BusToCoach

EUROPEAN ON-LINE MAGAZINE - May 2013

BRT IS SERVED SETRA IN ITALY - PLAXTON PANTHER - CASTROSUA - TEMSA FOR IZMIR - OPTARE BONITO - SAFRA BUSINOVA - FLASH NEWS - HIGH TECH AT UITP

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ON-LINE MAGAZINE linked www.bustocoach.com - May 2013

IRISBUSCrealis Neo of 12 to 18

metres for BRT systems.

BusToCoachEuropean on-line magazine

Editor in chiefMarino Ginanneschi

marino.ginanneschi@bustocoach.com

Managing editor and International relations

Elena Prearoelena.prearo@bustocoach.com

Photos and videos Marco Degano

marco.degano@bustocoach.com

AdministrationTransport Web di Marco Degano & C Snc

I 20149 MilanoVia Silva 33

E-mail: bustocoach@bustocoach.comInternet: www.bustocoach.com

Registration: Tribunale di Milano n. 140 del 16/03/2012

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FLASH NEWSMercedes, Volvo, Irisbus,

Indcar and Optare.

SETRA 80th Setra bus for Di Fonzo.

With Euro VI engine.

HIGH TECH STOREThings to discover at

UITP in Geneva.

PLAXTONTourist coach Panther now

in the 10.8 metres size.

TEMSADeliveries of 300 Avenue

buses to Izmir have begun.

CASTROSUADeliveries of City Versus buses

built on Scania and Volvo chassis.

DIRECT LINK COLUMNS

IN THE FOREGROUND

OPTAREBonito is the name of the new low floor minibus on Ducato.

SAFRAThe 10.5 metres Businova

multi-hybrid urban bus.

USED BUS ON LINEOn www.bustocoach.com

websiteis on line the directory

dedicated to Used.

If you want to sell or buy a bus, here’s the right way.

You can make your insertion or search vehicles for sale.

***You can access through

the site, selecting the USED directory or going directly to

the linkwww.bustocoach.com/en/content/announcements

ALL IN ROME BY YEAR END

THE new Irisbus Citelis buses for Atac, public transport company in the

Italian Capital city, have been publicly presented during a ceremony that took place in the charming setting of Piazza Venezia in Rome. They are the first four vehicles of an order of almost 340 buses

commissioned to Iveco Irisbus through dealer Romana Diesel. 200 Citelis in the 12-metre and 130 in the 18-metre articulated version have been purchased via a leasing formula. The Citelis series models make use of FPT Industrial Cursor 8 EEV compliant diesel engines of 290 hp for the 12-metre version and 380 hp for the articulated version. The vehicles are equipped with air conditioning system, LED internal illumination, ergonomic seats, video surveillance system, multimedia displays, voice announcement system. By the end of the year all vehicles will be delivered in batches of 50 units per month. •

WING AND APTINEO IN EUROPE

TWO Wing Indcar minibuses begun service in the streets of Paris. With bodywork on Mer-

cedes Vario 816d/48 mechanics, the vehicles fit 17 Vogel Top 2020 seats equipped with safety belts and two-point mounts. On another front, the first units of an order for Aptineo buses have been delivered to Northern Europe. The Aptineo is a model of the Vehixel range commercialized by Indcar as part of a partnership with the French producer aimed at the expansion of their respective vehicle ranges in European markets. Built on Iveco 70C17 chassis and mounting EEV engines, they are low floor buses equipped with 21 Vogel Ligerus seats. The equipment includes a special isothermal insulation and a heating system enhanced by a Webasto 2016 preheater, tested for the very cold weather temperatures of northern climates.•

