Roadside

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/corporate/projectsandschemes/2019.aspx

Hybrid buses in use

There are 301 diesel-electric hybrid buses in London, running on routes 3, 12, 15, 16, 19, 23, 24, 38, 73, 76, 94, 139, 141, 188, 211, 380, 328, 360, 371, 436, H91 and E8.

How they work

Hybrid buses are powered by a mix of an ordinary diesel engine and an electric motor.

The hybrid buses we use also have regenerative braking, which means they generate electrical energy when the brakes are pressed.

This electrical energy is stored in a battery pack and used to drive the electric motor.

Download our factsheet on hybrid technology (PDF 102KB)

The hybrid programme

Since the initial introduction of hybrid buses in 2006, manufacturers have developed variations of hybrid systems for trial in London. The trial has helped develop newer generations of hybrid bus for full scale roll out.

The programme to deliver 300 hybrid buses has been achieved ahead of the December 2012 target. This milestone is now complete but our work with bus operators and manufacturers of increasing the number of hybrid buses across the London bus network will continue. By March 2013, an additional 150 hybrid buses will be expected to have joined the fleet. In addition the Mayor is committed as part of his manifesto to deliver 600 NBfL hybrid buses by April 2016.

The pace of the roll-out of hybrid buses will depend on available funding streams and standard route contract tenders.

Environmental benefits

We test hybrid buses to make sure they produce fewer greenhouse gas emissions, harmful pollutants and lower noise levels.

Compared with diesel buses, hybrid buses deliver environmental benefits, including:

• Minimum 30 per cent reduction in fuel use
• Minimum 30 per cent reduction in carbon dioxide
• 3 decibel [dB(A)] reduction in perceived sound levels
• Reduced oxides of nitrogen and carbon monoxide

HK Standard

Clear the Air says: This is what they need in Central, Causeway Bay and Mongkok with only hybrid , electric or Euro VI buses plying the busy routes like Nathan Road and other designated Clean Air Zones.

Only then will we start to see lower roadside pollution in those areas.

Submitted by admin on Nov 6th 2012, 12:00am

Business

LAI SEE

Howard Winn

It’s long been known that vehicles using old diesel engines cause a high proportion of Hong Kong’s roadside pollution. This was confirmed by the release of Hong Kong’s 2010 Air Pollutant Emission Inventory recently. It revealed that a relatively small number of old diesel-engined vehicles were causing a relatively high amount of roadside pollution.

The organisation Clean Air Network has worked on this information and calculates that commercial diesel vehicles – pre Euro, Euro I and Euro II – account for only 10 per cent of the vehicles on the road but account for 73 per cent of total roadside respirable suspended particulates (PM10) and 34 per cent of total roadside nitrogen oxides (NOx).

The reason for this is that the older engines are vastly more polluting than properly tuned newer engines. A pre-Euro engine, for example, produces 34 times more respirable particles than a Euro IV engine and 2.6 times more NOx. Even a Euro III engine produces five times more PM10 particles than a Euro IV and 1.4 times as much NOx.

If the network is right, getting rid of Euro II engines and those below it, would reduce PM10 particles by 73 per cent and a significant amount of NOx. According to the Hedley Environmental Index, the high level of roadside emissions in Hong Kong has resulted in an average of 3,200 avoidable deaths each year for the past five years.

This is a figure which the government has evidently felt quite comfortable with even though it exceeds by a long way the number of deaths due to bird flu, Sars, and swine flu, diseases that receive far more attention.

Getting rid of highly polluting vehicles is low-hanging fruit and is hopefully something that can be achieved relatively easily by the Environmental Protection Department.

Have you got any stories that Lai See should know about? E-mail them to howard.winn@scmp.com [1]

Topics:

Air Pollution in Hong Kong

roadside pollution

—–Original Message—–
From: charleswu@epd.gov.hk [mailto:charleswu@epd.gov.hk]
Sent: 26 June, 2012 09:18
To: James Middleton
Cc: paulwong@epd.gov.hk; enquiry@epd.gov.hk
Subject: Fw: E(12/1466) Euro 6 subsidy by Dutch Govt (HKG still has Euro II
and III polluting bus trash on its roads)

Dear Mr. Middleton,

Thank you for your suggestion.

As franchised buses are one of the major sources of roadside air pollution
at busy corridors, in the 2010-11 Policy Address the Chief Executive
announced that the Government plans to designate pilot low-emission zones
(LEZs) in busy districts such as Causeway Bay, Central and Mong Kok. We
will increase as far as possible the ratio of low-emission franchised buses
running in these zones from 2011, with the target of having only
low-emission buses in these zones by 2015.  Upon the Government’s request,
the relevant franchised bus companies have deployed low-emission buses to
routes serving the pilot LEZs as far as practicable since 2011.

As regards the trial of hybrid bus, in the 2010-11 Policy Address, the
Chief Executive announced that the Government will fund the full cost of
procuring six hybrid buses for use by the franchised bus companies along
busy corridors to test the operational efficiency and performance of these
buses under Hong Kong conditions and to collect operational data.  The
franchised bus companies are now in the process of procuring suitable
hybrid buses and the buses will be put on road for trial in early 2014.

Electric buses do not have tailpipe emissions.  Replacing conventional
franchised buses with electric buses can substantially improve roadside air
quality, particularly along busy corridors.  It is the Government’s
ultimate policy objective to have zero emission buses running across the
territory.  Further to trial of hybrid buses, the Chief Executive proposed
in his Policy Address last October to earmark $180 million for franchised
bus companies to purchase 36 electric buses for trial runs on a number of
routes to assess their performance in different conditions.  We are now
seeking funding from the Finance Committee of the Legislative Council for
the trial of electric buses by the franchised bus companies.

