Leading commercial vehicle electrification specialist, Equipmake, has just launched the Jewel E electric bus in partnership with Spanish coachbuilder Beulas. It boasts an impressive range of up to 250 miles (402km), making it the longest range of any electric double-decker in the world.
It features a cutting-edge British-built electric powertrain designed and developed at Equipmake’s purpose-built facility in Norfolk, UK. This matched with a body produced by Beulas in Girona, Spain.
Equipmake provides electric vehicle (EV) technology to automotive OEMs and specialist supercar makers. They produce everything from industry-leading high-performance electric motors to inverters and power electronic systems, all the way up to complete EV drivetrains, while also operating across marine, off-highway, emergency vehicles and aerospace.
The Jewel E is a cost-effective and highly efficient electric double-decker bus that will help to reduce local emissions in urban environments. It will also improve air quality and reduce running costs for operators, no matter which town or city.
It will also help meet ever-increasing enormous demand for electric buses. The global electric bus market is expected to accelerate from 300,000 vehicles per annum to one million by 2030.
The Jewel E is set to be manufactured in 2022 at an all-new facility in Norfolk and will bring new jobs to the area. It will also play a key role in helping UK Government achieve its target of introducing at least 4,000 more British-built zero emission buses into the UK market by 2024, through its Bus Back Better national strategy.
Under the skin lies Equipmake’s advanced propulsion technology Zero Emission Drivetrain (ZED). This is modular and scaleable, capable of supporting different bus sizes. ZED is already being used in single-decker form on the streets of Buenos Aires, Argentina as part of an Equipmake partnership with Agrale.
The Jewel E will be the first electric bus to meet Transport for London’s 2024 bus safety requirements. In London alone, buses on the capital city’s streets cover over 475 million kilometres a year, forming an integral part of the transport network.
Transport for London (TfL) bus safety standard specifications and requirements for 2024 include enhanced safety features to give the public, drivers and passengers peace of mind. It is suitable for operation in both London and the surrounding UK provinces.
Ian Foley, Equipmake managing director, said: “Improving urban air quality is a global problem. At the same time, operators want vehicles that are cost-effective and highly efficient, while Governments and local bodies need bus manufacturers to bring advanced technology to market quickly.
Equipmake has taken all of this into account and the result is our innovative new EV double-decker, Jewel E. With demand increasing globally for electric buses, we believe it provides the right solution both nationally and internationally.”
Testing of Jewel E begins later this year with in-service trials expected to take place in early 2022. Manufacture and sales of Jewel E will begin in 2022.
