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Toyota Motor Corp will begin to sell fuel cell buses (FC buses) from early 2017. Having already undergone repeated field tests for practical use, the Bureau of Transportation of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government plans to utilize two of these FC buses (model name: Toyota FC Bus) as fixed-route buses.
Toyota plans to introduce over 100 FC buses mainly in the Tokyo area, ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games. In view of this, the FC buses will be sold for the first time in Japan in early 2017, so as to help increase the level of understanding by the general public of the utilization of FC buses as a form of public transportation.
Moreover, in preparation for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the number of FC buses being introduced will increase steadily going forward. Together with this, Toyota aims to engage continuously in the diligent development targeted at the expansion of the introduction of the new FC buses from 2018 so as to contribute to the realization of a hydrogen-based society.
The Toyota FC Bus was developed by Toyota, based on the company's experience in developing FC buses together with Hino Motors, Ltd. The Toyota Fuel Cell System (TFCS), which was developed for the Mirai fuel cell vehicle (FCV), has been adopted to provide better energy efficiency in comparison with internal combustion engines, as well as to deliver superior environmental performance with no CO2 emissions or substances of concern (SOCs) when driving.
The bus also uses a high-capacity external power supply system. With a power supply capable of a 9 kW maximum output, and a large capacity of electricity supply at 235 kWh, the FC bus can be used as a power source in the event of disasters, such as at evacuation sites such as in school gymnasiums or, its electricity supply can also be harnessed for home electric appliance use.
The Toyota Group considers the use of hydrogen to be a powerful source of energy for the future. Toyota has released the Mirai FCV, while also engaging in the technological and product development of FC buses, fuel cell forklifts, as well as stationary fuel cells for use in homes. Going forward, the group will accelerate developments in a unified manner, so as to contribute to the realization of a hydrogen-based society.
© JCN Newswire
4 Comments
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Strychnine
I hope this works! I eagerly await the day when we slow down or stop burning oil for fuel.
Tahoochi
StrychnineOCT. 25, 2016 - 10:33AM JST
....and then burn a different fuel. I used to think fuel cell/hydrogen was the bomb (no pun intended) until I read about how much energy it takes to produce and store it. Let's just say it has its critics.
albaleo
It does. But I guess it's good to have competition between those pushing for hydrogen fuel cells and those for charged batteries (e.g. Tesla, Nissan).
kohakuebisu
Like taxis running on LPG, fuel cell buses have a big advantage in that they can refuel at a depot. They don't need filling stations equipped with hydrogen all over the place, one of the big obstacles for fuel cell cars.
Fuel cell buses also replace diesels, so less NOx and PM in the cities.