Representatives of the Management Board of Solaris Bus & Coach S.A. have signed the European Clean Bus Deployment Initiative. The document, signed by, among others, the European Commission and the largest manufacturers in the industry, expresses support for the mass deployment of completely zero-emission buses and those with alternative drives.
The European Initiative – as the authors of the document emphasize – is an initiative based on three pillars. These are: a commitment by cities and manufacturers to a joint mission to accelerate the process of reducing exhaust emissions, the creation of a platform for the exchange of information between city authorities, transport operators, and financial organizations, as well as the establishment of a group of experts who will provide professional expertise in the fields of technology, economics, and logistics.
In the justification for the creation of the aforementioned Initiative, the European Commission emphasizes that zero-emission transport is the most effective form of public mobility in regions and cities. Low-emission mobility brings significant benefits to residents while simultaneously increasing the innovation and competitiveness of the industry. In Europe, this process has already begun, as evidenced by the recent actions of the authorities of the largest European metropolises. For example, Athens, Paris, and Madrid plan to eliminate conventional combustion engines from public transport by 2025. Other cities and regions have also announced plans to stop purchasing conventionally powered buses. Among them are Copenhagen (since 2014), London (2018), Berlin (2020), and Oslo (2020). Warsaw, meanwhile, has recently declared the introduction of another 130 vehicles (it has already purchased 30 electric buses) with electric drive by 2020.
The signatories of the document created by the European Committee of the Regions, in addition to Solaris Bus & Coach S.A. and other major European manufacturers, also include representatives of European metropolises and operators. Solaris, mindful of contemporary challenges related to the depletion of natural resources, climate change, and excessive environmental pollution, has been taking a number of actions to minimize its negative impact on individual elements of the environment, providing ecological public transport vehicles since 2001. One of the zero-emission products offered by the Polish manufacturer – the new Solaris Urbino 12 electric – was awarded the title of Bus of the Year 2017.