Kiel North America announced July 16, that the company is delivering its seating solutions for one of North America’s greenest fleets in public transportation. The project is developed in collaboration with Complete Coach Works (CCW) and will be introduced to Indianapolis Public Transportation Corp. (IndyGo) customers this year.
“This project is coming at a time when our ridership is at a record high, with over 10 million trips in 2014. The project is another opportunity to show the forward thinking and progressive work being done, creating more interest in public transportation,” said Mike Terry, president and CEO at IndyGo.
The remanufactured bus fleet runs on lithium-ion batteries that will be recharged by a newly installed array of solar panels located on the main garage of the transportation corporation. Unlike vehicles powered with diesel, IndyGo’s electric buses omit no harmful CO2-gases or noise in an effort to reduce air and noise pollution.
In order for the buses to have a range of 130 miles per charge it was imperative to keep the overall weight of the vehicles as low as possible. Using a lightweight seating option for each of the ZEPS’s 39 passenger seats has been a factor in creating an energy efficient public transportation.
“This project is proving to be one of our most ambitious yet,” commented Richard Sullivan, vice president of sales and marketing at Complete Coach Works.“Such a lightweight all-electric bus could not be executed without innovative materials, and Kiel North America was the perfect company to partner up with for quality seating.”
“The vision and dedication of both IndyGo and CCW leaders to make this project come to fruition is truly amazing, and it was a great honor for us to be part of it,” comments Thomas Schwank, general manager of Kiel North America. “It shows that energy efficiency, operational savings, and sustainability can go hand in hand to provide customers with increased value also in the long term. It truly defines the 21st century for public transportation.”
