ලන්ඩන් බස් කෞතුකාරයේ එලිදුටු අලුත්ම ඩබල් ඩෙකර් එක

BYDs red double decker bus unveiled at London Bus Museum

The iconic red double-decker bus has been a staple of London's public transportation landscape since the 1920s.

Over the past decade, older models have been gradually replaced with electric versions to meet the city's clean air targets.

London already has around 1,300 zero-emissions buses on its streets, with plans to convert the city's entire fleet by 2034, a goal that could potentially be accelerated to 2030 with continued government investment.

As London has one of the biggest bus networks in the world, there's a big demand for more electric buses to join the fleet.

The London Bus Museum in Britain recently unveiled the latest state-of-the-art double decker bus built by Chinese new energy vehicle (NEV) giant BYD.

Against this backdrop, BYD launched its own version of the double decker, offering greater battery power and capacity as its key selling points. With space to accommodate up to 90 passengers, the BD11 is equipped with BYD's latest-generation blade batteries with a market-leading capacity of up to 532 kWh.

"Uniquely, this bus is the first example of us using our new blade battery in a commercial vehicle, and what that brings with it is advantages of safety, performance and value for money," said Frank Thorpe, managing director of BYD UK Commercial Vehicles.

The bus has a range of up to 400 miles from a single charge, making it ideal for London's lengthy bus routes.

"So we can see here that what's really unique is that the battery is being used as a structural component within the vehicle," Thorpe said.

In addition, BYD said its design allows for more space for passengers and better temperature control for the capital's varied climate. Its tight turning circle also makes it well-suited for navigating London's narrow streets and heavy traffic.

"For the end user, nothing looks any different. They see a red bus. But they are getting all the benefit of this technology," said Thorpe.

London already has lower emissions than many other major cities. And several manufacturers contribute to a range of electric, hybrid and diesel buses. BYD developers are hoping that the special design of its new bus is going to contribute to London's cleaner air.

"London has really high ambitions for the bus network to become zero emissions by 2030, and that's going to be a hell of a lot of work. So, really our work starts now. But we have a great foundation with which to push on," Thorpe said.

Though the details of any deal with Transport for London (TfL) have yet to be announced, BYD hopes its new double-decker bus design will move from the test track to providing a passenger service by the end of this year.

BYD entered the UK bus market in 2013 and today a fleet of over 1,800 BYD electric buses ply UK streets, racking up mileage of over 127 million km, equivalent to a reduction of 137,000 tons of CO2 emissions, according to BYD.

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