Buses will run all day on a 7.6 kilometer route. But even then, there is still much to be done. Anyone who pays close attention to the streets of Bielefeld will be able to spot the hydrogen buses in the next few days, because the drivers are currently being trained.
A total of 30 men and women will drive the hydrogen buses in trial operation. They were able to volunteer and showed a particular interest in new technology and training. They all receive about three hours of theoretical instruction from Mobiel’s driving school before starting work. There is also enough room to try things out, test drive and ask questions.
Among other things, drivers learn all about the general technology of the bus. The goal is to understand how the bus converts power and where the individual components are installed. In diesel Mobiel cars, most of the technology is still in the bus, while in H2 buses the crucial technology is installed on the roof.
Like a computer, hydrogen buses must first run
Driver Niklas Kitschke has already participated in the training and says: “The technical and chemical processes are particularly interesting. For example, we learned that the electricity produced with hydrogen in a fuel cell does not go directly to the engine, but is stored in the battery. You have to understand these logical connections so that you can from operating the bus and being able to drive it properly.”
Hydrogen buses do not run like diesels and are immediately ready for use, but must first boot like a computer. This process takes about a minute and a half. In addition, driving behavior, similar to electric cars, is much faster than that of combustion engines. Instead of outside mirrors, new buses have cameras whose images are projected to the driver on a screen. Feature: The blind spot is almost fully lit.
Mobile driving instructor Axel Stork: “Of course, the driver’s seat is not very different from other buses. However, there are some new screens and digital displays. Among other things, drivers must be able to see how much the battery is charged and whether the fuel cell is producing Sufficient power. In addition, refueling works a little differently than diesel. The bottom line is that there is a lot to learn.”
Fuel cells are located on the roof of buses
Gerhard Swatsky is responsible for the project at Mobiel: “When the vehicles hit the road at the end of April, we are openly talking about a test run. The proven technology works great in other vehicles and we assume everything is going well. But you can never rule out teething problems with new technologies. “.
The buses are four 12-meter buses from the Portuguese company Caetano, of the type H2 City Gold. Tested in northern Germany for a good year. At the same time as in Bielefeld, vehicles are now also used in Barcelona and Wiesbaden. On the roof of the buses are Toyota fuel cells, which have already been installed thousands of times in the Mirai car model.
The battery-only electric bus has been around for quite some time. Swatsky is excited: “The challenge is that these components are now being assembled in a wagon. It remains to be seen how well the technology works together.”
The trial run should also show how far buses can go with a tank load of 37.5kg of hydrogen.
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