CITARO LE EURO VI

THE UK operator Lothian Buses took delivery of ten Volvo

7900 hybrid buses. These are the first Vol-vo 7900s delivered in the UK and Ireland. Funded with £1.5 million from the Scot-tish Green Bus Fund, the vehicles enter service in Edinburgh. The 7900H is the new complete Volvo vehicle built on a hybrid driveline. It’s a 12.1 metre single deck bus with a body

frame specifically designed to save weight and therefore reduce fuel consumption. Volvo claims 30 per cent less emissions and 60 per cent less fuel than a diesel bus. The vehicle is featured with a Volvo D5F 4.8 litre 4 cylinder engine (215 hp) and supported by a Volvo electric motor, rated at 120 kW, with a Volvo I-Shift gearbox. The hybrid engine’s ‘stop start’ feature allows the vehicle pulling away from the bus stop in pure electric mode. The 7900H also includes electronically controlled air suspension and smooth pneumatically controlled EBS 5 braking. The hybrid battery and several of the systems and cooling cir-cuits are roof-mounted. This increases internal space and also optimise weight distribution. Passengers on board are 89 seated and standing. •

VOLVO HYBRIDS IN SCOTLAND

THE first two Mercedes-Benz Citaro Low Entry buses

with Euro 6 engines were handed over to the German bus company ‘infra fürth verkehr gmbh’ which is responsible for the pulic local transport in the Franco-nian city of Fürth. The vehicles are fit-ted with 50 City Star passenger seats, a wheelchair space, stop request but-tons and a lean-on area with integrated mother/child folding seat plus two additional folding seats in the standing platform area opposite the second door. The two 19-inch TFT monitors are linked to the integrated on-board information system (IBIS) which displays information on the vehicle’s progress along the route as well as the next stop and event notices or advertisements. In addition to a video monitoring system for door 2, the operator also ordered a reversing camera which can be used not only as a parking aid but also to monitor the area around the rear of the vehicle. The images are transferred to a video monitor in the driver’s cockpit. Additional safety equipment includes a fire alarm and extinguishing system in the engine compartment. •

ELECTRIC BUSES FOR NOTTINGHAMN ottingham City Council placed another order

for Optare electric buses. After eight Optare Solo EV buses already in regular service, they commissioned 20 more electric buses: ten Optare Solo SR midibus and the same number of the Versa model. Although the Nottingham specifica-tions have yet to be finalised, the largest Solo SR

model can carry up to 33 seated passengers plus standees and the largest version of Versa can carry up to 40 passengers plus standees. The buses will be equipped with a rapid charge system allowing them to use charging stations being installed at the Queen’s Drive Park and Ride site on the outskirts of the city. Part of the financing for the new buses is coming from the Government’s Green Bus Fund, which covers the additional cost of the electric driveline. •

BusToCoach on-line Magazine - May 2013 FLASH NEWS

BusToCoach on-line Magazine - May 2013

Setra S 515 HD for Di Fonzo

HIGH Fidelity

O nce again bus transport company Di Fon-zo opts for the Setra brand. This latest

acquisition brings the total number of Setra buses commissioned in almost fifteen years to eighty.Vehicle number 80 is a model of the new ComfortClass 500 range launched by Setra last year. It’s a two-axle S 515 HD painted in the operator’s black livery.The vehicle is fitted with 49 comforta-ble seats and will be used on Euro-pean routes as well as in inter-regional transport services between Rome and Vasto, a town on

the Adriatic coast where Di Fonzo is hea-dquartered.The ComfortClass 500 series features a new design concept that, in addition to enhance the vehicle’s outlook, it also provides a significan-tly lower weight as well as an intelligent ma-nagement of fuel and electricity consumption.ComfortClass 500 models make use of Euro

VI exhaust emission standard engines (in force for new vehicles from 2014) along with nume-rous other require-ments in terms of safety and required features that will en-ter into force in the coming years.The number of Setra

buses currently used by Di Fonzo amounts to nearly 50 percent of the entire fleet, that is 60 vehicles out of 140 in total.Di Fonzo transport company (based in Abruzzo, Italy) and the manufacturer from Ulm have a long relationship. In fact, it was way back in 1999 that Di Fonzo‘s very first Setra vehicle was purchased, an S 315 HDH. •