As for existing buses, the Government is conducting a trial together with
the franchised bus companies on retrofitting Euro II and III franchised
buses with selective catalytic reduction devices to reduce their nitrogen
oxides emissions.  Together with the diesel particulate filters already
installed on the buses, this could upgrade the emission performance of the
buses to the level of Euro IV or V buses.  Subject to satisfactory trial
results, we will fully fund the retrofit of the devices on Euro II and III
buses, and bus companies will bear the subsequent operational and
maintenance costs.

Thank you for your concern on the environment.

Regards,

Charles C.K. WU

Environmental Protection Officer

—– Forwarded by Paul KC WONG/EPD/HKSARG on 20/06/2012 09:31 —–

“James Middleton”    <dynamco@netvigator.com>      To
<paulwong@epd.gov.hk>
cc
19/06/2012 19:17                 <kswong@rlphk.com>
Subject    RE: E(12/1466) Euro 6   subsidy by Dutch Govt (HKG
still has Euro II and III
polluting bus trash on its roads)

Dear Paul
that is the wrong way round
Government could stipulate clean air zones for Nathan Rd , Central and
Causeway Bay very quickly, with political will, sadly lacking from this
lame duck administration and current pathetic minister for the
enviroprevarication

Make the law and the bus companies will comply, as simple as that, even
Donald Tsang’s brother at Citybus NWFB would  have to comply once his
brother vacates in 11 days and the new Minister actually does some work
instead of 60 overseas trips in 59 months away from Hong Kong, including
his last jaunt to Europe to visit a Scottish distillery with associated
hangers on , trips paid for from the public purse.

Meanwhile testing electric buses is pointless for HK’s terrain and aircon
needs – we need double deck hybrids like London where the small Euro 5
engine and the brakes charge the batteries.

James

From: paulwong@epd.gov.hk [mailto:paulwong@epd.gov.hk]
Sent: 19 June, 2012 17:07
To: dynamco@netvigator.com
Cc: “E[KM]1″@epd.gov.hk; “SI[KM]1″@epd.gov.hk; enquiry@epd.gov.hk;
vanessaau@epd.gov.hk
Subject: Fw: E(12/1466) Euro 6 subsidy by Dutch Govt (HKG still has Euro II
and III polluting bus trash on its roads)

Dear Mr. Middleton

Thank you for your email.

When we tighten the vehicle emission standards in Hong Kong, we will make
reference to the international practice and the availability of compliant
vehicle models in Hong Kong. Starting from June 2012, all newly registered
heavy duty vehicles including franchised buses in Hong Kong are required to
comply with Euro V emission standards. The European Union will implement
the Euro VI emission standards for heavy duty vehicle in phases starting
from 2013 and fully implement in 2014.  At the moment, there is no Euro VI
heavy duty vehicle available in Hong Kong. We will continue to monitor the
Euro VI vehicle model supply situation in Hong Kong and decide to introduce
the Euro VI emission standards in Hong Kong as soon as possible.

For franchised buses, as the latest commercially available models in Hong
Kong are Euro V buses at this stage, the franchised bus companies are
currently procuring Euro V buses for replacement.

Thanks
Paul Wong
Assistant Environmental Protection Officer

—– Forwarded by EPD_Enquiry/EPD/HKSARG on 14/06/2012 14:48 —–

EPD_Enquiry/EP
D/HKSARG

Dear James Middleton,

Thank you for your email dated 13.06.2012.

I would like to inform you that our colleagues are processing your request
and may need a few more days to come back to you.

Please let me know if you do not hear from us after about 5 working days.
Thank you.

Yours sincerely,
Enquiry/KMU
Environmental Protection Department

“James Middleton” <
dynamco@netvigator.com>

To
13/06/2012 19:52                “EPD HKG” <enquiry@epd.gov.hk>
cc
<kswong@rlphk.com>
Subject
E(12/1466) Euro 6 subsidy by Dutch Govt
(HKG still has Euro II and III polluting
bus trash on its roads)

Dear EPD,

We note that replacement buses in Hong Kong under franchise agreements must
be of the Best Available Current Technology.

Does Hong Kong have Euro 6 diesel ?

Are new diesel buses here mandated to be Euro 6 compliant, given the
projected lifetime of the vehicles  ?

If not why not ?

Yours sincerely,
James Middleton
Chairman
www.cleartheair.org.hk

Dutch subsidy for Euro VI trucks and buses In the Netherlands, heavy-duty
vehicles(trucks and buses) that meet the new Euro VI standards will be
subsidised by up to 4500 euro each in 2012 and 2013.
The Euro
VI standards will become mandatory for all new heavy-duty vehicles from
2014.
Tests by the Dutch environment consultancy TNO have shown that the new Euro
VI engines can reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) by more than
90 per cent in real driving conditions, as compared to Euro V and earlier
Eurostandard engines.
Source: Dutch government press release, 30 May 2012.
Link:
http://www.rijksoverheid.nl/nieuws/2012/05/30/subsidie-voor-schoonste-truck
s-en-bussen.html

“The sulphur content of ship fuels will be cut to 0.1% from 2015 in the
Baltic Sea and the North

Sea, and to 0.5% from 2020 in other EU waters. As a result, emissions of
sulphur dioxide

from shipping in Europe will come down by more than 80 per cent.”

Hong Kong has no rules governing the use of  bunker fuel which varies
between 2.75 – 4+% sulphur ,

no Emissions Control Area legislation (ECA).

The local HKG Environmental Prevarication Department  passes the
responsibility to China to enact ECA legislation in Hong Kong waters

leaving only volunteer action by the Fairwinds Charter members to burn Low
Sulphur Diesel at anchor in HKG port.  Yet vehicular ULSD is rightly

limited to parts per million.

31% of HKG’s particulates and 25% of local NOx and Sox come from marine
emissions.