USA BYD has officially unveiled what it describes as the world’s first 100% battery electric full size coach. The C9 is a two-axle, 40-foot vehicle that seats 47 and a range of 190 miles. It’s the first of three 100% battery electric coaches the company will launch globally this year. The other two are the 45-feet three-axle C10 and the 23-feet executive C6. BYD says that it’s taking orders for all three now.
“The transportation industry is still just warming up to the idea of battery electric transit buses,” said BYD Coach & Bus Vice President of Sales, Macy Neshati. “It was exciting to walk around last year’s APTA Expo in Houston and see so many reputable names displaying an electrified transit bus. However, I don’t think anybody thought they would see a viable electric coach solution for a few more years.
“Last year, BYD pulled away from the competition when they launched a 30-foot low-floor bus and a 60-foot articulated bus in addition to their 40-foot bus making them the only electric bus builder with multiple offerings. This year the launch of three coach buses puts BYD on a level with no other bus or coach OEM. Not many people know this about BYD but we are a multibillion-dollar company employing nearly 190,000 people worldwide. There simply has never been a bus manufacturer in the United States with this sort of engineering or manufacturing power, that’s why I tell every customer I meet with they should go BYD, it’s the safe choice!”