The 80th Setra bus in transport company Di Fonzo’s fleet is a S 515 HD from the ComfortClass 500 series with Euro VI

emission standard engine

10.8 metres Plaxton Panther

The Third OPTION

THE Panther range by UK manufac-turer Plaxton (Alexander Den-

nis Group) is welcoming a new model. The 12.8 and 15 metre versions will soon be joi-ned by the shorter variant in the size of 10.8 metre.First presented at the 2013 UK Coach Rally, an event whi-ch was held April 20 to 21 in Staffordshire (United King-dom), the new version of the Panther tourist coach is built on a Volvo B9R chassis and is equipped with a Euro V emis-sions standards 380 hp 9-litre engine and Volvo I-Shift tran-smission.The vehicle can seat up to 45 passengers and can be customised with all the equipment available for the Panther series.«This is a segment of the market we have

been monitoring for some time» points out Kevin Wood, Director of Business Development at Alexander Dennis/Plax-ton. «Our research shows there is a steady demand for high-quality touring coaches

which offer the same stan-d a r d o f c o m f o r t a s full-size mo-dels but in a slightly smal-ler package this new mo-del fills a gap in our current line-up».Built on a du-rable stainless steel frame, the Panther t o u r i s t c o -aches were

introduced in the market in 1999. A de-cade later Plaxton introduced the second generation models with an updated look as well as upgraded materials and techno-logy. They debuted at the Euro Bus Expo in Birmingham in 2010. •

Plaxton introduces the latest model in the Panther tourist coach family.

It’s 10.8 metres long and fits 45 passengers

BusToCoach on-line Magazine - May 2013

Latest deliveries by Castrosua

Citybus forSPAIN

L atest deliveries by Iberian coach builder Castrosua consist of City Versus urban

buses. Three vehicles have been delivered to Autobuses Urbanos, transport company of the city of Elche in southern Spain. They are built on Scania N 230 UB4X2 chassis with EEV engine.The vehicles are 12 meters long and have three doors. E q u i p m e n t includes tele-scopic ramp, Metropolis 1.0 series Fainsa seats and Hi-spacold 12L Plus air condi-tioning system.The vehicles are also equipped with the Scania Fleet Management system that makes use of Sca-nia Communicator (a small ‘black box’) to automatically record information about the vehicle and to send all data directly to the manager. Information includes data on fuel

consumption and driving times. It is even possible to find out how many times the brake pedal has been stepped on with some force over a chosen period of time.Destination Canary Island instead for

three City Ver-sus delivered to Guaguas Mu-nicipales, the company that manages public transport in Las Palmas (Gran Canaria).In this case the buses are built on Volvo B9SLA chassis. These vehicles have triple ac-cess and come in the 18-metre articulated ver-

sion. The cabin accommodates up to 46 passengers sitting on Fainsa Ideo10 seats and is equipped with a camera on the cen-tral door, a ramp, Hispacold 18NA air con-ditioning system and FogMaker fire alarm system. •

Three City Versus urban buses with Castrosua bodywork built on Scania chassis have been delivered to Elche

(Spain). Another three such vehicles with Volvo mechanics

Temsa Avenue to Izmir

FIRST Arrivals

THE populous city of Izmir in we-st-central Turkey (3.5 million

inhabitants and the third largest city in the country) is investing in public transport. With the introduction of the first 70 of the 300 buses commissioned last year, the plan to moder-nise the city’s road-transport fleet has begun. For this very large renewal plan (total inve-stments amount to about € 33 mi l l ion) the city of Izmir entrusted Tem-sa, leading ma-nufacturer in the domestic bus industry. Temsa put forward the Avenue, a 12-metre low-floor city bus with three doors. This model is available in the conventional die-sel version and also in the hybrid and CNG variants.The 300 Avenue ordered for the city of Izmir are equipped with Euro 5 diesel engine along with automatic transmission. Air conditio-ning system is included as standard. Deli-

veries of the remaining 230 Avenue buses will be completed by the end of August and all vehicles will be put into service on the transport network managed by municipal company Eshot that is also the supplier of electricity, water and gas, as well as public

transportation to the city of Izmir. The 300 new b u s e s w i l l make a major contribution to the renewal of the Eshot fleet: average age of running vehi-cles will drop to 5 years. •

