Glasgow Airport is trialling a fully-electric bus to transfer passengers between the terminal and aircraft parked on remote stands.
The eCOBUS, built on a Mercedes-Benz chassis with an aluminium body to ensure long life in Scottish weather conditions, has been used to transfer delegates and support staff during the COP26 summit.
The vehicle has lithium batteries located on the roof to increase capacity in the bus and requires no additional temperature management.
Batteries can be charged in less than 50 minutes and the bus operates almost silently.
Kirsty Webster, Sustainability Manager at Glasgow Airport said, “The environmental benefits and considerable cost reductions associated with the introduction of electric vehicles are very attractive, so we are keen to see how the eCOBUS operates during this trial period.”
In 2019, Glasgow Airport introduced zero-emission electric buses for operations to and from the long-stay car park, cutting carbon emissions from 143 tonnes per year to zero by replacing diesel buses.
Patricia Vasconcelos, Chief Executive of COBUS Industries said, “Airports are facing challenges improving sustainability and making operations more environmentally-friendly.”
“The team of COBUS Industries, manufacturer of the COBUS airfield bus, is following this movement with large ambitions and high motivation to offer passengers the best possible comfort in our COBUS airfield bus and help our customers to drive their ambitious goals towards environmental protection, sustainability, and future-oriented technologies on airports.”
