Volvo is to introduce its hybrid buses to India next year. It says it is the first bus manufacturer to do so. The hybrids will begin running as part of a pilot in Navi Mumbai, a planned township to the south of Mumbai, and its surrounding areas.
The Navi Mumbai pilot comes off the back of the Indian government's recently launched Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric vehicles in India scheme (FAME India), which is aimed at encouraging the uptake of electric and hybrid vehicles in the country by way of incentives.
It will be run in partnership with the Navi Mumbai Municipal Transport (NMMT) transport service and the buses trialed will be manufactured at Volvo's factory in Bangalore. They will join Volvo's existing fleet of around 1,500 conventional buses that the firm says are operating in 34 Indian cities.
Volvo says it has sold more than 2,300 hybrid buses in over 20 countries, including its home country of Sweden. It says they deliver up to 39 percent lower fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions than regular diesel buses.
Source: Volvo
