SWO Mobil in Osnabrück has ordered 19 Mercedes-Benz eCitaro buses, following Europe-wide tender. They are set to be delivered from 2025. The total capacity of the five 98.3 kWh battery packs installed on each of the buses amounts to 491.5 kWh and “enables them to cover an operating range of around 270 kilometres, which is more than sufficient for a regular-service route”, Daimler Buses states. The batteries are charged via depot charging at the depot of Stadtwerke Osnabrück.
In the city several VDL e-buses are currently in operation, covering 5 lines. At the end of March 2019, the MetroBus line M1 was converted to pure electric operation; this was followed by the MetroBus axes M2, M3, M5. M4.
Mercedes eCitaro for Osnabrück
The two-axle eCitaro solo buses now ordered by SWO Mobil are 12 metres long and have three entrance doors. Each of the 19 buses, which are painted in the red and white colours of SWO Mobil, has a maximum transport capacity of 69 passengers: up to 30 seats and 39 standing places. A manually operated folding ramp at the rear entrance door facilitates the use of the buses for passengers with reduced mobility.
The passenger compartment is equipped with numerous USB double charging sockets allowing for mobile devices to be charged. An environmentally friendly CO2 air-conditioning system, which is operated with the R744 refrigerant, operates in combination with a CO2 heat pump.
The headlamps for low-beam driving light, high beam, cornering lights, daytime running lights and contour lights, as well as the perimeter lighting in the entrance, are designed using LED technology. A roll/pitch control system (WNR) is also installed in the vehicles.
