Navitrans, representative of Zhongtong in Colombia, continues its process of socialization and presentation to the operators and authorities of the city of Medellín, of its electric vehicles for urban passenger service.
On this occasion, we were fortunate to participate in a performance test, touring the intricate streets of the Manrique Oriental sector (on Flota Nueva Villa route 080), aboard an 8.9-meter bus, with capacity for 50 passengers.
The vehicle designed and developed entirely in China, equips CATL batteries with a storage capacity of 255 kWh, and has a 245 Kw (320Hp) motor that allows it to function with solvency, even on the steepest streets of the hills. Eastern of the Capital of the Mountain.
According to Juan Gonzalo Merino, general manager of the Nueva Villa Fleet, the vehicle has fulfilled the expectations of the organization during the trial period, allowing them to comply with their philosophy of environmental social responsibility. “We have achieved a range of between 240 and 250 kilometers on a full charge. The battery has been depleted until leaving it at only 20% of its capacity; the charging process to reach 98% takes two hours” he added.
It is worth clarifying that to carry out these tests, Navitrans has been in charge of providing the fast charging infrastructure on loan, with a high-capacity portable device.
The voice of the users
Humberto Hernández has been the driver chosen to be the test pilot of the new technology. He has been behind the wheel of public service vehicles for more than 22 years, and until a few days ago, he was driving a Diesel bus. “This bus feels different, it is much softer and more comfortable than the traditional ones. It feels like it has very good power and braking power” says Humberto.
But Hernández is not only training for the operation of this new technology. He has also received first-hand feedback from people, and of course from his passengers. “When boarding the bus they tell me what a beautiful bus! Do you pay by card? It's a car that you don't feel, and the users get off very happy” he added.
Ludys Adriana Jiménez uses the route 80 service every day and for the first time, she has boarded the electric bus. “I thought I had got on a subway car, it's very smooth and quiet,” she told Latinobus.
The size and power of this type of bus is ideal for moving in cities with complex topography such as Medellín. There we managed to overcome slopes of more than 15% with the full number of passengers, and maneuver with ease thanks to the forward direction of the bus. Navitrans hopes in the near future to be able to offer this platform as a body chassis to be assembled by local shipowners according to the needs of their customers.