70 Temsa Avenue city buses delivered to the city of Izmir (Turkey), part of an order for 300 units signed last year by

public transport operator Eshot

Trapeze develops innovati-ve and high-quality solu-

tions and products for optimi-sing services and operations control of public transport companies and authorities. At the UITP World Congress and Mobility & City Transport Exhibition, which will be held in Geneva from 26 to 30 May

2013, the company will present a trend-setting ticketing so-lution for the entire field of public passenger transport. In addition, at its Booth 2D430, Hall 2, Trapeze will display the newest planning systems, operations control technology, vehicle equipment and passenger information and fare ma-nagement systems for bus and train services. In the Expo Forums, the company will present its “Eco-Dri-ving - Driver Monitoring” solution. This tool allows public passenger transport companies to make a sustainable con-tribution to protecting the environment and enables them to enhance travel comfort and cut fuel consumption. •

S iemens is offering innova t ive and

flexible concepts for fully electric urban buses (eBus), as well as eBRT systems that can be integrated into many vehicle chassis, and are thus manufac-turer-neutral. One such example comes from the electric buses manu-factured by Italian company Rampini for Wiener Linien, Vienna’s public transport authority, and that have made Siemens the first manufacturer in Europe to put fully electric buses into regular urban service. In this case, battery-charging takes place at the terminus and over-night in the depot, via a roof-mounted pantograph that collects current from the existing network of overhead power lines. Compared with conventional city buses, the vehicles’ electrical equipment brings with it no limitations in terms of space or functionality for passengers and drivers. •

SOLUTIONS FOR TPL

FULLY ELECTRICINFORMATION

From the 1st of Ja-nuary 2014 class

M2 und M3 vehicles (Buses) have to be equipped with a fire detection system in the engine compartment if it is located in the rear of the bus. The sensors must response to tem-peratures of the engine and its components high enough igniting fluids and other fire sensitive materials.The 3rd amendment of the UN/ECE Bus Directive requests an optical and acoustical signal for the driver if any fire hazard occurs. Therefore firedect developed for retrofit an independent warning system for easy assembly. The display will be pla-ced at the dashboard and needs 24V DC power supply. All kind of sensors, for temperature in the engine compartme-nt or smoke in the toilet, sleep or luggage compartment, could be connected in line. As failures are automatically detected, the warning system is failsafe. •

K entkart, who has been listed between the top

10 exporting companies of Turkey in consumer electro-nics, implements Automatic Vehicle Management and Pas-senger Information Systems in Miskolc, Hungary.The Kentkart On-board Com-

puter Units which have been installed in 515 buses, provides pas-senger information system and automatic vehicle management that consists of realtime vehicle tracking, planning and schedu-ling, emergency call management with two way communication between driver and dispatching center, fleet management and comphrensive reports and analyses covering speed and route vio-lations. The Automatic Vehicle Management system will enable to track all the vehicles on real-time and will provide comprehe-sive reports in archive. It will also send immediate alarm signals in case the driver does not follow the predefined route and speed rules or does not start the operation according to planned time ta-ble. Passenger Information System will inform passengers about the expected arrival time of buses to the current bus stop.In 2011 Kentkart was the winner of innovation award in UI-TP’s competition in Dubai. •

BEWARE OF THE FIREB elgian manufacturer Van Hool will present at the UITP

congress (Geneva, Switzerland, May 26-30) the first “Exqui.City design Geneva” vehicle of the 33 ordered by the Swiss public transport company TPG (Transports

