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With a series of 16 new generation Citeas, VDL is expanding its long-standing co-operation with KVG Braunschweig
Kraftverkehrsgesellschaft mbH Braunschweig will get a series of 16 new generation Citeas in 2023. The vehicles of type LF-122 are based entirely on an electric drive train and have trend-setting features. VDL Bus & Coach is thus expanding its long-term cooperation with KVG Braunschweig.
At the end of last month VDL Bus & Coach received the first order from STOAG Stadtwerke Oberhausen GmbH for the new generation of Citeas in Germany. Kraftverkehrsgesellschaft mbH Braunschweig has also opted to make public transport more sustainable by purchasing new Citeas, which will be used on various routes in the north German city starting next year.
New phase
“Kraftverkehrsgesellschaft mbH Braunschweig and VDL Bus & Coach have for many years enjoyed a good and successful collaboration, which is now entering a new phase," says Boris Höltermann of VDL Bus & Coach Deutschland GmbH. "We are very proud of the development we have gone through with this customer: from the Citea LLE to the Citea SLF-E and now to our new generation Citea. This is another step towards a sustainable future, right on our doorstep.”
The electric buses have a battery pack of 429 kWh. The range of the new generation of Citeas has been considerably improved: with this battery, the LF-122 (Low Floor) can travel up to 300 kilometres on pure electric power without any intermediate recharging, even in harsh weather conditions. In the new generation of Citeas, it is not only the driver's seating position that has been greatly improved, but also the steering column, with a greater range of adjustment and lower steering forces for optimum comfort. The vehicles also have a larger passenger capacity and a highly efficient heat pump air conditioning system without additional diesel heating.
13 million passengers
As a regional public transport company, Kraftverkehrsgesellschaft mbH Braunschweig meets the mobility needs of around 13 million passengers every year with almost 200 buses. More than 400 employees ensure that customers reach their destination in a reliable, comfortable, safe and well-informed manner. Passengers have been relying on the services of Kraftverkehrsgesellschaft mbH Braunschweig since 1909.
With the company's orientation towards climate-friendly public transport, the focus is on the gradual conversion of the bus fleet to alternative drives, and in particular to electric mobility. “We want to significantly reduce our CO2 emissions,” stresses KVG Braunschweig's managing director Axel Gierga. “The last diesel bus must be purchased by 2030 at the latest. In doing so, we will benefit from the high innovation rate of the manufacturers, who, like VDL in this case, can supply suitable models for our growing demand.”
New generation Citea
VDL Bus & Coach has become one of the leading players in Europe in the field of e-mobility. Since the introduction of the first Citea SLF-120 Electric in Geneva, during the UITP Mobility & City Transport exhibition in 2013, VDL Bus & Coach has focused strongly on electric mobility. In 2021, VDL Bus & Coach presented the new generation of electric Citeas. Based on the VDL vision, a bus concept has been developed that is entirely based on an electric drive train and ready for the future, with zero emissions as a matter of course.
Batteries in the floor, a one-piece composite side wall, clever energy management, a sophisticated climate control system and an ergonomic driver's environment. With these 5 important innovations, VDL Bus & Coach introduces the new generation Citea product range, consisting of 4 length variants and 5 types. The range of the new generation Citeas has improved significantly.
The new generation Citeas have already been sold in several countries and will be deployed in a number of cities and areas starting this year: The Netherlands (Eindhoven), Finland (Kotka and Lahti), Belgium (all of Flanders), Germany (Oberhausen) and France (Bordeaux). Currently, more than 1,000 electric VDL Citeas are in operation in 11 countries, delivered between 2015 and the first quarter of 2022. VDL Bus & Coach is well on its way to the 200 million kilometre mark for electric vehicles.