{"id":268,"date":"2025-06-25T07:07:02","date_gmt":"2025-06-25T05:00:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/magyarbusz.info\/en\/?p=268"},"modified":"2025-06-27T11:16:01","modified_gmt":"2025-06-27T09:16:01","slug":"the-first-unit-of-the-119-strong-hess-electric-bus-fleet-built-for-rapid-charging-has-arrived-in-geneva","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/magyarbusz.info\/en\/2025\/06\/25\/the-first-unit-of-the-119-strong-hess-electric-bus-fleet-built-for-rapid-charging-has-arrived-in-geneva\/","title":{"rendered":"The first unit of the 119-strong Hess electric bus fleet built for rapid charging has arrived in Geneva"},"content":{"rendered":"

The first unit of the 119-strong articulated and double-articulated Hess lighTram fleet<\/a> has arrived in Geneva, which the tpg transport company plans to use to replace the entire diesel bus fleet of the Swiss city. The company intends to gradually phase out the current fleet of 145 diesel buses from public service by 2030; during this period, the lighTram contingent, consisting of 65 traditional and 54 double-articulated, purely electric buses, will enter service.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The first vehicle arrived early last week at the tpg’s maintenance center located in the Bachet-de-Pesay district, where trial operation tests and preparations for service will soon begin. The electric bus is expected to enter regular service on December 14, 2025, after the homologation process is completed. It will transport its first passengers on line 5, which runs between the Gen\u00e8ve-A\u00e9roport-Terminal and Th\u00f4nex, Vallard stops. This route will be the first of TPG’s six bus lines to fully transition to battery-electric operation over the next five years. Following the delivery of this unit, more vehicles will arrive in the coming months, with several already set to use the newly established charging stations.<\/p>\n

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Photo: Stefano Maiorana<\/p><\/div>\n

The 18.75-meter-long articulated electric bus is the first result of a comprehensive development project jointly realized by Swiss Hess and Geneva-based Hitachi Energy. The collaboration between the two companies extends not only to the vehicles themselves but also to a fully integrated system that includes the electric drivetrain, energy storage, and the infrastructure based on opportunity charging rapid charging.<\/p>\n

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Photo: tpg<\/p><\/div>\n

The technical foundation of the project is the TOSA (Trolleybus Optimisation Syst\u00e8me d\u2019Alimentation) rapid charging system, originally developed by ABB. The technology is now applied and further developed by Hitachi Energy; the company was previously a joint venture between ABB and Hitachi, with Hitachi acquiring ABB’s stake in full in 2022. The solution developed in the TOSA program allows for high-power charging of batteries within a few seconds at designated stops and terminals. This system not only improves energy efficiency but also allows for the use of smaller, lighter batteries that are more durable and better suited to the operational needs of vehicles navigating dense urban traffic.<\/p>\n

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Photo: Stefano Maiorana<\/p><\/div>\n

The charging system provided by Hitachi Energy is designed to charge the lithium-titanate oxide (LTO) batteries mounted on the bus roof with enough energy during passenger exchange to complete the next segment. Charging occurs through overhead charging arm columns, enabling the vehicle to operate with smaller but more durable energy storage systems. The first unit is equipped with a total of 132 kWh LTO battery capacity, placed in four modules. This technology, which handles frequent charge-discharge cycles well, is said by the manufacturer to ensure a lifespan of up to 20 years, negating the need for battery replacement during the vehicle’s entire operational life, which represents significant economic and environmental benefits for the operator.<\/p>\n

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Fot\u00f3: Stefano Maiorana<\/p><\/div>\n

The system also offers advantages in safety, as the stable chemical composition, low energy density, and high mechanical resistance of LTO batteries provide enhanced fire protection. Additionally, advancements in charging technology\u2014especially the performance enhancement and logic optimization of the TOSA system\u2014allow for fewer charging points to be established on the network, thereby reducing the extent of urban interventions and the visual impact on the urban environment.<\/p>\n

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Photo: tpg<\/p><\/div>\n

The charging stations will be installed along six bus lines and in the tpg bus garages. The infrastructure necessary for the entire project will be financed by the Republic and Canton of Geneva; 17 million Swiss francs have been allocated for the establishment of rapid chargers, in addition to a 350 million franc grant for the acquisition of new vehicles, including new trams.<\/p>\n\n

Cover photo: Stefano Maiorana<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The first unit of the 119-strong articulated and double-articulated Hess lighTram fleet has arrived in Geneva, which the tpg transport company plans to use to replace the entire diesel bus fleet of the Swiss city. The company intends to gradually phase out the current fleet of 145 diesel buses from public service by 2030; during […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":276,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,8],"tags":[62,103,97,152,153,154,155,156,157,58,48,158],"class_list":["post-268","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-outlook","tag-articulated","tag-battery-powered","tag-bi-articulated","tag-geneva","tag-hess","tag-hitachi-energy","tag-lightram-19-tosa","tag-lightram-25-tosa","tag-lto","tag-procurement","tag-switzerland","tag-tpg"],"acf":{"mbi_related_box_multiple":"","mbi_gallery_enabled":false,"mbi_gallery_manual_order":"Kompakt","mbi_gallery_source":"Ehhez a cikkhez felt\u00f6lt\u00f6tt k\u00e9pek","mbi_gallery_images":null},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/magyarbusz.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/magyarbusz.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/magyarbusz.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magyarbusz.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magyarbusz.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=268"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/magyarbusz.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":356,"href":"https:\/\/magyarbusz.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268\/revisions\/356"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magyarbusz.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/276"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/magyarbusz.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=268"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magyarbusz.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=268"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magyarbusz.info\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=268"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}