Publics Ge-n e v o i s ) . It’s the ar-t i c u l a t e d trolley ver-sion of the Exqui.City, a futuristic

model in design which combines the flexibility of a bus with the efficiency of a tram. Both the 18m and the 24m models have a multi propulsion platform so that they can be configured in various, environmentally-friendly versions such as a trolley, hybrid systems (diesel-electric and CNG-electric), fuel cell hybrid or full electric bus. They offer a high level of comfort with air-conditio-ning, a low noise level, soft lighting and guarantee a good accessibility thanks to the low floor and the four double doors. The “Exqui.City design Geneva” was un-veiled in a roadworthy prototype at the Busworld 2011 in Kortrijk, Belgium. The vehicles are 18m long and the traction is provided by two powered axles. Developed by Van Hool in close collaboration the TPG, they will go into service this year and next. •

BusToCoach on-line Magazine - May 2013 HIGH TECH STORE

EXQUI.CITY GENEVA

Mercedes Benz will present the Citaro Euro VI at the meeting in Geneva. Just recently these vehicles gai-

ned the appreciation of Swiss operator Baselland Tran-sport AG (BLT) which has ordered nine units. These are the first standard-production regular-service Euro VI solo buses to go into service with BLT in Switzerland. The Citaro meeting Euro VI is powered by new engines and has an extensive emission control system. To compensate the additional weight of the Euro VI components, Merce-des-Benz implemented a number of measures such as the lightweight fibreglass-reinforced-plastic (FRP) roof and the weight-optimised rear axle.. This means that the Citaro Euro 6 has the same payload and therefore the same passenger transport capacity as the Citaro Euro V. •

CITARO EURO VI

BusToCoach on-line Magazine - May 2013

Optare preview

The Small BONITO

NEW arrival in the Optare family with the introduction of Bo-

nito, a model that marks the return of the Bri-tish manufacturer in the minibuses market. Apart from the name, everything else is new: design, structure, engines, weight and measu-res. Nothing to do with the Bonito on Ford Transit marketed by Optare until recently and built on Ferqui bodywork in Spain.The new Bonito is built on a Fiat Ducato me-chanical base on a glass reinforced polyester composite chassisless structural body produ-ced by Plastisol in the Netherlands. This cor-rosion-resistant structure ensures a long life

cycle and a lower unladen weight allowing to maximise the payload while reducing fuel consumption.The Bonito is 7.5 metres long, 2.2 wide and 2.65 high. It’s a fully low floor vehicle noti-ceable for the deep sloping front windscreen, the round headlights, the large side windows and the bright interiors.The vehicle is accessed by a wide single outward sliding door. Rear access is reserved to wheelchair passengers via an automatic double door and a manual ramp. The passen-gers compartment accommodates up to 16 seated passengers on Rescroft CT Lite seats. On request it can be equipped with Phoenix Hydra aluminium framed units with high back

Lenght mm 7,500 Width mm 2,200 Height mm 2,650 Wheelbase mm 5,000 Seats n. 16+1 (12+1H+1) Empty weight kg 3,700 Perm. GWV kg 5,000 Engine Iveco Power kW (cv)/rpm 117 (159)/3,600 Torque Nm/rpm 400/1,400 Gearbox manual 6 speed Tyres 215/75 R 16

DIMENSIONS

rest and built-in handles. The seats are moun-ted on Unwin tracking for easy removal and layout reconfiguration in case one wants to increase the number of wheelchair passengers transported (up to a maximum of seven).The equipment includes LED strip lighting

and blue ambient spot lights, CD/MP3 player with four speakers, anti-slip floor. Also as stan-dard equipment there is a 5 kw Eberspacher heating system, whi-le an HVAC system integrating heating, ventilation and air conditioning is avai-lable as optional.

