Already today, Lublin meets over thirty-percent threshold of share of zero emission vehicles in the fleet in total and is in the lead of electro-mobile systems in our country and even in Europe. The hosts of the city would like Lublin to be one of the first cities in Poland where hydrogen-powered buses will be used in public transportation.
The vehicle that is going to be introduced in the city in August this year has a length of 12 metres; it uses 6 kilograms of fuel as a maximum per 100 km and does not produce any harmful substance. The Municipal Transport Company in Lublin and Solaris Bus & Coach have signed a contract for purchase and delivery of a hydrogen bus to serve as public transportation.
- The commissioned hydrogen bus is a brand new vehicle, air-conditioned, low platform, adjusted to the needs of persons with disabilities, equipped with a ticket machines and a system for passenger counting, thus standards that the passengers of public transportation are familiar with - enumerates Artur Szymczyk, Deputy Mayor of the City of Lublin for Investment and Development. ‘The scope of the order also encompasses purchase and delivery of a mobile battery. The value of the bus exceeds PLN 3.7 million gross.
The purchase is co-financed from the ‘Low Emission Network of Public Transportation for Northern Part of the LFA along with Construction of Electronic Ticket System of Agglomeration Transport’ as part of the Eastern Poland Operational Programme 2014-2020.
Hydrogen Bus: Technological Trendsetter
The hydrogen bus is the cleanest means of transport, not emitting any exhaust and simultaneously having unlimited source of energy at its disposal. Secondly, it is a technological challenge that overcomes the drawbacks of electric vehicles. This is related to coverage or problems with battery utilisation. But we are also dealing with a mix of various solutions that offer an alternative with respect to traditional vehicles polluting the environment and encountering the barrier of ever higher energy prices.
Purchasing such vehicle will also allow for compiling the necessary experience with respect to servicing and exploitation of hydrogen buses, the use of which in public transportation in the next years will continue to grow. It will also deliver data about maintenance and allow for calculation of future costs related to its use.
- The European Union promotes hydrogen technology and in relation to this, preferential and very advantageous forms of co-financing from EU funds for purchase of hydrogen buses and infrastructure for charging them are available now - claims Artur Szymczyk. All of this will be of essence in the future, bearing in mind successive replacement of the fleet.
Technology of the Future
A hydrogen bus is as quiet as its electric equivalent, because it is also powered with an electric engine. The difference consists in the fact that a hydrogen vehicle does not collect power from a battery, but produces it from hydrogen. Gas from containers goes to the fuel cell where it is mixed with oxygen from air. This is how electric energy is created and the side product is steam. Even though hydrogen buses are more expensive to produce than the ones supplied with traditional fuel, in a long-term perspective their ecological benefits and lower costs of maintenance compensate the investment.
3W Idea Improves Residents’ Life
- The 3W idea creates a space for cooperation of scientists, entrepreneurs, local governments and financial institutions. Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego connects administration, world of science and business which may facilitate financial and implementation of innovations by the local government. A solid partner guarantees that excellent ideas of innovators will be used to improve the quality of municipal services - stresses Artur Szymczyk.
- To reduce the impact of climate changes on our environment, it is also necessary to increase the city’s resistance in the context of occurrence of extreme hydrological phenomena and to make sustainable use of the available water – the 3W idea may support these goals, contributing to improved quality of life of the residents - adds Deputy Mayor of Lublin for Investment and Development.
Cooperation in Agreement
On 8 November 2022, a tripartite agreement on cooperation between ARTHUR, the Lublin University of Technology and MPK Lublin was signed in the City Hall. In the document, the parties declare their readiness to cooperate with respect to education and sourcing qualified personnel by organising student internship programmes, participating in job fairs organised by the Lublin University of Technology, and in the realm of science by jointly performing research.
Sustainable Management of Resources
The 3W idea is a vision of the future where – as a society in whole – resources at our disposal are managed sustainably and where the quality of our life can be sustained and improved, at the same time consuming less energy and fewer non-renewable resources.
The project of hydrogen transport in Lublin forms a part of this vision, and the city has joined the group of #3Wlocalgovernment.
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