Urban transportation and the automotive world has been influenced in recent years by new forms of mobility with the incorporation of electric energies into the market. In terms of urban mobility, the trend indicates that in the near future we will find electric buses in our cities.

Automobiles, in general, have had negative impact on pollution and on people's quality of life for many years. New transport methods have been presented to solve these problems, such as the idea of having an electric public transport that can alleviate this problem.

If you want to know what the future of public transport and electric buses in cities will be like, check out this Meep article.

The future of public transport

Electric transport is characterized by producing less atmospheric pollution, improving air quality. In addition, it considerably reduces noise pollution, solving several of the problems that accompany the transport of vehicles in large cities. At the same time, the maintenance and costs of electric cars are lower, with a series of advantages that make more and more drivers opt for this option.

The idea of shifting these advantages to urban public transport has gained momentum as a sustainable alternative. Many cities are interested in implementing buses with new technologies in their urban mobility network. Creating electric buses is key to counteracting the effects of climate change, and a panorama of new possibilities is emerging, including what the bus will be like in the future.

Conscious cities

Major cities such as Barcelona and the Spanish capital, Madrid, are committed to green transport, considerably reducing the amount of CO2 emitted by vehicles per year.  Rhode Island Public Transport Authority (RIPTA)  is following this transition to sustainable transport, with plans to progressively add electric buses in the coming years and reduce its carbon footprint.

Badajoz, Pamplona and Valladolid are also taking important steps towards a network of electric buses, serving as an example of commitment to the reduction of polluting gases in cities. More and more cities are becoming aware of pollution in urban transport, and the implementation of electric buses is a solution to be taken into account.

Buses of the future

Every year, new vehicle models of different brands are manufactured and launched on the market. The automotive sector is one of the areas where technological advances have the greatest influence. In this case, buses have benefited from new technologies, allowing the creation of electric buses, increased by the constant concern about pollution.

Technological advances have brought a number of advantages and opportunities for buses, such as longer battery life or self-sufficient buses that do not need personnel to drive them. It is difficult to imagine what the bus of the future will be like, but here are some clues.

Driverless electric buses

The driverless electric buses can already be considered a reality. The company Avanza has started this trend, betting on technology for sustainable mobility. This company has introduced the first driverless electric buses to transport passengers arriving from cruise ships from the port of Malaga to the center of the Andalusian city.

Buses with recycled materials

The idea of making an electric bus has evolved to the point where it is self-sufficient and runs on recycled materials. In addition, it is capable of collecting traffic information to help authorities and efficiently manage users at the stop.

The company Local Motors is the protagonist of launching this bus and is focused on using new technologies to solve the mobility problems of citizens with sustainable ideas. At the moment, the company is in the testing phase in less populated localities, but its goal is to take the step to big cities.

Clean air buses

Technological innovation to reduce air pollution continues to grow, and the Bluestar bus is capable of eliminating up to 65 polluting particles while it travels. The idea of manufacturing these state-of-the-art buses came from the British company Go Ahead and they are in major cities such as Manchester and Newcastle.

The company's purpose is to turn around the concept that all vehicles pollute and demonstrate that buses can be key to reducing pollution in cities.

Electric highways

Known as eHighway, these are electric cable roads for hybrid trucks. This may be a viable option to incorporate into the network of electric buses that are in operation today, and may serve as a driver for increased electric bus manufacturing.

The first eHighway was created in Sweden and has also been implemented in Germany. Another option that could not be implemented was the idea of creating a network of buses in China that would run above the traffic, making the journey faster and smoother. The idea was tested in the city of Qinhuangdao and the results were not as expected, generating more traffic and increasing mobility problems.

Electric buses are already an option to consider, and in Meep you can find routes to use them in cities that have already implemented them. Spanish cities will gradually join the change and in the future they will have fleets made up entirely of electric buses.

If you want to know more about sustainable mobility, check out our Meep blog and discover valuable information on various topics. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.