The vehicle is equipped with a control unit with an interactive display (to the right side of the dashboard) for the monitoring via CAN-Bus of various body parts.The dashboard and the driver’s area are ori-ginal Fiat Ducato. The vehicle is powered by the transversely mounted 159 hp 3-litre Multijet Iveco engine, Euro 5 emission stan-dard compliant through a particulate filter. It comes with a six-speed manual transmis-sion, however, on request it is also available with semi-automatic Comfortmatic six-speed transmission. The entire braking system is on discs. Electronically controlled ECAS front suspension is available on request.Optare expects to sell 150 Bonito units a year. There are certainly good opportunities in the UK market where the share of minibuses is estimated to amount to 3-4 thousand vehicles a year. •

British company Optare re-enters the minibus market segment with the new Bonito low-floor model. The vehicle is made on a self-supporting structure built in the Netherlands

BusToCoach on-line Magazine - May 2013

Businova by Safra on the streets of Toulouse

Multi-hybrid Citybus

F irst presented at Transport Publics in Paris in June 2012, the Businova by

Safra is back on the spotlight. This time the occasion was the 44th edition of the exhibition fair in Albi, a town in southern France, where Safra (Albigeoise Société de Fabrication et Réparation Automobile) is headquartered. Since 1955 Safra sup-plies the bodywork for passenger transport vehicles. From April 13 to 21, this original prototype has captured the attention of the audience thanks to its novelty design and its peculiar propulsion system.Designed and developed by Safra for urban transport, Businova is built on a bi-modular

chassis with a patented multi-hybrid propul-sion system consisting of a combustion en-gine (74 kW), electric motor (90 kW) and hydraulic system (200 kW). The vehicle has an hydraulic start, while it runs on electric energy supplied by a 146 kWh NCM lithiu-m-ion battery pack. The combustion engine is put into use to compensate for auxiliary consumption. The three energy sources work together and are arranged in a block that re-distributes power efficiently. The vehicle is also equipped with a brake energy recovery system. This Businova prototype promises to reduce fuel costs and emissions.«If a conventional combustion bus consumes

The Businova concept bus was seen on display at the fair in Albi (France). It features innovative design and propulsion

system with combustion, electric and hydraulic engine

Lenght mm 10,500 Width mm 2,500 Height mm 3,200 Turning circle mm 19,000 Seats n. 16+1H+75 Perm. GWV kg 16,000 Electric motor kW 90/120 Hydraulic motor kW 200 Diesel motor kW 74 Battery pack / kWh lithiun-ion / 146

DIMENSIONS

about 40 litres of fuel per 100 km, while an hybrid counterpart is able to reduce fuel con-sumption by 20-25% using about 30 litres per 100 kilometres,” Safra claims, “Businova has done even better by demonstrating to consu-me less than 15 litres per 100 km, thanks to the multi-hybrid propulsion system that also allows to significantly reduce emissions of pollutant gases».The power block is situated under the rear area of the body and its total weight is redu-ced by 20 percent compared to a conventional bus (the empty vehicle weights 10 tons). In this way it was possible to increase passen-gers capacity to a maximum of 90. This is no small amount for a bus that measures only

10 meters in length.The innova-tive element of Businova is also reflected in the design of the vehicle, featuring an all “glass rotunda” (including the ceiling), two rather large access doors, lateral roof windows, a spacious driver’s area and wheels fairing. It features an all flat floor up to the “glass rotunda” which is accessed via four steps.Patent of the Businova is currently pending. The debut is expected by the end of 2013 on the Tisséo network of Toulouse, southern France. •

FOR five years the Crealis has been Irisbus Iveco’s answer to the de-

mand for the embellishment and the enhance-ment of urban transport networks through the use of BRT systems (Bus Rapid Transit). In this context, the Crealis Neo model (featur-ing curved sloping lines at the front) embod-ies the aesthetic celebration of the concept of dynamism, typical of BRT systems: rapid movements, regular service and high trans-port capacity.

