BYD Goes Big with Electric Bus

China’s BYD Co. says its 27-meter (89-ft) K12A electric bus is the world’s longest full-electric model ever.

The vehicle can carry as many as 250 people. A bi-articulated design separates the vehicle into three segments with accordion-style dividers that enable the elongated bus to negotiate corners.

BYD reports that the bus has a top speed of 70 kmh (43 mph) and can travel 300 km (186 miles) between battery charges. The vehicle uses BYD’s electric motors, electronic controls, batteries and battery heat management and energy regeneration technologies.
 

BYD claims the K12A is the first electric bus equipped with distributed all-wheel drive. This allows the bus to switch between 2WD and AWD as needed to improve driving dynamics and improve efficiency.

The first application for the bus will be in BYD’s headquarters city of Shenzhen, China. BYD also expects the K12A will be used in bus rapid transit (BRT) programs, which were pioneered in Brazil and are now spreading to other regions. BRT features dedicated bus lanes, special intersection treatment, platform-level boarding and remote fee payment.

BYD has delivered a market-leading 50,000 electric buses worldwide since introducing its first model in Shenzhen in 2011. The company, which has manufacturing plants in Brazil, China, France, Hungary and the U.S., says its buses are operating in 50 countries.