a pure electric community bus, with the solar recharge component made possible by the support of the Australian Government through the Adelaide Solar City program.
The bus is made by Designline International in New Zealand, the solar electric bus doesn’t have a combustion engine, which makes it very quiet. Using solar PV panels supplied by BP Solar, the solar PV system at the new Adelaide Central Bus Station will generate almost 70,000 kilowatt hours of zero carbon emissions electricity each year, making it currently the largest grid-connected system in Adelaide. The bus uses 11 Swiss-made Zebra sodium/nickel battery modules which give it unprecedented energy storage and operational range.
With an operational range of 200 kilometres between charges under typical urban conditions, the air-conditioned solar electric bus is able to carry 27 passengers, with 25 seated and two wheelchair spaces. The solar PV recharging system and resulting carbon neutrality sets Tindo apart from other electric buses used around the world.