PAIR OF ACES

BusToCoach on-line Magazine - May 2013

Lenght mm 12,325 18,235 Width mm 2,400 2,550 Height mm 3,223 3,223 Wheelbase mm 6,120 5,355+6,675 Front overhang mm 3,045 3,045 Rear overhang mm 3,160 3,160 Turning circle mm 21,932 23,744 Perm. GWV kg 19,000 29,100 Seats n. 24+1H+86 38+1H+126 Engine Cursor 8 Power cv 245 / 290 290 / 380 Torque Nm 1,100 1,100 / 1,500 Gearbox automatic ZF or Voith Tyres 275/70 R 22.5

CREALIS NEO 12 NEO 18

IRISBUS IVECO - CREALIS NEO

If efficiency at the core of BRT systems is due to an urban network of dedicated lanes, the buses deployed also need to stand out for reasons other than innovative design, such as better performance in terms of users’ comfort and travel information.This is the case for the Crealis Neo manu-factured in the French plant in Annonay in two versions: the 12.3-metre two-axle ver-sion and the 18.2-metre articulated version. In both cases, external appearance can be made even more appealing if one chooses optional wheel nut covers and sub-window glazing portions. The vehicle has a full flat floor and externally sliding doors (with the exception of the first door that opens inward) allowing both greater boarding flow ease and improved access for passengers with reduced mobility.Based on the Citelis city bus series, the Crealis Neo closely borrows from its basic manufacturing features, starting with the six sections self-supporting structure with a roof panel made of steel sheets, polyester front and rear ends and aluminium sheet side pa-nels.The vehicle is powered by the 7.8-litre Iveco Cursor 8 engine transverse mounted behind the rear hood. Engines are available in the power range from 245 to 290 hp (180 to 213 kW) for the 12.3-metre and from 290 to 380 hp (213 to 280 kW) for the 18.2-metre.

IT is 33 cm longer than the basic version Crea-

lis and this additional space is entirely used to stretch the front

overhang and make space for the driver’s area on a two steps raised platform that increases visibility and safety for the driver.In the front there is a double inward sliding door while the other two doors have external roto-translating openings instead.

Onboard, there is a fully lowe-red flat floor for a capacity of up to 32 seats plus wheelchair area.Customisation options inclu-de: additional glazing below the windows, interior panels for travel information, special floor coatings and special seats layout. •

NEO 12

For the time being the-se engines meet Euro V or EEV emission stan-dards via SCR system with AdBlue injection, without particulate filter except for the 380 hp engine that needs FAP to meet EEV standards.New Euro VI engines will also be available by the end of the year. The Crealis Neo will then be powered by the new Cursor 9 (8.7-litre engi-ne with a higher power range) with HI-eSCR (High Efficiency SCR), advanced catalytic re-duction system paten-ted by FPT Industrial, working without the use of EGR (exhaust gas

recirculation) and with decreased exhaust emissions and total cost of ownership (TCO).There is also a choice between Voith and ZF automatic transmission, whose program can be optimised in relation to the itinerary thanks to their respective Sensotop and To-podin systems.Full air suspensions have self-levelling sen-sors and take advantage of the independent wheels geometry of the ZF-RI75 front axle. Also, the discs braking system is inclusive of ABS (ASR is available on request) and integrated hydraulic retarder incorporated into the gearbox.Light coloured laminated plastic coverings and seats matching handrail tones contribute to the interior’s brightness, already enhanced by large double glazing side windows. Artifi-cial illumination is entirely provided by Led lights while air conditioning can be chosen between ventilation only or roof mounted air conditioning systems for passengers and driver’s area alongside a convectors heating system with a 30 kW generator.To date, there are about 300 Crealis and Cre-alis Neo buses in service on BRT networks, mostly in France where they are better known with the name of BHNS (Bus à Haut Niveau de Service). •

THE four-doors a r-ticulated version

Crealis Neo fits a maximum of 44 seats, leaving room for an-other 125 standing passengers.

The driver’s cabin is protected (with or without anti-aggression barrier) and is equipped with pneumatic suspension seat with lumbar support (30 degrees rota-tion on request), VDV standard instrument panel, height and inclination adjustable steering wheel, a choice to add dedicated

air conditioning and heating sys-tems to the standard ventilation. The instrument panel comes

with the predisposition for sound system and for onboard security camera monitors. •

NEO 18