Volvo electric provides seasonal show in Gothenburg
SWEDEN ElectriCity, where Volvo is one of the main participants, is now following up its viral success with acoustic concerts given by Swedish artists among passengers on electric bus route 55. This time it is offering Gothenburg’s citizens a mobile Christmas show. The electric bus itself is providing the entertainment in the form of a light show accompanied by traditional Christmas music while travelling through central Gothenburg.
The surprise concerts given in September on board buses on service 55 by Seinabo Sey and Zara Larsson caught the public’s attention in both Sweden and abroad, getting more than 2.6m views on Facebook and YouTube.
“The previous ‘Silent Bus Sessions’ campaign highlighted one of the major benefits of electric buses – how quiet they are,” said Helena Lind, PR Manager at Volvo Buses. “We want to use the Christmas show to highlight in a fun way that the electric bus allows the city’s traditional noise to be replaced by pleasant sounds.”
The Christmas greetings being extended to Gothenburg’s citizens can be seen and heard along the, which passes along Avenyn and Östra Hamngatan in the city centre. The route normally only runs on weekdays, but an exception was to be made on the weekend of December 5-6 when the Christmas bus was to run between 1000hrs and 1800hrs.
“One way you can look at the Christmas bus is like a mobile Christmas card which we are using to send Christmas greetings to Gothenburg’s citizens, while also spotlighting a successful venture where innovation and sustainability combine to create an attractive means of public transport,” said Lars Backström, Managing Director of operator Västtrafik.
ElectriCity is a collaborative project between academia, industry and the public sector and is aimed at developing, demonstrating and evaluating new sustainable public transport systems for the future. Testing and evaluation of electric bus transport is a central part of ElectriCity. Silent, emission-free public transport can operate in places where traffic is currently banned. This opens up new possibilities for urban planning in towns and cities.
The three electric buses on the route run on renewable electricity and are energy-efficient, silent and completely emission-free. They run on batteries that are quickly recharged with renewable electricity at the bus terminus stops. Passengers have access to onboard WiFi and phone charging facilities. The Teknikgatan bus stop on Lindholmen is indoors.
Besides the three electric vehicles, the route has a number of electric hybrid buses which run on electricity for approximately 70% of the route. In addition to the buses, ElectriCity develops and tests new bus stop solutions, transport management systems, safety concepts and energy supply systems. There are 14 partners: Volvo Group, Region Västra Götaland, Västtrafik, the City of Gothenburg, Chalmers University of Technology, the Swedish Energy Agency, Johanneberg Science Park, Lindholmen Science Park, Business Region Göteborg, Göteborg Energi, Keolis, Älvstranden Utveckling, Chalmersfastigheter and Akademiska Hus.
