The boss of UTC Power, Jan van Dokkum, predicts that hydrogen fuel cell buses will soon be more cost effective than diesel buses.

For fuel cell buses, the future looks bright. Manufacturing costs are continuing to fall, their reliability is improving and with the rising cost of diesel fuel, their long-term cost savings are increasing according to a report at Business Green.

There is also government support to get the industry moving. California recently introduced “The zero emission vehicle legislation” which requires a proportion of vehicles (including buses) to be emission free from 2012.

“I don’t mind admitting I was a bit nervous about putting the first generation busses in commercial circulation,” said Van Dokkum. “But they have proved far more reliable than expected, particularly when you consider that the duty cycle of a bus is very heavy and it has to transport a lot of weight while repeatedly stopping and starting.”

Source:
Business Green